There is not an industry in the world that has not undergone rapid transformations in response to the exciting evolutions in technology over the past thirty years. With the rise of the Internet and the digital technologies that have accompanied it, businesses of all types have found themselves with unprecedented new potentials, expanding the scope and scale of what they are able to do. The social work field has proven no different, readily embracing new technologies to expand and enrich the services they are able to provide to people in need.
Incorporating new technologies into social work practice can be an exciting and motivating part of the profession, allowing practitioners to help reshape the field for the better.
Far from merely being subject to the requirements of technological advancement, social workers have played an active role in determining how it can be used to refine and improve care for anyone who needs it. This calls for social workers to use their resourcefulness and ingenuity to think about their work in a new way, exploring new possibilities for what social work can do.
If you’re an aspiring social worker, learning about present-day uses of technology can help you get a clearer picture of what your day-to-day responsibilities will look like. This article will give you a lay of the land of how technology is used in the social work field today as well as its exciting potentials in the future.
The Growing Use of Technology in Social Work
The social work profession has always been designed to adapt, both in response to public needs and to newfound capabilities. This means that social workers were quick to embrace the rise of information technology, recognizing the many ways it can improve the services they provide, make their day-to-day responsibilities more efficient, and increase access to support for people in need.
Technology for Social Work Practice
The American social work system is more than a century old, meaning its earliest protocols were developed when in-person services were not only the best form of support but the most efficient. As time has gone on, our new tools of communication have made it possible to deliver many services more quickly and effectively through remote services. By the 21st century, many of these services can be offered online, providing an easy interface for clients and a streamlined workflow for practitioners. (For more on what this looks like, take a look at the “Telehealth” section further down in this article.)
Technology also can improve intervention services by improving providers’ ability to communicate across agencies quickly and efficiently. As social work practice becomes more holistic in its aims, this has proven to be an excellent opportunity for social workers to tailor services to meet individual clients’ exact needs. This is yet another way that information technology in social work has benefitted providers and recipients alike.
Technology for Social Work Administration
No matter what type of social work you perform, your day to day responsibilities are likely to include administrative duties. For some social work positions, these duties have been extremely time consuming, leaving them less time to devote to the hands-on work of providing care that they most care about doing.
Fortunately, new technologies have been able to take care of a significant number of administrative tasks that used to be done by hand, greatly relieving social workers of the daunting legwork that was once a major part of their day-to-day work. This in turn grants them more time to provide direct services to clients, expanding their reach and allowing them more energy to focus on their primary goals as social workers.
Current Technology Trends in Social Work
As noted above, the proliferation of new technologies into the social work discipline has led to a number of rising trends that have transformed the field dramatically – and for the better. Below, take a look at a few of the biggest trends you’re likely to see in your own social work practice.
Telehealth
One important way that technology has impacted social work is by increasing the accessibility of services to those who could benefit from them the most. There may be no greater example of the use of technology in social work interventions than the rise of telehealth.
Remote conferencing has proven to be a tremendous boon for care providers and clients alike. By easing the burden of commuting for clients, social workers are able to reach more individuals and families in need. Many social workers have also found that they are able to meet with more clients per day, extending their capacities for care more widely.
While certain types of intervention are still primarily performed in person – in particular emergency services – telehealth can be advantageous for long-term interventions. By making it easier for clients to meet for regular appointments, social workers are creating more viable options that can provide deeper support.
Data Analytics
Social work research has always been driven by data, which has served as an important way of identifying key issues and grounding methodologies in substantiated facts. With the rise of data analytics and A.I., social workers now have significantly more information at their disposal, as well as refined tools to analyze findings and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of existing social programs. For those interested in numbers-driven social work practice, this rising reliance on sophisticated data collection and analysis tools is likely to expand dramatically in years to come.
Social Work Apps
Another important new dimension of accessibility for social workers is the arrival of social work apps. Beyond the great convenience of providing remote services to clients who can’t necessarily commute or miss work to make appointments, apps are specifically designed for ease of use. This encourages people in need to pursue social support that may have otherwise felt daunting or painstaking to secure. In fact, apps like these can provide interesting employment opportunities for social workers who are curious about exploring new dimensions of their expertise in a burgeoning sector of the field.
Debating the Place of Technology in Social Work
As you may expect, the rise of technology in social work practice has not been met without a healthy share of debate. After all, for all the convenience and speed information technology provides, there are also notable concerns some social workers have about its ability to substitute for traditional social work methods.
