Building, Maintaining, and Assessing Trusted Influence: A Grounded Theory of Clinical Social Workers on Interprofessional Behavioral Health Teams

The intention of this qualitative study was to generate a theory, grounded in data, about the lived experiences of Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSWs) employed on interprofessional teams in behavioral health settings. Although much has been written and discussed about interprofessional teams, there is still a gap in understanding the perspective of LCSWs working on these teams in behavioral health. Adjusted conversational interviews were conducted with twenty-two LCSWs employed on interprofessional teams in behavioral health settings. The main concern that surfaced from the interviews was the need to develop trusted influence within the team in order to fully serve their clients and achieve the obligations of their role. The research participants resolved this main concern through the social process of Building, Maintaining, and Assessing Trusted Influence. Building, Maintaining, and Assessing Trusted Influence is composed of four circular strategies that work in tandem including: 1) clarifying value and role, 2) building trust and connection, 3) applying context agility and 4) expanding influence. Each strategy is illustrated by a basic social process of behaviors that support and inhibit one’s ability to develop trusted influence within a team. Building, Maintaining, and Assessing Trusted Influence has implications for not only social work education, practice, and policy, but also any profession where one may work on a team made up of various disciplines.