BOOK ALERT: AI and the Disruption of Welfare. Challenges for Social Work Education and Practice

📢 BOOK ALERT: AI and the Disruption of Welfare. Challenges for Social Work Education and Practice will be released on November 3, 2025 by Routledge!📢 Pre-Orders are available until October 13 here: https://www.routledge.com/AI-and-the-Disruption-of-Welfare-Challenges-for-Social-Work-Education-and-Practice/Ottmann-Noble/p/book/9781032741123

This book, comprising 22 chapters by leading scholars, examines how:
💡 AI-driven technologies are reshaping surveillance and coercive forms of "welfare" and transforming welfare state practices.
💡 Advanced digital systems are blurring the lines between welfare, penal, and carceral states.
💡 Social work practice and education are being profoundly impacted by these new technologies.

This book delves into how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming everyday life. While these emerging digital technologies carry significant potential, they also pose new risks. With contributors from a diverse range of countries and welfare regimes, the book offers both critical insights into the limitations of current systems and a vision for new possibilities in the digital age.

I’m proud to have contributed to this volume with my chapter:💡Ghost in the Cell? Artificial Intelligence in Prisoners’ Rehabilitation: Automation vs. Individuality?💡In this article, I reflect on the potential of using AI in working with incarcerated individuals, its ethical implications, and early practical experiences. I also discuss these developments in light of the Council of Europe's recommendations on AI use in corrections.

Essential reading for scholars, students, and practitioners in the fields of social work, social welfare and corrections!

Looking forward to discussions with colleagues about this important topic!

Pia P.