MSW Students and Feminist Identity: A Current Picture of Feminist Identity, an Examination of Feminist Identity by Race and Ethnicity, and an Exploration of the Importance of Feminist Identity

As issues related to sexism continue to pervade US culture and to influence the lives of women and men, social work, a profession that is committed to social justice and to helping those who face oppression, would seem likely to also endorse feminism, the political standpoint that has resulted in gains for women in US history. Moreover, it would seem likely that MSW students, who are in the midst of learning to become professional social workers, would claim a feminist identity. Few studies have examined feminist identity among MSW students and those that have are dated. As such, the two research-centered chapters and conceptual chapter contained in this body of work examine feminist identity among MSW students in a variety of ways. The first research chapter explores feminist identity among MSW students at one Northeastern MSW program, and examines potential constructs that may be predictive of feminist identity. The second research study re-examines feminist identity among MSW students using a much larger sample of MSW students in MSW programs across the country, and introduces an intersectional lens, where race and ethnicity are specifically examined in relation to feminist identity. Finally, the conceptual chapter explores the importance of feminist identity, both to social work and for MSW students, introducing methods for potentially expanding feminist understandings and feminist identity among MSW students.