One of the most important of these debates is the question of maintaining quality through remote interactions. Few social workers would argue against the accessibility of new technologies, which have made it easier for clients to find and keep up the services they need. However, some longtime social workers fear that remote interactions limit the support social workers are able to provide.
Rather than trying to quash remote services altogether, social workers are currently working diligently to consider and account for the limitations of remote care. This is to take advantage of the clear benefits of remote services while ensuring that people in need continue to receive the comprehensive support they find in in-person options. In this way, this debate has improved and invigorated the work being done to enhance and expand tech-driven social work models.
Another important debate surrounds the use of data in social work practice. It has long been a critical part of social service development to rely upon numbers-driven research to inform social work practice, both on the level of identifying issues and communities in need as well as devising appropriate methods of implementation. However, our increasingly tech-driven methods of data tracing have led some social workers to fear that this research is losing an important element of face-to-face human interaction.
This is another case in which social workers are trying to appreciate and make use of new tools while maintaining the aspects of traditional methods that can’t be replicated. Indeed, what incoming social workers will find in these debates is not a desire to halt progress in its tracks but rather to use it to its greatest advantages, building off of the incredible achievements of social workers of the past. In this way, present-day social workers are able to contribute to an exciting and important moment in the development of the field, helping to bring social work into a new era to do the most that to improve our society.
Social Work Jobs in the Tech Industry
You may be surprised to learn that beyond utilizing new technologies in their work, social workers can also find employment opportunities within the tech industry itself.
There are several different types of jobs social workers can take in tech companies, whether related to developing social work-related products or providing in-house social services.
These can be interesting and lucrative opportunities for social workers, providing a chance to work in an unexpected environment while making the connections and impact you seek to make as a social service practitioner.
Those who are interested in macro-level social work may be particularly interested in learning about job opportunities in app development. As certain social services are expanding their reach into online contexts, app developers are eager to harness the best of existing practices while making use of the new potentials that information technology provides. As a social worker, you can provide your rich body of knowledge to make sure that technological innovation is met with seriousness of purpose, helping devise strategies that will make app-based services as effective and holistically supportive as traditional care models.
Some job titles related to social work for app development include the following:
- User Experience (UX) Researcher with Social Work Background
- Community Manager for Mental Health or Other Wellness Apps
- Health Tech Consultant
There are also some tech companies (alongside other large businesses) that have roles for social workers on their team, providing counseling and other supportive services to staff. These can offer social workers a different type of environment to practice, oftentimes within small communities in which they will get to belong to a close-knit team.
Job titles for on-staff social worker positions at tech companies include the following:
- In-house clinical social worker
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP) specialist
- Program manager for wellness initiatives
Put Yourself on the Cutting Edge of Social Work Practice Today
As a prospective social worker, it can be exciting to learn about the unexpected variety of social work jobs you can find in the field today. If you’re motivated to take the next steps to begin your social work career, your next move will be to obtain your Master of Social Work degree from an accredited institution. This is strictly required in order to receive your Texas social work license.
Fortunately, there are numerous excellent MSW program options in Texas, including online and part-time options to accommodate any student’s needs. To take the first steps in your social work journey, take a look at our guide to the top MSW programs in Texas.
FAQs
How will technology change social work in the future?
Technology is poised to continue to transform social work practice as it evolves. One arena in which it is likely to grow is the burgeoning field of data analytics, which has already provided illuminating insights to expand social work research and evaluate program effectiveness. Another rising trend set to change the social work profession is the growth of app-based social services, which are being embraced more and more as a means of improving access to those who need it most.
Is it possible to combine an interest in data science with an interest in social work?
Yes. Those who have an aptitude for data science and a desire to devote their work to civic causes can find the perfect avenue for their interests in dedicated Social Data and Analytics programs, some of which can be found in top MSW programs in Texas. For more information about data analysis in social work, visit our guide here.
Why do tech companies hire social workers?
Many large companies employ on-staff social workers to provide for the mental health needs of team members, and tech companies are no different. There are also some tech companies whose services overlap with social workers’ research and methodologies, such as mental health and wellness apps. In these companies, social workers can take on advisory or community management roles, offering an exciting new application for social work methodologies.
Do I need an MSW to hold a social work position at a tech company?
Yes. No matter where you are working, in order to practice the full responsibilities of a social worker, you must hold an active state social work license, which requires you to hold a Master of Social Work degree. This applies even to social workers who are working for private companies outside of the world of traditional social services.