Artificial Intelligence in Social Work: Intellectual Structure and Thematic Growth over a Decade
TL;DR
The present article provides actionable insights for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers, emphasizing the need for inclusive collaboration, ethical governance, and education-driven adoption to ensure that AI strengthens social sustainability and justice in social work.
Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming multiple domains, yet its integration into social work remains at an early stage. To address the lack of systematic and evidence-based understanding, this article applies bibliometric methods to examine 528 publications on AI in social work indexed in Web of Science and Scopus between 2016 and 2025. Using the Bibliometrix R package and Biblioshiny, the analysis explores publication trends, country collaboration, key word co-occurrence, content structures, and thematic evolution. Findings reveal a sharp growth trajectory, with annual outputs increasing nearly tenfold and peaking in 2024. Country networks confirm the dominance of the United States, China, Germany, and Australia, alongside emerging contributions from Asia and Latin America. Key word mapping shows that, while “artificial intelligence” and “social work” remain central anchors, new directions—including education, equity, healthcare, decision making, and generative AI—have gained prominence. Thematic evolution indicates a shift from exploratory discussions of digital transformation toward applied and evaluative concerns linked to ethics, disparities, and professional training. The present article provides actionable insights for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers, emphasizing the need for inclusive collaboration, ethical governance, and education-driven adoption to ensure that AI strengthens social sustainability and justice in social work.