Mapping the Landscape of Trauma-Informed Care in Social Work: A Critical Scoping Review

Trauma-informed care (TIC) has gained significant traction in social work over the last decade, becoming a key organizing principle despite a dearth of empirical evidence attesting to its effectiveness. Addressing this paradox, our scoping review examines TIC's conceptualization and application in the field, exploring its theoretical underpinnings and empirical support. We analyzed 131 peer-reviewed articles from 2012 to 2022, following Arksey and O'Malley's framework, with inclusion criteria focused on English-language, peer-reviewed journal articles on TIC within U.S. social work. The identification of articles involved a systematic search across three online databases-Social Service Abstracts, Social Science Citation Index, and Social Work Abstracts-using the search terms "trauma informed*" and "social work" to capture relevant articles through keywords, subject headings, and titles. Our analysis revealed a broad understanding of trauma and a tendency toward emphasizing individual-level experiences, with infrequent acknowledgment of institutional or structural trauma. While TIC is applied across diverse domains, particularly in education and child welfare, its practical application lacks clarity and specificity. Critically, we found a reliance on the perceived prevalence of trauma rather than robust research to justify TIC's adoption. The inconsistent use of theory, primarily at the micro-level, and the wide range of practices resembling established social work methods raise questions about TIC's distinctiveness and unique contribution. Considering these findings, we urge a critical reassessment of TIC, focusing on its implications for practice and research.