Social network services applied to social intervention

Title: New Mediums, New Opportunities Author: Joaquín Castillo de Mesa Email: [email protected] Affiliaton: Lecturer at University of Málaga (Spain) SYNOPSIS Since the appearance of the internet, the metaphor of networks has inundated every corner of reality, whether ‘offline’ or ‘online’. The online social system presents new relational possibilities for every type of activity, whether between groups of persons or organizations. At the current stage of internet consolidation, services found on online social networks have emerged, enabling people to connect in new ways. Such services provide opportunities for all activities involving communication and the exchange of information. Sharing, cooperating, coordinating and exchanging information and resources are collective actions facilitated by the existence of tools and services provided by new technological mediums. It is easier to be connected, to communicate and exchange information, and this suggests that the manner in which we relate to one another and behave together is evolving. Professional environments strategically constructed with these social mediums are herein observed and analysed so as to ascertain what type of activity may be occurring in said environments and to see if within these new mediums of socialization patterns of social connectivity are being produced that may constitute a reflection of the social connectivity found in the ‘offline reality’. With this aim in mind, the present investigation focuses on a specific case, analysing how the services found on online social networks are being applied in the professional sphere, particularly with regard to social intervention. Accordingly, we sought to discover whether the organizations and professionals working within the field of social work are adopting these new ways of connecting in order to integrate them into their daily work, thereby transforming them into new solutions for communication, cooperation and coordination. This entails regarding the use of online social networks applied to social intervention as an innovation, thus allowing us to observe the patterns of its adoption and diffusion.