Technology facilitates social work | DiePress.com

The digital change has been well received.

Accompanying young people in crises via the Internet, allowing parents to participate in the daily lives of their children in care facilities via digital tools or coordinating doctors’ visits to the elderly – digitalization is increasingly permeating the social sector. Sabine Klinger and Andrea Mayer of the Institute of Education and Educational Sciences find out how staff at the facilities are dealing with this change University of Graz Researched with her team since June 2020.

The results of an online survey with 1,246 participants and nine group discussions with 25 professionals are now available. Conclusion: The majority value digital change in their field.

I was surprised by the acceptance

“The results surprised us,” Mayer says. “We did not expect digitization to be well received,” Klinger adds. The pandemic may have played a role. But: “It is becoming clear that transparently positioning organizations in the field of digitization as well as clear rules and guidelines, time and resources for extrapolation, opportunities for participation, and appropriate technical equipment are of particular importance.”

Based on the findings, the researchers and 37 specialists developed specific recommendations for digital practice, so to speak, best practice pathways for designing digitization processes. The content of the resulting strategies, which can be read in detail on the project website, is: digital change does not come out of the socket, but begins in people’s minds. (cog)

Web: www.digital-at-socialwork.uni-graz.at

(“Die Presse,” print edition, October 22, 2022)