| The need for an empowered human service workforce has become increasingly apparent in a field that strives to foster client empowerment as an indicator of effective intervention. Moreover, the increased utilization of paraprofessional staff in direct service positions heightens concerns about whether and under what conditions workers are empowered. Utilizing Spretizer's (1992) operationalization of psychological empowerment, this study defined an empowered worker as one with a psychological state characterized by perceived meaning of, competence with and influence over important work-related issues.;The study assessed the effect of job dimensions, including role ambiguity, role overload, participatory decision making, supervisor-supervisee relationship and peer support on empowerment. Data on The Family Service Worker Questionnaires were administered to 160 paraprofessionals in public and private child abuse prevention and child welfare agencies.;The results provided support for hypothesized relationships between job dimensions and empowerment. Each of the theoretically proposed variables predicted empowerment. When entered into a multiple regression, job dimensions predicted nearly one-half of the variance in empowerment. When other socio-demographic predictors, such as age, gender, unit size and tenure were entered into the regression equation, theoretically proposed variables predicted significant additional amounts of variance in empowerment above and beyond the variance accounted for by socio-demographic variables. Results from open-ended questions generally supported findings from the regression analyses and pointed to ways organizations might improve paraprofessional work and empowerment.;The potential to influence direct service worker empowerment through structuring staff role assignment, promoting opportunities for participation in decision making, fostering positive supervisory relationships and facilitating collaborative peer relations has implications for personnel training and development across hierarchical positions within human service organizations. Implications for social work research and practice were discussed. |
