Initial Development of the Social Work Core Competency Inventory

The competency of social workers and social work students is pivotal. Using 931 social work undergraduates and social workers in China, the present study developed the Social Work Core Competency Inventory (SW-Core) to assess social work core competencies, and further examined its psychometric properties. This study comprised three phases. In the first phase, the ‘hierarchy competency model of social work’ was adopted as a framework to review the related literature. The six categories of competency and the corresponding item pool (fifty-five items) were constructed. In the second phase, six social work undergraduates, four Master of Social Work (MSW) students and ten social workers attended the semi-structural cognitive interviews. On the basis of their cognitive feedback and professional experience, eight core competencies were identified, and forty-seven items were retained. Finally, through exploratory factor analysis, a twenty-four-item eight-factor inventory was formulated among the first undergraduate sample (n = 315) that explained 75.87 per cent variances. The factor structure was further validated by a confirmatory factor analysis using the second undergraduate sample (n = 311). Results corroborated that the internal consistency of the eight subscales of the three samples ranged from 0.64 to 0.88. Furthermore, the multigroup confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the number of factors and factor loadings was invariant between genders, junior and senior students, and social work undergraduates and social workers. In sum, the twenty-four-item self-evaluative SW-Core was a valid measurement to assess the core competencies of social work. This also can be used as a tool to evaluate social work education in the future.