Date of Award
1-1-2009
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Organizational Unit
Graduate School of Social Work, Morgridge College of Education
First Advisor
Walter LaMendola, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Kathy Green, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Susan Manning
Fourth Advisor
Duan Zhang
Keywords
Confirmatory factor analysis, Communities of practice, Grounded theory, Multidimensional item response theory, Social work education, Social work values
Abstract
This study addresses questions about the nature of relationships between personal and professional value systems and between personal and professional identities, about motivations for engaging in a social work community of practice, and about alternative statistical methods for evaluating the psychometric properties of an original measure of motivation for participation in a social work community of practice. By merging communities of practice theory, derived from social learning theory, and critical social realist theory, this study bridges an ideological gap between the origins and evolution of personal and social identities. The study utilizes a mixed-method approach to (1) develop a measure of motivations for participating in a community of practice and compare confirmatory factor analysis and multidimensional item response theory in the evaluation of the measure, (2) assess a theoretically derived structural equation model relating attitudes toward diversity, endorsement of professional social work values, and motivations for entering a MSW program, and (3) develop a grounded theory of how students experience and make sense of the interaction, negotiation, and resolution of personal values about diversity, attitudes towards professional social work values, and motivations for pursuing a MSW degree. Implications are identified and discussed for (1) the field of psychometrics, (2) social work education, and (3) social work practice.
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Philip Jonathan Osteen
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
File Format
application/pdf
Language
en
File Size
368 p.
Recommended Citation
Osteen, Philip Jonathan, "A Critical Realist Exploration of the Relationship Between Personal and Professional Value Systems in Social Workers and the Impact on Motivations for Participation in a Social Work Community of Practice" (2009). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 897.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/897
Copyright date
2009
Discipline
Social Work, Statistics