NCJ Number
215868
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 30 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2006 Pages: 855-880
Date Published
August 2006
Length
26 pages
Annotation
This study assessed the impact of an organizational intervention strategy--the Availability, Responsiveness, and Continuity (ARC) strategy--on caseworker turnover and on organizational culture and climate in a children’s service system.
Abstract
Results indicated that the ARC organizational intervention strategy significantly reduced caseworker turnover when compared to the case management teams in the control condition. Moreover, caseworkers in the ARC intervention reported lower levels of depersonalization, emotional exhaustion, role conflict, and role overload than caseworkers in the control condition. The findings also revealed that the ARC intervention did not change the organizational culture of the children’s service system but did change the caseworkers’ perceptions of the impact of the organizational culture on their own well-being. The findings suggest that longer intervention periods are necessary to change organizational culture while organizational climate responds well to shorter interventions. The research methodology involved an experimental design in which 26 case management teams consisting of 235 caseworkers were randomly assigned to receive either the ARC intervention or a control condition. The sample was comprised of case management teams that served both rural and urban areas. Data pertaining to caseworker turnover and organizational climate and culture were collected from members of the case management teams before the intervention and at the end of the 1-year intervention period. Specific measures included the Organizational Culture Survey and the Organizational Climate Survey. Hierarchical Linear Models analyses were used to examine the cross-level effects of the ARC intervention on turnover, climate, and culture. Followup studies should assess the impact of the ARC intervention on children and families. Tables, references