Male social workers in child welfare: a qualitative analysis

Abstract

This article reports on an exploratory study conducted with a cohort of male social workers (N = 17) who practice in child welfare. The findings revealed that among other things, participants experience a high level of satisfaction with their role. Moreover, they believe they have made significant contributions to child welfare practice, which include challenging hegemonic masculinity that supports the notion that child welfare is the exclusive responsibility of women. The findings and their implications are discussed.