Social media use, attitudes, and knowledge among social work students: Ethical implications for the social work profession

Abstract

Abstract The propagation of social media carries potentially rich ethical implications for communication norms, societal well-being, and individual mental health (i.e., human development and behavior). These concerns fall within the professional purview of social work. The purpose of this pilot survey research study is two-fold: (1) to describe and explore variables of interest, and their ethical implications, within the data pertaining to social work students’ use and knowledge of, and attitudes toward, social media; and, (2) to make recommendations for follow-up research studies seeking to more deeply ascertain the intersection of social media, ethical social work practice, and professional development. To achieve this stated purpose, the authors administer a 55-item survey to social work students (N ​= ​57) at a public university in the Southeastern United States with the permission of program directors and Human Subjects approval from the university’s Institutional Review Board. Overall, findings reveal that social work students seemingly hold conflicting attitudes toward social media that are also at times contrary to their self-reported knowledge and use of social media. The authors discuss social media’s ethical implications for the social work profession, taking the position that information about social media should be included in social work curricula.