Antonio López Peláez

Social work and netnography: The case of Spain and generic drugs

In this study, we examine a key issue for the sustainability of our welfare state: the patterns of consumption of generic drugs, the Internet, and healthcare social work. Taking the online context (netnography) as an object of ethnographic analysis, we analyze climates of opinion in relation to the consumption of generic drugs. We identify and analyze the linguistic framing and social discrediting of generic drugs via misinformation and the creation of risk perception to curb the social acceptability and consumption of these medicines in Spain. Based on the results obtained, we provide strategies that can be used by healthcare social workers.

Excluidos pero trabajadores: el círculo vicioso de los ‘trabajadores con bajo salario’ en España.

In this article we present the results of our research related to ‘low- salary workers’ in Spain. From a process and multifunctional perspective regarding the analysis of social exclusion, we have analysed the increasing precariousness of work, and the contradiction that assumes that in a salary-based society such as ours, it is very difficult to reach the so-called ‘social integration zone’, as is the case with ‘lowsalary workers’. In spite of the relative invisibility that characterizes this group, the results obtained allow us to describe its evolution in recent years, and to formulate a typology of ‘low-salary workers’, analyzing their family connections and their relations with public institutions.

E-social work: building a new field of specialization in social work?

ABSTRACT New technologies have transformed the nature and practice of social work. A wider range of available digital procedures has opened up a broader dimension regarding research, therapies, interventions and social networks in the field. Using meta-analysis methods, this article reviews the current situation of the application of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in social work. A search of the literature reveals 70 articles using different methodological approaches over the period 2006–2016. The descriptors for the search were ICTs, information systems, technological systems, social work and e-social work. The main findings are that most studies on ICTs and social work focus on the impact, potential and specific uses of technologies in different aspects of social work, the ethical issues involved and the special attention that should be given to social workers’ educational programmes. This scenario is a changing reality that must be taken into account: it is an irrefutable fact that new technologies are affecting social work and will be reflected by researchers and practitioners who should address and deal with these new trends in social work. The results allow us to identify four key recommendations to assist social workers in successfully adopting and implementing ICTs in their daily practice.ABSTRACTNew technologies have transformed the nature and practice of social work. A wider range of available digital procedures has opened up a broader dimension regarding research, therapies, inte...

Empowerment, Well-Being and the Welfare State: Family Social Work in Spain

In this chapter, we approach several key dimensions of the family well-being: firstly, the particular characteristics of Spanish families; secondly, the barriers for the inclusion of these families; and thirdly, the design of intervention programmes to improve their inclusion. From this point, in this chapter, we provide an overview of these three dimensions. Related to the first point, we will analyse the main paradoxes we find in our Spanish society when we think of families. Related to the second point, we note how social policies are frequently focused on a delivery programme of funds or other resources. In this point, we discuss the empowerment perspective and how it could help to transform these delivery programmes in empowering/strengthening programmes that work beyond the assisting issue. Finally, we show an assessment intervention from the empowerment perspective.

e-Social work and digital society: re-conceptualizing approaches, practices and technologies

The digitalisation of society is changing our behaviour, our institutions and the helping professions, among them social work. Adapting to this new environment is one of the main challenges facing ...

From the Digital Divide to the Robotics Divide? Reflections on Technology, Power, and Social Change

Technology, power, and social change have always been closely interrelated. This chapter examines the complex relationship between technology and society, with particular attention to the assessment of science and technology policies in democratic societies. Our analysis of technological trajectories points to the need for a new social contract which, through prospective studies and trend analysis, permits us to forecast the new opportunities and new risks arising from the sociotechnical model in which we are immersed. We analyze the key role robotics technology will play in the coming years within this context and conclude the chapter with a definition of what we call the robotics divide.