Practice and research are two sides of the same coin in the social work realm.

Clinicians rely on researchers to develop new and effective methods to work with clients, whereas researchers rely on practitioners to inform them of what works and doesn’t work in the field. Bridging the gap between the two, however, is not always easy.

That’s where adjunct lecturers and other clinical faculty members at the USC School of Social Work enter the picture.

Often full-time clinicians who engage in various forms of research and teach research-based theories and concepts in their courses, these faculty members are creating a much-needed nexus between research and practice.

“Even if my students want to focus on clinical work and have no interest in research, I remind them that they still have to be accountable,” said Sara Schwartz, a senior lecturer with the school’s online MSW@USC program. “I try to get them excited about how they can use research and evaluation to market themselves as clinicians, to make sure the work they are doing with clients is really working, ensuring the programs they are supervising are still relevant.”

That sentiment is encouraging to people like Haluk Soydan, the outgoing associate dean of research and new associate dean of faculty affairs at the USC School of Social Work. He views the link between research and practice as critical to ensuring that clients receive the best and most effective care.

“The main job of clinical faculty members is to translate cutting-edge research into the classroom,” he said. “A similar thinking applies to part-time faculty members, who are often active social workers based in agencies and communities. To deliver the best possible programs and treatments to their clients, they need to follow and translate the latest research outcomes to address the needs of the field.”

Staying informed

Schwartz, who earned her PhD in social work from Portland State University and has taught research methods, evaluation, and research and practice courses through the school’s MSW@USC program, acknowledged that it can be challenging to stay abreast of advances in research as a practitioner.

Clinicians often don’t have free access to resources like peer-reviewed journals, academic libraries and research training programs, she said. Many nonprofit organizations and other service providers don’t have conceptual models and evaluation plans to guide their work.

“It’s surprising that some organizations are still collecting data using paper and pencil,” Schwartz said.

To emphasize the importance of staying up to date on research findings, she encourages her students to subscribe to journals and attend training sessions so they become familiar with translating research into their future clinical work.

Other MSW@USC faculty members have found that teaching helps them stay in touch with the research world. Sherry Blair, an adjunct lecturer based in New Jersey, said reading papers by students has exposed her to new topics in social work like intersectionality, a theory that posits that social identities and various forms of oppression and discrimination are inextricably linked.

“They are all doing research, which helps me stay apprised of these new concepts,” she said. “I also like to go snooping around and see what is current. Teaching definitely makes me a better clinician and supervisor.”

Bringing ideas to life

Beyond encouraging their students to stay immersed in research as they complete their field placements and pursue clinical careers, many MSW@USC lecturers use examples from their professional work to illustrate research-related topics in the classroom.

Lori Daniels, an adjunct lecturer who has taught classes on research and clinical work with military-affiliated families through the online MSW@USC program, frequently relies on her experiences as a clinician and researcher to enhance her teaching.

“We are out there in the world doing things in vivo,” she said. “We are not just talking about it and thinking about it, we are actually involved in research and practice.”

During an ongoing research project on new strategies to engage older veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder in therapy, Daniels said she has taken screenshots of her data analysis of depression scores to show her students how the process works.

“I feel as if I’m walking the walk, so I might as well show them what it looks like so they have a better understanding of the nuances of putting together a research project,” she said. “I’m able to generate more current examples and make it a richer experience for my students.”

Practice makes perfect

Some part-time faculty members take it a step further, encouraging their students to get involved in research projects.

Clair Evans Mellenthin, an expert in play therapy for children and families, recently published an article with three students on school phobia among elementary school students. She credited her efforts to use case examples from her clinical work to enhance her MSW@USC courses as one factor that inspired her students to pursue research.

“I try to bring as many real-life examples into the classroom setting as I possibly can,” she said. “I think it really helps enlighten the discussion.”

After she described in class how she treated a 5-year-old who had a general fear of the school environment, Evans Mellenthin said the students researched the topic and gave their own presentation on the case without any direction from her.

Impressed by their initiative, she worked with the trio to expand their work into an article that was accepted by an international journal.

“As an adjunct, you have a great opportunity to be creative,” she said. “What a cool thing for these students to be able to do. They are able to graduate and say they were published.”

Another benefit of having such a large faculty of adjunct and clinical lecturers is the diversity of experiences and knowledge. More than 200 individuals teach MSW@USC courses each semester, for instance, and are spread across 49 states and 14 countries.

Schwartz, who is based in the Bay Area but has connections to Virginia and Washington, DC, said students benefit from the unique perspectives of faculty members from different economic, geographic and political backgrounds.

“They are receiving a very robust education from a diverse group of people,” she said. “Students get a better worldview of what social work practice and research can look like around the country.”