Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care for Social Work Students During Field Practicum

This prospective, non-randomized, parallel-group, quasi-experimental controlled study will be conducted among fourth-year undergraduate students enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year.

Participants will not be individually randomized. Group allocation will be based on the geographic location of the students' routine field practicum assignments. Students completing their practicum in institutions located in Manisa Province will constitute the intervention group, while students completing their practicum in İzmir or other provinces outside Manisa will constitute the control group. This geographical separation is intended to reduce contamination between intervention and control participants.

The study will include 80 participants, with 40 participants in each study arm.

Before beginning regular client contact in the field, baseline data will be collected using a sociodemographic information form, the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale, the Resilience Evaluation Scale, and, where applicable, the Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention Module Knowledge and Skills Assessment Form.

Following baseline assessment, participants in the intervention group will receive a two-hour interactive Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care workshop. The workshop will address the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, coping with professional stress, breathing and grounding techniques, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies.

After students begin direct professional contact with clients, approximately during the fourth week of practicum, secondary traumatic stress will be reassessed in both groups. Following this assessment, the intervention group will participate in the first structured Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group session.

Two additional structured group sessions will be conducted during the remainder of the practicum period. These sessions will provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which students can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the impact of difficult cases, review coping and self-care practices, receive peer support, and strengthen strategies for managing indirect exposure to trauma.

Data collection will take place at four main time points: baseline during the orientation period before or at the beginning of field practicum; approximately four weeks after the beginning of client contact; toward the end of November; and at the end of the practicum period in mid-December.

The control group will continue the standard field practicum and routine academic internship orientation and will not receive the study-specific Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention or structured peer-support sessions during the evaluation period.

After completion of study assessments, participants in the control group may, upon request, receive the educational module and the Trauma-Informed Self-Care Guide.

The primary effectiveness analysis will focus on differences in changes in secondary traumatic stress over time between the intervention and control groups, particularly the group-by-time interaction.

• Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Psychoeducational Workshop (Behavioral): Participants in the intervention arm will receive a 2-hour interactive psychoeducational workshop before or at the beginning of field practicum. The workshop covers trauma-informed practice, the nature and indirect effects of trauma, recognition of physiological and emotional stress responses, secondary traumatic stress, stress-management strategies, breathing and grounding exercises, cognitive flexibility, professional boundaries, and self-care strategies.
• Self-Help and Peer-Sharing Group Sessions (Behavioral): Participants in the intervention arm will participate in three structured 60-minute small-group sessions conducted during the field practicum. The sessions provide a facilitated and psychologically safe environment in which participants can reflect on emotionally challenging field experiences, discuss the emotional impact of difficult cases, receive peer support, review self-care practices, and reinforce coping and emotional regulation strategies.

Primary outcomes

• Change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale Total Score [Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum]: Secondary traumatic stress will be assessed using the 17-item Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. Each item is rated on a five-point Likert scale. Total scores range from 17 to 85, with higher scores indicating greater secondary traumatic stress and therefore a worse outcome. The scale will be administered at baseline and at three follow-up assessments during the field practicum. The primary outcome will be the change in Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale total scores over time and the difference in this change between the intervention and control groups.

Secondary outcomes

• Change From Baseline in Resilience Evaluation Scale Total Score [Baseline and Weeks 4, 8, and 12 after the start of field practicum]: Psychological resilience will be assessed using the 9-item Turkish version of the Resilience Evaluation Scale. Total scores range from 0 to 36, with higher scores indicating greater psychological resilience and therefore a better outcome. The scale will be administered at baseline and at three follow-up assessments during the field practicum. Changes in Resilience Evaluation Scale total scores over time will be compared between the intervention and control groups.

Other outcomes

• Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention Module Knowledge and Skills Assessment Form Total Score [Immediately after completion of the initial 2-hour training session (Day 0)]: Trauma-informed education and self-care-related knowledge and skills will be assessed using the researcher-developed Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care Intervention Module Knowledge and Skills Assessment Form. Total scores range from 10 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater knowledge and skills related to trauma-informed practice, recognition of secondary traumatic stress, coping strategies, and self-care, and therefore a better outcome. This assessment will be administered only to participants in the intervention group immediately after completion of the initial two-hour Trauma-Informed Education and Self-Care training session. The measure is intended to assess participants' knowledge and skill acquisition following the initial educational intervention.

Sex: All, ages: 20 Years to any, accepts healthy volunteers

Inclusion Criteria:

* Fourth-year undergraduate student enrolled in the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Health Sciences, Manisa Celal Bayar University, during the Fall Semester of the 2026-2027 academic year
* Enrolled in the required Social Work Practice course
* Actively completing a field practicum involving direct professional contact with social work clients
* Willing to participate in the study and able to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Not actively participating in the required field practicum at the time of enrollment
* No direct professional contact with social work clients during the practicum
* Declining or being unable to provide written informed consent

• Hakan Baydur, Principal investigator, Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi