Category: Social Work and Technology, General Social Work Category: Social Work and Technology, General Social Work (show less) Other: Wisconsin Other: Wisconsin (show less)

Historically, social workers have been taught to assess the psychosocial well-being of clients in the context of their environment, including relationships with family members, peers, neighbors, and coworkers. With the increasing use of technology in society, it is important for social workers to also consider clients’ relationships and comfort with technology. Such assessments could include client strengths, such as access to particular forms of technology and the ability to use technology for family, work, school, social, recreational, and other purposes. In addition, social workers should consider relevant needs, risks, and challenges, such as clients’ reluctance to use technology; difficulty affording technology; limited computer knowledge or fluency with technology; and the risk of cyberbullying, electronic identity theft, and other behaviors regarding the use of technology.

• Objectives

1. Describe the importance of including technology use during a psychosocial assessment
2. Apply questions from the BPD Technology Assessment Checklist for use during a psychosocial assessment 
3. Appreciate the role of digital literacy as a theoretical framework for assessing technology use with clients