@article{ART003335504},
author={Won-Sun Lim},
title={Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology},
journal={Industry Promotion Research},
issn={2466-1139},
year={2026},
volume={11},
number={2},
pages={389-399},
doi={10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389}
TY - JOUR
AU - Won-Sun Lim
TI - Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology
JO - Industry Promotion Research
PY - 2026
VL - 11
IS - 2
PB - Industrial Promotion Institute
SP - 389
EP - 399
SN - 2466-1139
AB - With the acceleration of digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI) technology is being widely in troduced into the field of social work practice. This study aimed to elucidate that the adoption of AI is not me rely the application of administrative tools, but a discursive practice that restructures the essential values and power dynamics of social work. To this end, a multi-layered corpus of 4,674 texts—including policies, news media, and public comments from 2020 to 2025—was constructed, and a mixed-methods approach combining text mining (TF-IDF and time-series analysis) with Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) was employed. The analysis revealed that the macro and meso levels (state and media) appropriate AI as a mechanism for 'discovery' and 'management,' maximizing governmentality and administrative efficiency. Conversely, the micro level (the public) forms an existential discourse of resistance against the reduction of human intervention by practitioners and the dehumanization of care. Notably, the time-series analysis observed a "discourse lag" phenomenon, where an explosive expansion of technocratic discourse in 2023–2024 was followed by a surge in public ethical resistance in 2025. This study is significant in its critical reflection on the dominant discourse that reduces clients to data objects, and in proposing concrete alternatives, such as the introduction of an 'Algorithmic Impact Assessment in Social Work' and the strengthening of practitioners' competencies as 'critical data advocates.'
KW - Artificial Intelligence (AI);Social Work Practice;Text Mining;Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA);Discourse Lag;Algorithmic Governmentality
DO - 10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
ER -
Won-Sun Lim. (2026). Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology. Industry Promotion Research, 11(2), 389-399.
Won-Sun Lim. 2026, "Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology", Industry Promotion Research, vol.11, no.2 pp.389-399. Available from: doi:10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim "Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology" Industry Promotion Research 11.2 pp.389-399 (2026) : 389.
Won-Sun Lim. Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology. 2026; 11(2), 389-399. Available from: doi:10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim. "Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology" Industry Promotion Research 11, no.2 (2026) : 389-399.doi: 10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim. Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology. Industry Promotion Research, 11(2), 389-399. doi: 10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim. Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology. Industry Promotion Research. 2026; 11(2) 389-399. doi: 10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim. Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology. 2026; 11(2), 389-399. Available from: doi:10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
Won-Sun Lim. "Discursive Shifts in Social Welfare Practice Following the Implementation of Artificial Intelligence Technology" Industry Promotion Research 11, no.2 (2026) : 389-399.doi: 10.21186/IPR.2026.11.2.389
