Evidence-Based Practice in Social Work Education

Intervention Description:

A educational intervention designed to develop social work students' knowledge, skills, attitudes, and readiness related to evidence-based practice.

Participants will receive a one-semester evidence-based practice education program integrated into a social work course. The program will include instruction and practical activities related to formulating practice questions, searching for and appraising research evidence, integrating evidence with professional judgment and client circumstances, applying evidence to social work practice, and evaluating practice decisions. All participants will receive the same educational intervention.

The primary outcome is the change in participants' EBPPAS score from baseline to post-intervention. The EBPPAS assesses participants' evidence-based practice process outcomes. Items are rated on a 5-point response scale, with higher scores indicating more favorable evidence-based practice process outcomes.

The secondary outcome is the change in participants' score on the Perceived Social Work Competence Scale (PSWCS) from baseline to post-intervention. Items are rated on a 5-point confidence scale, with higher scores indicating greater perceived social work competence.

The secondary outcome is the change in participants' score on the Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS) from baseline to post-intervention. Items assess participants' attitudes toward evidence-based practice, with higher scores indicating more favorable attitudes toward evidence-based practice.

The secondary outcome is the change in participants' score on a 3-item measure of intention to implement evidence-based practice from baseline to post-intervention. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale, with higher scores indicating stronger intention to implement EBP.

The secondary outcome is the change in participants' score on the Information Literacy Scale (ILS), adapted for social work and evidence-based practice contexts, from baseline to post-intervention. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale, with higher scores indicating greater information literacy.

The exploratory outcome is the change in participants' score on 7 items assessing knowledge of EBP-related databases, literature-searching resources, reference-management tools, artificial intelligence tools, research ethics, and data privacy. Items are rated on a 5-point familiarity scale, with higher scores indicating greater self-reported knowledge.