Career outcomes among medical vs. family service social workers in Israel

The study compared perceptions of several organizational variables among medical and family service social workers in Israel. Three types of variables were examined: role characteristics (e.g., role ambiguity); job conditions (e.g., promotional opportunities); and career outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction). Among two groups of social workers, which operate in distinct practice settings and organizational cultures, significant differences were found in several of the variables measured. The medical social workers had a smaller caseload and more intensive contacts with clients than the family service workers. At the same time, the family service workers reported a much higher level of role ambiguity than their counterparts in the medical services. With regard to job conditions, the medical social workers reported less predictability and a higher degree of mastery than the family service workers. They also perceived themselves as having fewer promotional opportunities and financial rewards than their counterparts in the family services. Finally, the medical social workers scored higher in the area of service effectiveness and reported less burnout than the family service workers.