The impact of technology on Brazilian social work: potentials and challenges in ethical and socio-educational intervention

The integration of technology into Brazilian social work has presented both potentials and challenges. Social workers, historically engaged in socio-educational interventions from various perspectives, have experienced changes in their working conditions and tools due to technological innovations, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis presented reveals that while technology provides greater access to information and connections, it can also be used to amplify neoliberal influences, prioritising low-cost intervention methods at the expense of service quality and distancing professionals from the population they serve. Social work must adopt a critical and proactive approach, guided by its ethical-political project, to identify the challenges and possibilities of this process. Ignoring technological advances can lead to a detachment from social reality or submission to institutional and neoliberal demands. Methodologically, a systematic literature review and qualitative analysis of secondary data were employed, guided by contemporary critical perspectives within social work.