Social Workers Addressing Firearm Risk (SAFR)

Learn how social workers can address gun violence. Join this important study from the University at Buffalo.

Thank you for considering participating in our study! You are being invited to take part in this research because you are a practicing social worker in New York State.

About the study

Firearm violence remains a major public health issue in the United States, with especially devastating impacts felt in minoritized communities. However, frontline social workers are rarely trained to help prevent gun violence among their clients.

The Social Workers Addressing Firearm Risk (SAFR) intervention addresses this gap. Developed in collaboration with researchers and experts across the country, SAFR is a fully online course that helps social workers understand, recognize and respond to the risk of firearm violence, including suicide, with their clients.

This study is a pilot test of the SAFR intervention, conducted by a team from the UB School of Social Work and UB Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI).

Your participation

Participation in this study includes completing online surveys and taking the SAFR online course. Participants must be practicing social workers in New York State with a BSW, MSW and/or a DSW, who are over the age of 18 and proficient in English. Individuals who recently participated in our test of the survey questions are not eligible.

Participants will be sorted into two groups: intervention and control.

  • If you are placed in the intervention group, you will complete an online pre-test questionnaire and receive the SAFR course materials. You will have 30 days to complete the self-paced, six-hour course. One month after the pre-test, you will receive a post-test questionnaire, and two months after that, you will receive a follow-up questionnaire.
  • If placed in the control group, you will receive pre-, post- and follow-up questionnaires on the same timeline, but not the course materials. Instead, you will be given free access to the SAFR course upon completion of the study.

If you agree to take part, you will receive a $30 gift card for completing the initial questionnaire, a $40 gift card for the second questionnaire, and a $50 gift card for the third questionnaire.

Learn more, verify your eligibility and get started at the link below. If you have any questions, please contact safrstudy@buffalo.edu.

Join the study