Abstract
The purpose of this study was to clarify the effect of a short-duration interview combined with a questionnaire on subjective stress states in staff at a social welfare service corporation. Participants were 67 staff members of a social welfare service corporation. A one-on-one interview was conducted for 20 min with each participant by a certified social worker. The effect of the interview was estimated from the results of the Profile of Moods States 2 (POMS2) questionnaire both before and after the interview. All 67 staff members completed the interview. After the interview, the POMS2 T-scores for the “Anger-Hostility”, “Confusion-Bewilderment”, “Depression-Dejection”, “Fatigue-Inertia”, “Tension-Anxiety”, and “Total Mood Disturbance” subscales decreased significantly and those for the “Vigor-Activity” and “Friendliness” subscales increased significantly. These findings indicate that the interview was an effective intervention. This study provides evidence that short-duration interviews with the POMS2 questionnaire are useful for social welfare service corporations to cope with staff’s subjective stress states and may contribute to reducing turnover.
