Social workers’ professional potential: psychophysiological and social criteria

Introduction. Introduction of social workers’ professional standards raises the problem of developing psychophysiological factors for their professional potential. The aim of the research is to reveal psychophysiological and social criteria of social workers’ professional potential in terms of their efficiency, quality of life and level of job satisfaction. Materials and Methods. In order to identify social workers’ essential traits and qualities, the authors have analyzed ‘Standards of proficiency for social workers’. Social workers’ psychophysiological status is described in terms of their CNS performance indicators and their working efficiency level. The research methodology involves T. D. Loskutova’s PC-based chronoreflexometry modified by M. P. Moroz. Moreover, the research programme includes evaluating the following: quality of life indicators (‘SF-36 Health Status Survey’), level of work satisfaction (V. A. Rozanova’s psychodiagnostic method) and self-assessment of health status (a questionnaire). Results. The paper reveals and describes psychophysiological criteria of social workers’ proficiency. This is the first study reporting the parameters of social workers’ CNS functional status and their working efficiency levels. The study has found that two-thirds of the participants are characterized by high capacity to adapt to complicated working conditions. Analysis of CNS performance indicators reveals a high-risk group among social workers demonstrating low efficiency during long-term observation, which indicates low level of professional trustworthiness within the identified group. The authors do not observe a direct correlation between working efficiency and termination of professional responsibility. Further analysis exposes the absence of a highly reliable correlation between the majority of life quality indicators and functional state of the body. The only slightly positive correlation is the one between a life quality indicator ‘role limitations due to physical health’ and the parameters of social workers’ CNS functional status and of their working efficiency (i.e. stability of neural response and functionality level). Conclusions. Lack of highly reliable correlations between life quality indicators and functional state of the body, between personal job satisfaction, hand-eye coordination and life quality indicators have enabled the authors to conclude that the main criterion of social workers’ professional potential is their psychophysiological status, i.e. stability of neural response and CNS functionality level.