Social workers, resilience, positive emotions and optimism

Literature on stress and social work emphasises the importance of the structural and organisational context for social work. Less attention has been given to differences between social workers that enable them to deal with demands and find satisfaction and rewards in their work. Literature drawn from psychology can offer some guidance to social workers, focusing on resilience, positive emotion and optimism. A great deal has been written about resilience, children and young people; much less about resilience, adults and social workers. Resilience is an adaptive state and personality trait evident in many people, including social workers, but it is influenced by many variables, such as culture. Positive emotions amidst negative events are further important elements in the psychological resilience of, and coping by, social workers. Three kinds of coping relating to positive affect have been identified: positive appraisal, goal-directed/problem-focused work and the infusion of ordinary events with meaning. Their implications for social work are explored. Optimism is another important personality difference that is significant in social workers' helping endeavours. Recent research on, and criticisms of, optimism are noted. There are important implications related to resilience, positive emotions and optimism for the selection of social work students, the development of social workers' knowledge and understanding of these topics, and for the support of social workers in their daily work.