Views of the : Human Service Practitioners

PerspectivesDr. Narketta M. Sparkman, HS-BCP

Dr. Edward S. Neukrug, LPC; HS-BCP

Established in 2008 Joint effort between the National Organization for

Human Services (NOHS), the Council for Standards in Human Service Education (CSHSE), and the Center for Credentialing and Education (CCE)

Solidify professional identity Developed an increased professional look for human

service professionals Increased the status of the human service professional

as compared to related mental health professionals the goal [of credentialing] was to create a certification

program that would provide quality, value, and integrity for practitioners, their employers, and consumers of human services

OVERVIEW

determine how familiar members of NOHS were with the HS-BCP credential;

approximate the percentage of members who had attained the credential;

examine demographics of those who are most likely to attain membership;

understand the importance that holding a credential has to members;

determine whether non-credentialed members were planning on becoming credentialed;

discover any benefits seen by those who already had the credential.

Focus of Research

Methodology

QuantitativeDescriptive and chi square

Survey MethodsSurvey MonkeyEmail Solicitations (3 intervals)Human Subjects Review Informed Consent

Instrument

16 item questionnaireKnowledge of the credentialIntent to obtainEmployer knowledgePerception of further education about HS-BCPValue of the credential

10 demographic questionsAge, ethnicity, highest degree, field of study and

primary and secondary identificationQuestion were created based off review of

literaturePilot tested w/ 6 human service facultyRevised based off feedback

Demographics

NOHS Membership 241 Respondents Mean age 49.35 56% Caucasian; 33% African American; 2.5% Latino;

2.1 Native American; 1Asian; 6.2% identified as other

38.59% Masters; 28.10% Doctorate; 16.59% Associate; 12.4% Bachelor; 4.58% High School Diploma

43.98% highest degree in Human Services; 15.35% other; 12.03% Psychology; 8.29% Social Work; 7.50% counseling; 2.90% education; 2.41% marriage and family; 5.8% did not major in field

Primary affiliation: 38.59% Faculty; 24.90% Students; 23.24% Practitioners; 10.79% Other; 3.49% were unemployed

Secondary affiliation: 34.7% Practitioners; 29.63% others; 19.91% Students; 8.33% faculty and 7.41% unemployed; 5.47% no response

Findings

90.04% heard of the credential42.32% obtained the HS-BCP55.39% planned on obtaining it28.06% were not sure if they would obtain it12.23% did not plan on obtaining the credential7 did not respondApprox. 50% stated their employer was aware

of the credentialApprox. 90% stated there was a need for further

education on the HS-BCP

Knowledge of the Credential

34.62% of 102 who have the HS-BCP indicated it has not added value or will not add value to current position

30% indicated it had or will somewhat add value

24.04% indicated it will had a moderate amount of value

10.58% indicated it would very much add value

Impact and Value of the HS-BCP

One half of those who obtained the credential indicated that it has done nothing for them

19.6% indicated the credential had led to an increase in status

5.82% stated it allowed them to apply for a job they would not have been able to apply to

5.82% indicated the credential led to a promotion 3.92% stated it allow them to apply for a

promotion Result were about 50/50 in determining value of

credential by colleagues and employers. 63% disagree with the value of HS-BCP credential

being equal to the value of other credentials

94% of respondents were familiar with the NOHS ethical code

81.3% were familiar with the HS-BCP ethical code

The majority of respondents believed the NOHS ethical code (78.06%) and the HS-BCP ethical code (66.37%) governed their profession

Ethics

Respondents age 61-70 showed the highest percentage of those credentialed 72.50%

No significant difference found between Caucasian and African American participants

Findings indicated the higher the degree attainment the increased percentage in HS-BCP credentialing.

Practitioners and Faculty were among the highest those credentialed.

Those that indicated increase in status based off credential attainment 11 were practitioners and 7 were faculty

Faculty were amongst the highest to indicate the credential has done nothing for them.

