Innovative technology-enhanced social work service during COVID-19: How ‘Garden on the Balcony’ promoted resilience,community bonds and a green lifestyle
Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online March, 2023
Innovative technology-enhanced social work service during COVID-19: How ‘Garden on the Balcony’ promoted resilience,community bonds and a green lifestyle
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has motivated social workers to reckon with and transform traditions in service delivery. The development, application, and evaluation of technology-enhanced practices have become more vital than ever. Garden on the Balcony (GOB) was an innovative internet-based social work service designed to respond rapidly to the COVID-19 outbreak in Beijing. This paper introduces the underlying perspectives and design of GOB and reports participants’ reflections on the program to understand its mechanisms and implications. Interview data from GOB participants were collected 4 months after the program ended. Thematic analysis generated three major themes, suggesting that GOB had (a) promoted individual resilience and family cohesion; (b) built online and offline community bonds; and (c) cultivated a green lifestyle and spiritual reflection on life. This study demonstrates a practical example of the effective use of technology-enhanced practice.
AcarAMurakiY (2011) Twitter for crisis communication: lessons learned from Japan’s tsunami disaster. International Journal of Web Based Communities7(3): 392–402.
2.
AmadasunS (2020) Social work and COVID-19 pandemic: an action call. International Social Work63(6): 753–756.
3.
Beijing Municipal People’s Government (2020) Notice of the Beijing Municipal People's Government on Further Clarifying Responsibilities and Strengthening the Prevention and Control of Pneumonia Caused by New Coronavirus Infection. http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/2020-01/25/content_5472169.htm
4.
BerzinSCSingerJChanC (2015) Practice Innovation through Technology in the Digital Age: A Grand Challenge for Social Work. Cleveland, OH: American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare.
5.
BragadóttirH (2008) Computer‐mediated support group intervention for parents. Journal of Nursing Scholarship40(1): 32–38.
6.
Bun KuHDominelliL (2018) Not only eating together: space and green social work intervention in a hazard-affected area in Ya’an, Sichuan of China. British Journal of Social Work48(5): 1409–1431.
7.
ChanCHoloskoMJ (2016) A review of information and communication technology enhanced social work interventions. Research on Social Work Practice26(1): 88–100.
8.
ChienWTChanSW (2013) The effectiveness of mutual support group intervention for Chinese families of people with schizophrenia: a randomised controlled trial with 24-month follow-up. International Journal of Nursing Studies50(10): 1326–1340.
9.
DominelliL (2012) Green Social Work: From Environmental Crises to Environmental Justice. Cambridge: Polity.
10.
DominelliL (ed) (2018) The Routledge Handbook of Green Social Work. New York: Routledge.
11.
DominelliL (2021) A green social work perspective on social work during the time of COVID‐19. International Journal of Social Welfare30(1): 7–16.
12.
DominelliLKuHB (2017) Green social work and its implications for social development in China. China Journal of Social Work10(1): 3–22.
13.
EborMTLoebTBTrejoL (2020) Social workers must address intersecting vulnerabilities among noninstitutionalized, Black, Latinx, and older adults of color during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Gerontological Social Work63(6–7): 585–588.
14.
EpsteinMH (2000) The Behavioral and emotional rating scale: a strength-based approach to assessment. Diagnostique25(3): 249–256.
15.
FengSZhangQHoSM (2021) Fear and anxiety about COVID‐19 among local and overseas Chinese university students. Health & Social Care in the Community29(6): e249–e258. DOI: 10.1111/hsc.13347.
16.
FinnJBarakA (2010) A descriptive study of e-counsellor attitudes, ethics, and practice. Counselling and Psychotherapy Review24(2): 268–277.
17.
FreddolinoPPKeysF (2019) Harness technology for social good. In: SandersSKolomerSWaites SpellmanC, et al. (eds) Gerontological Social Work and the Grand Challenges.Cham: Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-26334-8_8
18.
GanYMaJWuJ, et al. (2020) Immediate and delayed psychological effects of province-wide lockdown and personal quarantine during the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Psychological Medicine:1–12. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291720003116.
19.
GolightleyMHollowayM (2020) Social work in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic: all in this together?The British Journal of Social Work50(3): 637–641.
20.
GreeneGJLeeMY (2011) Solution-Oriented Social Work Practice: An Integrative Approach to Working with Client Strengths. New York: Oxford University Press.
21.
