Abstract
•This mixed methods study compared the risk perceptions of social work students in two countries: Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand.•There were similarities between respondents from the two countries in their perceptions of risk, safety and harm, and their reasoning processes.•More experienced students perceived risk as lower than less experienced.•Beneath this broad consensus, Welsh respondents rated the level of harm lower at earlier stages, but were more likely to say the case met the statutory threshold.•Early in the vignette, risk-averse respondents were more likely to conclude the children experienced serious harm.•Qualitative analysis showed the reasoning processes used to explain key constructs were similar between the two countries, however, the risk-averse group fromAotearoa New Zealandemphasized continuing engagement with professional services as a sign of change.
Decision making in child protection is the product of interacting factors between workers, organizations, families, and macro social structures. Individual perceptions of risk, safety, and harm, as one piece of this complex puzzle, are important to understand. This article reports on a comparative study of social work students in two countries: Wales and Aotearoa New Zealand. Using a mixed methods survey and a staged vignette (in which the situation becomes progressively more serious), we found there were similarities between respondents from the two countries in their perceptions of risk, safety and harm, and their reasoning processes. Beneath this broad consensus, respondents from Wales rated the level of harm to the children lower at earlier stages but were more likely to say the case should meet the threshold for statutory intervention. Risk-averse respondents were more likely to conclude the children experienced serious harm and also that the case should meet the threshold for statutory intervention. These differences largely disappeared by the concluding stage. Qualitative analysis shows that the reasoning processes used to explain risk, safety, and plan goals were similar between the two countries. Some nuanced differences emerged in relation to a risk-averse group fromAotearoa New Zealandemphasizing the importance of continuing engagement with professional services as a sign of change. Implications are discussed, particularly for workforce development and the needs of newly qualified social workers.