Credential as a function of Demographics

Difficulty in interpretation survey research Educated guesses to reason results NOHS does not keep demographics on

members Respondents may not be reflective of NOHS

members Inability to generalize to larger human

service population Some contradictory results

LIMITATIONS

Awareness of the credential is evident in the 217 out 241 participants

Those over 60 may have saw themselves as instrumental in establishing the field

Individuals with masters or doctorate may have a higher value of the credential due to a longer and deeper commitment to the field

Strong interest in becoming credentialed Over half indicated employers were aware of

the credential which indicates clear awareness in NOHS community

Interpretation

Desire to continue spreading knowledge of the credential

Clear representation that the credential is important to the profession

Close to half indicated their employers were not aware of the credential which is indicates there is work to be done in employer by in

30% indicated the credential has not and will not add value to their current position indicates there is work to be done in building value

50% indicated the credential is not as valuable as other credentials

Two different ethical codes are seen as governing the field.

Advertising campaign to publicize the credential with human service agencies

Advocate for lobbying efforts with state legislators to build knowledge and respect for the credential

Increase visibility of the credential among practitioners outside of NOHS

Possible working agreement on how the two ethical codes can be used together for ethical decision making

RECOMMENDATION

Discussion

Center for Credentialing & Education. (n.d.a). About CCE. Retrieved from http://www.cce-global.org/About Center for Credentialing & Education. (n.d.b). Human services—board certified practitioner. Retrieved from http://www.cce-global.org/HSBCP/ExamCenter for Credentialing and Education. (2013). HS-BCP application packet. Retrieved from http://www.cce-global.org/Downloads/Apps/HS-BCPapp.pdfCreswell, J. W. (2009). Research design (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Curry,D., Eckles, F., Stuart, C., Qaqish, B. (2010). National child and youth care practitioner professional certification: Promoting competent care for children and youth. Child Welfare, 89(2), 57-77.Dattalo, P. (2008). Determining sample size: Balancing power, precision, and practicality. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.Evenson, T. L., & Holloway, L. L. (2003). Promoting professionalism in human service education. Human Service Education, 23, 15-24.Haynes, S., & Sweitzer, H. F. (2005). An evolving journal for an evolving organization. Human Service Education, 25, 5-7.Hinkle, J. S., & O’Brien, S. (2010). The human services-board certified practitioner: An overview of a new national credential. Journal of Human Services, 30, 23-28. http://dx.doi.org/67335995Hoonakker, P., & Carayon, P. (2009). Questionnaire survey nonresponse: A comparison of postal mail and internet surveys. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 25(5), 348-373.Jansen, K. J., Corely, K. G., & Jansen, B. J. (2007). E-survey methodology. In R. A. Reynolds, R. Woods, & J. D. Baker (Eds.), Handbook of research on electronic surveys and measurements (pp. 1-8). Hershey, PA; Idea Group Reference.Kincaid, S. O., & Andresen, S. A. (2010). Higher education accountability and the CSHSE accreditation process. Journal of Human Services, 30, 8-17. McClam, T., & Diambra, J. F. (2006). Cover to cover: A twenty-five year analysis of the development and content of human service education. Human Service Education, 26, 74-81.Milliken, T. F., & Neukrug, E. S. (2010). An introduction to the special section on professional standards in human services. Journal of Human Services, 30, 5-7.Neukrug, E. S. (2013). Theory, practice, and trends in human services: An introduction (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage.McPheeters, H. (1990). Developing the human services generalist concept. In S. Fullerton & D. Osher (Eds.), History of the human services movement [Monograph Series, Issue No. 7] (pp. 31-40). Council for Standards in Human Service Education.Smith, M. H. (2004). A sample/population size activity; Is it the sample size of the sample as a fraction of the population that matters? Journal of Statistics Education, 12(2). Retrieved from http://www.amstat.org/publications/jse/v12n2/smith.htmlWark, L. (2010). The ethical standards for human service professionals: Past and future. Journal of Human Services, 30(1), 18-22. Ye, J. (2007). Overcoming challenges to conducting online surveys. In R. A. Reynolds, R. Woods, & J. D. Baker (Eds.), Handbook of research on electronic surveys and measurements (pp. 83-89). Hershey, PA: Idea Group Reference.

REFERENCES