Graduation Semester and Year
Summer 2026
Language
English
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work
Department
Social Work
First Advisor
Catherine LaBrenz
Second Advisor
Micki Washburn
Third Advisor
Tiara Okoruwa
Fourth Advisor
Poco Kernsmith
Abstract
Social work field education, commonly enacted as the practicum, is widely regarded as the profession’s signature pedagogy, yet its material conditions—particularly the prevalence of unpaid or minimally compensated placements—are rarely problematized. This dissertation examined the financial, academic, and well-being consequences of practicum participation among social work students and the mechanisms through which these consequences arise. Using an embedded mixed methods design, the study analyzed secondary data from the Payment for Placements (P4P) survey (N = 618), combining a moderated-mediation structural equation model with a reflexive thematic analysis of open-ended narrative responses. Drawing on feminist political economy and social reproduction theory, the study assessed: 1.) whether practicum compensation status and weekly time demands were associated with student well-being, 2.) whether field-family conflict and perceived exploitation mediated these associations, and 3.) whether indicators of nontraditional student status moderated them. Field-family conflict was the most consistent correlate of student well-being, associated with poorer financial well-being, greater food and housing insecurity, higher depression and burnout, lower positive mental health, and greater academic disruption. Perceived exploitation contributed additional variance in burnout and depressive symptoms. Compensation status showed few direct associations with outcomes; instead, its influence operated indirectly by reducing conflict and exploitation, with access to family financial support emerging as the only significant moderator. Because the design was cross-sectional, all relationships are interpreted as associational rather than causal.
The qualitative analysis yielded five themes—Paid in Name Only, The Cost of Care, Stretched to the Limit, Eroding Well-Being, and Naming the System—that converged with and expanded upon the quantitative findings, clarifying why compensation operated indirectly and how private resources functioned as a critical buffer against hardship. Together, the findings suggest that the consequences of practicum education stem less from compensation status alone than from the extent to which practicum structures shift the costs of professional training onto students and their families, with potential implications for social work education, practicum education, academic labor policy, and health workforce development.
Keywords
: social work education, feminist political economy, student well-being, practicum, embedded mixed methods
Disciplines
Higher Education | Social Work
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Adeleke, Christian, "The Cost of Care: A Mixed Methods Study of Social Work Student Well-Being, Practicum Pay, and the Future of Feminized Care in the Health Workforce" (2026). Social Work Dissertations. 4.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/socialwork_dissertations2/4