Seeds of Change
This vital component of social work empowers professionals to influence laws and promote social justice.
legislative advocacy
This psychologist first introduced the theory of self-efficacy.
Albert Bandura
Macro social work focuses on helping these, not just individuals.
communities, organizations, or systems.
This kind of learning helped students see themselves as capable of influencing systems, not just serving clients.
experiential learning
Students described LEAD using these three empowering words.
“eye-opening,” “empowering,” and “essential”
The study aimed to explore how this educational experience impacts students’ confidence in advocacy.
participation in NASW’s Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD)
Students’ belief that “I can effectively influence policy” reflects growth in this area.
advocacy self-efficacy
Working with lawmakers, agencies, and communities is an example of this level of social work.
macro-level practice
The study found that when students feel capable of influencing policy, they’re more likely to do this after graduation.
continue engaging in advocacy or political action
By sitting in on these meetings, students learned about the human impact of political decision-making.
committee meetings
This concept measures how capable someone feels to achieve a goal or perform a task.
self-efficacy
When students observe debates and meet legislators, they transform classroom lessons into this.
real-world experience or applied learning
This approach focuses on changing laws and policies that affect large groups.
policy advocacy
Advocating side-by-side with peers created this empowering sense of unity and shared purpose.
solidarity
Meeting with lawmakers gave students the chance to practice this core macro-level skill often taught in advocacy courses.
lobbying or policy communication
Students from these two academic programs took part in the study.
BSW and MSW programs
Confidence built through practice is the bridge between passion and this kind of professional impact.
policy impact
Social workers use this process to identify community needs before creating programs.
needs assessment
Students recommended making LEAD this kind of requirement for social work education.
mandatory or required experience
Watching debates unfold and policies take shape gave students a front-row seat to how social work values are translated into this kind of real-world influence.
policy impact
The research combined both numbers and narratives using this kind of design.
mixed-methods pre/post survey design
According to the study, self-efficacy scores rose from 14.0 to this number after LEAD participation.
15.7 out of 20
When social workers push for equality and fairness, they are promoting this value.
social justice
Students’ self-efficacy increased from 14.0 to 15.7 out of 20 after attending this event.
NASW LEAD
This helped students see the human impact of policy decisions and the power dynamics of governance.
committee meetings