GreeneGJLeeMYTraskR, et al. (2000) How to work with clients’ strengths in crisis intervention: A solution-focused approach. In: RobertsAR (ed) Crisis Intervention Handbook: Assessment, Treatment, and Research. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 31–55.
22.
HareI (2004) Defining social work for the 21st century: The International Federation of Social Workers’ revised definition of social work. International Social Work47(3): 407–424.
23.
HjorthLKimKHY (2011) The mourning after: a case study of social media in the 3.11 earthquake disaster in Japan. Television & New Media12(6): 552–559.
24.
HollidaySHunterSDoppA, et al. (2020) Exploring the impact of Covid-19 on social services for vulnerable populations in Los Angeles. Available at: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA431-1.html (accessed 01 May 2021).
25.
HouXMaYWuY, et al (2020) Implementing green education of urban families: Aan action research project in Beijing, China. Action Research18(1): 19–47.
26.
JangICChoiLJ (2020) Staying connected during COVID-19: the social and communicative role of an ethnic online community of Chinese international students in South Korea. Multilingua39(5): 541–552.
27.
JiaZXuSZhangZ, et al. (2021) Association between mental health and community support in lockdown communities during the COVID-19 pandemic: evidence from rural China. Journal of Rural Studies82: 87–97.
28.
JinLHaoZHuangJ, et al. (2021) Depression and anxiety symptoms are associated with problematic smartphone use under the COVID-19 epidemic: the mediation models. Children and Youth Services Review121: 105875.
29.
KathirvelN (2020) Post COVID-19 pandemic mental health challenges. Asian Journal of Psychiatry53: 102430.
30.
MartinezRCClarkCL (2000) The Social Worker’s Guide to the Internet. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
31.
McQuaideSEhrenreichJH (1997) Assessing client strengths. Families in Society78(2): 201–212.
32.
MedlineAHayesLValdezK, et al. (2020) Evaluating the impact of stay-at-home orders on the time to reach the peak burden of Covid-19 cases and deaths: does timing matter?BMC Public Health20(1): 1–7.
33.
MishnaFMilneEBogoM, et al. (2021) Responding to COVID-19: new trends in social workers’ use of information and communication technology. Clinical Social Work Journal49: 484–494. doi: 10.1007/s10615-020-00780-x.
PatonDIronsM (2016) Communication, sense of community, and disaster recovery: a Facebook case study. Frontiers in Communication1: 4.
37.
PowersMCWillettJMathiasJ, et al. (2018) Green social work for environmental justice: Implications for international social workers. In: DominelliL (ed) The Routledge Handbook of Green Social Work. New York: Routledge, pp. 74–84.
38.
PristeràPPapgeorgiouVKaurM (2020) Online Community Involvement in COVID-19 Research and Outbreak Response: Early Insights from a UK Perspective. London: Imperial College of London Response Team.
39.
RanMSGaoRLinJX, et al. (2020) The impacts of COVID-19 outbreak on mental health in general population in different areas in China. Psychological Medicine: 1–10. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291720004717.
40.
ReamerFG (2018) Ethical standards for social workers’ use of technology: emerging consensus. Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics15(2): 71–80.
41.
RenXHuangWPanH, et al. (2020) Mental health during the Covid-19 outbreak in China: a meta-analysis. Psychiatric Quarterly1033–1045. doi: 10.1007/s11126-020-09796-5.
SchutzA (1967) The Phenomenology of the Social World. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.
46.
SundlerAJLindbergENilssonC, et al. (2019) Qualitative thematic analysis based on descriptive phenomenology. Nursing Open6(3): 733–739.
47.
TedeschiRGKilmerRP (2005) Assessing strengths, resilience, and growth to guide clinical interventions. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice36(3): 230–237.
48.
WangCPanRWanX, et al. (2020) A longitudinal study on the mental health of general population during the COVID-19 epidemic in China. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity87: 40–48.
49.
WangYGaoQChengZ, et al. (2021a) Creating solace and hope during COVID-19: an innovative Internet-based social work intervention. International Social Work64(2): 251–254.
50.
WangYShiLQueJ, et al. (2021b) The impact of quarantine on mental health status among general population in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. Molecular Psychiatry4813–4822. doi: 10.1038/s41380-021-01019-y.
51.
WuJGamberMSunW (2020) Does Wuhan need to be in lockdown during the Chinese Lunar New Year?International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health17(3): 1002.
52.
ZornTEFlanaginAJShohamMD (2011) Institutional and noninstitutional influences on information and communication technology adoption and use among nonprofit organizations. Human Communication Research37(1): 1–33.
