Research Associate Professor Elizabeth Greeno, PhD, Deputy Director for the Institute for Innovation and Implementation Marlene Matarese, PhD and Project Director Angela Weeks, PhD, have been published in the Journal of Public Child Welfare. Their work is titled "Attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of child welfare workers toward LGBTQ youth."
This study explored workforce opinions toward LGBTQ youth and the LGBTQ community. A total of 1,196 child welfare employees answered a series of surveys measuring their attitudes, perception of climate, knowledge, and behaviors toward LGBTQ. Findings suggest that child welfare workers have adequate knowledge about the LGBTQ community and responses indicate the workforce has some potential to engage in supportive behaviors toward youth, but do not believe the child welfare climate is protective or supportive for LGBTQ youth and reported they “don’t know” how they feel about the LGBTQ population. Implications for practice and policy are presented.
Greeno, E., Matarese, M., Weeks, A. (2021) Attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of child welfare workers toward LGBTQ youth, Journal of Public Child Welfare, DOI: 10.1080/15548732.2021.1940415