ICT-mediated social work practice and innovation: professionals’ experiences in the Norwegian Labour And Welfare Administration

Abstract

The widespread adoption of ICT today has a significant impact on the social work profession. In the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV), a new specialization, ICT-mediated or digital social work, is taking shape. It requires new knowledge, including guidelines for theories, methods and ethics to support skilful ICT use for professional goals. This article combines Rogers' diffusion of innovations theory with perspectives from social work and technology to advance the understanding of ICT-mediated practice amongst frontline social workers in NAV. Through a qualitative research approach, this study reveals the distinct characteristics of current digital social work in NAV and discusses activities that help further realize ICT's potential for social work innovation.

Digital competence in social work practice and education: experiences from Norway

“…Digital competences are often a requirement for frontline social workers in Norway or other European countries since ICT is increasingly used in the field for service delivery, communication and corporation, case management and administration (e.g. Antonio, Raquel, and Victoria 2018;Goldkind, Wolf, and Freddolino 2018;Zhu and Andersen 2020). Social workers today are professionally obligated to improve their digital competence to enhance their service quality and fulfil people's expectations in a digital society (Berzin and Coulton 2017;Hill and Shaw 2011;Zhu and Andersen 2020).…”

“…Antonio, Raquel, and Victoria 2018;Goldkind, Wolf, and Freddolino 2018;Zhu and Andersen 2020). Social workers today are professionally obligated to improve their digital competence to enhance their service quality and fulfil people's expectations in a digital society (Berzin and Coulton 2017;Hill and Shaw 2011;Zhu and Andersen 2020). Besides, social workers need the competence to support service users' human rights through digital inclusion and access to e-government services, safeguard individuals from online and digitally-related abuse and risk, and advocate for marginalized groups and promote Table 1.…”

“…Each method contributes descriptive data for understanding digital competence in NAV frontline practice. The Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD) approved the whole research process (Zhu and Andersen 2020). In total, thirty-five employees across two NAV offices participated in the research; they worked in various departments, including Economic and Social Help, the Qualification Programme for Long Term Unemployment, Health Team, Youth Team, Reception and the Refugees Service.…”

“…Specifically, the participatory observation took place at two NAV offices from January to March 2018, in three-day stays for each office. This method allowed the author to observe and participate in routine activities within two offices, explore different implemented ICT, and learn how participants perceive the digitalization process and how they define digital competence in practice (Zhu and Andersen 2020). During the same period, our research group conducted the firstround focus group interviews at two offices in January 2018; each lasted approximately two hours.…”

“…Therefore, practitioners must first understand what appropriate digital communication means in a given context (Baker et al 2014;C. Chan and Holosko 2016;Halvorsen 2017;Stang 2016;Zhu and Andersen 2020).…”