Social work interest in prevention: New findings from an ongoing content analysis of the professional literature

Each day, over half a million US social workers provide services to people with health, mental health and substance abuse problems in a fragmented system that emphasizes treatment over prevention. Powerful issues, including health inequities, population aging, globalization, natural disaster, war, and economic downturn make the need for preventive approaches more critical than ever. However, little is known about current social work involvement in prevention. Because professional journals provide current information on research, theory and practice, prevention content in professional literature is one way to determine interest in prevention. A recent content analysis of nine peer-reviewed social work journals found that only 5.6% of articles published from 2000-2005 met the criteria for “prevention articles” (Marshall, et al, forthcoming; 2010).

To determine if the overall proportion of prevention articles was increasing over the decade, the research team from the initial study used three-person teams to analyze titles, abstracts, and text of articles published from 2006-2008 in Social Work, Journal of Social Work Education, Social Work and Health, Social Work Research, Families in Society, Child Welfare, Social Service Review and Journal of Gerontological Social Work. Out of 1082 articles reviewed, 11.95% (n=129) met the criteria for inclusion as prevention articles. These findings suggest that while prevention remains a minority interest area within social work literature, scholarly interest appears to be increasing during years 2000-2008. This expanded interest in prevention can enhance trans-disciplinary collaboration between social work and public health, building upon the mutual mission of enhancing population health and promoting social justice.