WORKERS’ VIEWS ON THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY JUNE 2020
BACKGROUND
CONTACT US Questions or comments regarding findings can be directed to the FSPSF Principal Investigator, Dr. Dina Wilke, at dwilke@fsu.edu or (850) 644-9597.
Even prior to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the use of information and communication technology (ICT) had become fully embedded in daily work routines.1 Indeed, COVID-19 has highlighted just how important ICT is for communicating with one another. Despite this, little is known about how communication technology is used among child welfare workers. Most research has focused on how caseworkers adapted to electronic recording keeping systems.2 Of the few studies examining ICT use among child welfare workers, only a narrow selection of tools (e.g., email) has been studied. However, there are many types of electronic tools available to child welfare workers. This study examined the use of five types of ICT tools among child welfare workers. Those include the professional use of email, text messaging, social media, video conferencing software, and tools for professional development.
METHODS The Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families is a longitudinal study that seeks to provide knowledge about turnover and retention decisions among a cohort of child welfare workers recruited during their pre-service training. Data for this analysis come from Wave 6 of the study, which included 518 participants employed in their child welfare positions for about 2.5 years (before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic). Participants described the types and frequency of ICT used in the workplace, difficulties encountered while using ICT, and attitudes toward ICT use. We inquired about their use of email, text messaging, different types of social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, etc.), three types of video conferencing software (Skype, Zoom, and Adobe Connect), and two professional development tools (YouTube, Linkedin). Frequencies and percentages were calculated to analyze responses.
FINDINGS USE AND DIFFICULTIES The majority of child welfare workers reported daily use of email (94%) and text messaging (71%). In contrast, few reported the professional use of social media, video conferencing software or professional development tools. Only 10% indicated daily use of Facebook (social media), 7% used Adobe Connect (video conferencing software) daily, and 5% reported daily use of a professional development tool like YouTube. In addition, workers reported very few difficulties using technology regardless of the set of ICT tools used (Table 1).
Table 1.
Reported Difficulties
Item
Sometimes or Often
I received an e-mail not intended for me.
22.4%
A client attempted to add me as a friend on a social media website.
20.5%
I received a text message not intended for me.
18.2%
I received a text message that threatened, insulted, or harassed me.
17.8%
I was instructed by an authority figure (e.g., judge, supervisor) to monitor a client on social media.
14.1%
1
Purcell, K. & Rainee, L., (2014, December). Technology’s impact on workers. Retrieved from Pew Research Center website: http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/12/30/technologys-impact-on-workers
2
For example, see Smith, R. & Eaton, T. (2014). Information and communication technology in child welfare: The need for culture-centered computing. The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 41, 137-160.
EFFECTIVENESS Most workers (61%) believed that email was an effective way to provide services while 51% believed the same of text messaging. However, very few (6%) said that social media such as Facebook was effective for providing services, although the majority did believe that it was an acceptable way to locate clients (81%), identify client risk factors (77%), and conduct an assessment (55%). Finally, only a moderate proportion of workers believed that video conferencing software such as Zoom or Adobe Connect was an effective way to conduct meetings with professionals from other agencies (59%), although fewer believed it was effective for meetings with clients (36%). These findings take on new meaning given the abrupt changes in practice needed to accommodate COVID-19 safety measures.
RECOMMENDATIONS Not surprisingly, it appears that email and text messaging are fully embedded in the work lives of child welfare workers, with other tools being used far less frequently. Workers use technology for different purposes; email and text messaging were used as communication strategies, while social media was used for client assessment or monitoring. Moreover, workers reported encountering substantially fewer difficulties in ICT use than what has been reported in previous research.3 Importantly, these data were collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which upended child welfare work, often requiring workers to rapidly shift to virtual responsibilities.4,5 Agencies have been forced to reconsider strategies for remote work and how technology can be leveraged to support workers, children, and families. These findings, combined with the necessity to create new mechanisms for work, suggest agencies should consider strategies for resource, skill, and policy development.
Resource Development: Agencies should determine what ICT is needed beyond email and text messaging and then ensure that workers and clients have access to these tools. This includes operational support to effectively use tools to support children and families, clarity of expectations around appropriate use including expectations about in-person versus virtual visits, and accommodations for rural communities that may not have reliable high-speed internet capacity.
Skill Development: It is likely that some workers and families faced a steep learning curve in transitioning to remote work. Agencies need to develop strategies for training workers, supervisors, and others (e.g., foster parents) in the use of ICT to ensure technical competence in using the tools and digital literacy to critically assess which tools to use under what circumstances.6
Policy Development: Agencies should determine the appropriate use and boundaries for each type of ICT tool. In particular, social media use for client relationships (i.e., friending or following clients) or investigation and assessment needs to be carefully examined within the context of professional ethics. Agencies also need to develop policies that support worker self-care and disengagement from devices.
ICT tools provide opportunities to strengthen child welfare practice by providing additional ways for workers, community partners, children, and families to communicate, increasing ease and efficiency and social presence. Given the ubiquitous and vital role of technology in society, agencies are encouraged to fully leverage the strengths of ICT to improve the work life of child welfare workers and ultimately the quality of services to at risk families and children.
3
Breyette, S. K., & Hill, K. (2015). The impact of electronic communication and social media on child welfare practice. Journal of Technology in Human Services, 33(4), 283-303. doi: 10.1080/15228835.2015.1101408
4
Episode 283 - Dr. Robin Leake: Child Welfare and COVID-19: Ensuring safety and well-being in a global pandemic. (2020, June 2). inSocialWork® Podcast Series. [Audio Podcast] Retrieved from http://www.insocialwork.org/episode.asp?ep=283
5
Sage, M., & Hitchcock, L. (2020). Remote casework for child welfare stakeholders in the time of COVID-19. Buffalo Center for Social Research: Buffalo, NY: University at Buffalo School of Social Work.
6
Wolf, L. & Goldkind, L. (2016). Digital native meet friendly visitor: A Flexner-inspired call to digital action. Journal of Social Work Education, 52, S99-S109. DOI: 10.1080/10437797.2016.1174643
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