Social work and social media: a national replication study of use, attitudes, and knowledge among US Students.
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| Title: | Social work and social media: a national replication study of use, attitudes, and knowledge among US Students. |
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| Authors: | Ricciardelli, Lauren A.1 (AUTHOR) lricciardelli@uwf.edu, McGarity, Stephen2 (AUTHOR), Berry, Jada1 (AUTHOR) |
| Source: | Social Work Education. Feb2026, Vol. 45 Issue 1, p10-33. 24p. |
| Subject Terms: | *Social media, *Education policy, *Information technology, *Students, Professions, Social attitudes, Digital technology, Social services |
| Abstract: | The extensive adoption of social media (ie digital information and communications technology; artificial intelligence; machine learning; large language models) has implications for the social work profession's standards and educational policy. The purposes of this study were to describe US social work students' use, attitudes, and knowledge regarding social media and to compare these findings with a Fall 2019 national study. In Spring 2023, the authors sampled 160 universities with social work programs for the purpose of distributing a 56-item Qualtrics survey. Findings included: The concern over others' social media use versus self-use remains inverted; decreased agreement that data protection is important despite endorsing it as a civil/human rights issue; decreased endorsement of law enforcement's use of social media to assist in the apprehension of persons accused of committing a crime; decreased knowledge of racial bias in facial recognition technology; decreased confidence in the ability to identify disinformation; decreased endorsement that disinformation is a problem on social media; decreased knowledge that social media impact democratic processes; decreased knowledge of Net Neutrality; and, continued endorsement that social media belongs in the social work curriculum. The authors made recommendations for professional standards and educational policy, and government regulatory policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| Database: | Education Research Complete |
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| Abstract: | The extensive adoption of social media (ie digital information and communications technology; artificial intelligence; machine learning; large language models) has implications for the social work profession's standards and educational policy. The purposes of this study were to describe US social work students' use, attitudes, and knowledge regarding social media and to compare these findings with a Fall 2019 national study. In Spring 2023, the authors sampled 160 universities with social work programs for the purpose of distributing a 56-item Qualtrics survey. Findings included: The concern over others' social media use versus self-use remains inverted; decreased agreement that data protection is important despite endorsing it as a civil/human rights issue; decreased endorsement of law enforcement's use of social media to assist in the apprehension of persons accused of committing a crime; decreased knowledge of racial bias in facial recognition technology; decreased confidence in the ability to identify disinformation; decreased endorsement that disinformation is a problem on social media; decreased knowledge that social media impact democratic processes; decreased knowledge of Net Neutrality; and, continued endorsement that social media belongs in the social work curriculum. The authors made recommendations for professional standards and educational policy, and government regulatory policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 02615479 |
| DOI: | 10.1080/02615479.2025.2474492 |
