Examining Relationships Among Student Empowerment, Sense of Community, and the Implicit Curriculum: A Multigroup Analysis of Race and Ethnicity

• Published in: Journal of social work education Vol. 56; no. 1; pp. 68 - 90
• Main Authors: McMahon, Sheila M., Peterson, N. Andrew, Farmer, Antoinette Y., Miller, Shari E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington Routledge 02-01-2020; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Community; Comparative Analysis; Correlation; Counselor Educators; Counselor Training; Curricula; Curriculum Design; Empowerment; Ethnicity; Hispanic students; Measures (Individuals); Minority Group Students; Minority groups; Minority students; Path Analysis; Professional Development; Race; School social work; Sense of Community; Social Work; Social work education; Student Attitudes; Student Diversity; Student Empowerment; Students; Teacher Student Relationship; White Students
• ISSN: 1043-7797; 2163-5811
• DOI: 10.1080/10437797.2019.1656567

Schools of social work are now mandated to assess and address the effects of the implicit curriculum on students, who are from diverse backgrounds. Given this mandate, the purpose of this secondary data analysis was to differentiate the effects of the implicit curriculum on White, non-Hispanic students and students of color. In addition, the study sought to determine whether various aspects of sense of community mediated the relationship between the implicit curriculum and the outcome of students' professional empowerment. Using a multigroup path analysis, results demonstrated that the implicit curriculum had a differential effect on White, non-Hispanic students and students of color. In addition, the results suggested that different aspects of sense of community mediated the relationship between the implicit curriculum and student professional empowerment for both groups. Implications for facilitating empowerment among social work students and strategies for enhancing the implicit curriculum are discussed.