Almost a quarter of social workers have experienced abuse or threats online, with those in the child and family area most likely to be targeted, according to new research.
The study, published on Thursday, shows that in almost half of instances, the person posting an abusive message was an adult service user, either past or present, and in more than a quarter of incidents, it was a family member of a service user.
Some of those interviewed for the University College Cork research gave examples of the abuse. One said: “Fake profile set up in my name including my photo and phone number describing me as available for a good time or words to that effect along with photos of men in underwear.”
Another said: “Threats made not using my name but saying the SW [social worker] that took your child into care, know where they live, put a tracker on their car, know when they get up and got to bed.”
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Other examples included targeted abuse about social work in general, false allegations, screenshots and homophobic slurs.
The research, carried out by a team led by Kenneth Burns in UCC’s School of Applied Social Studies, also shows that the abuse left some social workers...
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