Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work of social workers

dc.accessRightsAnonymous*
dc.contributor.authorSchell-Kiehl, Ines
dc.contributor.authorLaurens, Melissa
dc.contributor.authorKetelaar, Nicole
dc.contributor.authorSommerfeld, Peter
dc.contributor.authorHess, Nadja
dc.contributor.authorBühler, Sarah
dc.contributor.authorMeyer, Nikolaus
dc.contributor.authorFranz, Sebastian
dc.date.accessioned2023-02-21T07:29:40Z
dc.date.available2023-02-01T14:40:07Z
dc.date.available2023-02-21T07:29:40Z
dc.date.issued2022-08-15
dc.description.abstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on everyone’s life.  Like many other professionals, social workers have been forced to adapt to these new working conditions and new challenges in order to support clients during the pandemic, as new needs have arisen. Together with professional associations from three nations (Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands), we used a coordinated approach to explore the consequences of the pandemic for social work professionals. This study was conducted during the most severe contact and hygiene restrictions of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the winter of 2020/2021. The data addresses the changes perceived by social work professionals in relation to their contact and communication with clients, the use of digital technology in the context of work, the professional response in terms of innovation, the working conditions and the psychosocial risks they face. Methods: Cross-sectional data was collected from 7,241 social workers in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands through online surveys. Results: The results show an increase in the workload of professional social workers and compounding problems of clients, together with a negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on communication and contact with clients. All of this takes place within the framework of changing working conditions and contexts. Our data shows that the use of digital technologies does not cause bigger problems for most of the participating social workers. It should in fact be noted that professionals have many positive associations with the use of digital technology in general. Conclusions: There are both remarkable and alarming results concerning the mental health of social workers and their working conditions, as well as the position of the social work profession in general.en_US
dc.identifier.doi10.31265/jcsw.v17i1.390
dc.identifier.issn0809-9936
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.26041/fhnw-4594
dc.identifier.urihttps://irf.fhnw.ch/handle/11654/34521
dc.issue1en_US
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherUniversity of Stavangeren_US
dc.relation.ispartofJournal of Comparative Social Worken_US
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/en_US
dc.spatialStavangeren_US
dc.subjectsocial work profession, international comparison, COVID-19 pandemic, use of technology, contact professional and client, working conditions for professionalsen_US
dc.subject.ddc300 - Sozialwissenschaftenen_US
dc.titleImpact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the work of social workersen_US
dc.type01A - Beitrag in wissenschaftlicher Zeitschrift
dc.volume17en_US
dspace.entity.typePublication
fhnw.InventedHereYesen_US
fhnw.IsStudentsWorknoen_US
fhnw.ReviewTypeAnonymous ex ante peer review of a complete publicationen_US
fhnw.affiliation.hochschuleHochschule für Soziale Arbeitde_CH
fhnw.affiliation.institutInstitut Soziale Arbeit und Gesundheitde_CH
fhnw.openAccessCategoryGolden_US
fhnw.pagination123-152en_US
fhnw.publicationStatePublisheden_US
relation.isAuthorOfPublication57f1ba23-dc06-4e6b-981c-190f044a0e80
relation.isAuthorOfPublication6fc6637d-77ed-44e9-92ab-79e201610706
relation.isAuthorOfPublication79a4a7fd-444b-458a-9c2b-1277e22eb12d
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery57f1ba23-dc06-4e6b-981c-190f044a0e80
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