What factors impact transfer of learning in child welfare: A scoping review

Despite extensive financial investments made in training child welfare professionals (e.g., caseworkers, supervisors, administrators, clinicians working with families involved in child welfare services), there remain significant challenges to ensure that child welfare professionals apply the skills learned in training to daily practice, a process known as Transfer of Learning (ToL). To date, little is known about what characteristics and strategies enhance ToL within child welfare contexts. Consequently, this scoping review synthesizes published information on methodological characteristics of ToL studies published from 1998 to 2020, ToL definitions and assessment strategies, as well as factors (individual characteristics, organizational factors, training/reinforcement strategies) that influence ToL within child welfare contexts. Systematic review procedures yielded N = 21 studies, representing n = 17 unique projects, which were included for data extraction and qualitative synthesis utilizing a descriptive analytic framework. Findings identify a range of designs, but few (n = 4) studies utilized rigorous methodology (i.e., RCTs) that would allow for clear determination of causality. Most studies relied on participant self-reports to assess ToL and focused on training related to engagement, interviewing, assessment, developing service plans, and decision-making skills. Individual characteristics associated with enhancing ToL included learning readiness, attitude towards training, trainee motivation, and perceived ability. Organizational characteristics facilitating ToL included management/supervisory support and organizational culture that promotes continuous learning. Successful training and reinforcement strategies included post-training case consultation and group coaching, immediate feedback following live supervision and simulated scenarios, role plays, video examples, and feedback on practice recordings. Recommendations for future research include utilizing rigorous methodological designs and objective ToL assessment strategies. Findings suggest several strategies that can be integrated into practice before, during, and after training to maximize ToL. Finally, policies and funding for training child welfare professionals should consider provisions to promote modifiable individual and organizational characteristics, as well as the training/reinforcement strategies identified in this review.