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Digital Storytelling and Social Work
WINTER 2015 VOLUME 11
Technological innovations and media
consumption are expanding at an exponential
rate, allowing for increased access to various
digital resources and forms of connection
around the world. As technology grows and
diversifies, so do opportunities and forms of
social work interventions. Digital storytelling is
one way social workers can utilize technology
and media to work with diverse populations as
a means of giving voice, empowering,
advocating and capacity building (Couldry,
2008; Given, 2006). This technological
advancement also brings about necessary
resources for creating successful digital
storytelling campaigns which are (OR which
become) more and more accessible. However,
like all interventions, there are ethical considerations for
creating safe, effective digital stories and collections.
Digital storytelling is a recorded, visual storytelling
medium that has the potential to integrate personal
narrative with photographs, artwork, text and video. These
creations can serve many purposes, from sharing individual
and community strengths and successes to voicing
challenges and experiences with statistical data and other
similar, thematic stories. In fact, entire stories can be
recorded and produced with as little as a smartphone or
similar device. Intentionally created stories and curated
collections have been used to promote critical awareness,
advocate, empower and build communities (Center for
Digital Storytelling, 2015). Digital stories have the potential
to utilize stories, poetry, rap and other forms of personal
expression to create stylistically and thematically diverse and
powerful works (Podkalicka & Campbell, 2010).
The process of digital storytelling aligns with many
of the values and goals of social work practice. The process
of creating a digital narrative (as well as the finished
product) has the power to affect the individuals, communities
and listeners involved in the process. The development and
production of stories provides opportunities for capacity
building and community building. Digital storytelling projects
offers chances for storytellers to gain capacity in video
recording, editing, story selection and other areas of video
production (Podkalicka & Campbell, 2010). Additionally,
projects integrated into programmatic and educational
opportunities also allow for youth participants to integrate
personal interests, educational goals and 21st century skills
development like interactive communication, interpersonal
skills, and personal and social responsibility (Czarnecki, 2009;
Podkalicka & Campbell, 2010). Through telling, reworking and
reflecting on stories, individuals also have opportunities to
focus on their strengths, gain voice, promoting resiliency, and
even experience therapeutic benefits (Beltrán & Begun, 2014;
Christiansen, 2009). Social workers can use this opportunity to
help storytellers to develop personal agency and self-
representation through their story crafting (Lennette, Cox, &
Brough, 2013).
By Jesse Kerstetter
WINTER 2015 VOLUME 11
Digital storytelling projects also have the potential
of benefiting the groups of storytellers and the communities
that they represent. Finalized stories and collections are able
to give voice to marginalized groups and expose them to
previously underrepresented media spaces. Successful
projects have helped to build community and advocacy for
refugees, indigenous people, and medical patients. One
benefit of giving these communities voice is in the creation
and dissemination of a counter-narrative, something that
can be used to challenge stereotypes and dominant societal
narratives (Lennette, Cox, & Brough, 2013). One particular
digital storytelling project with a Maori community
showcased the power of helping indigenous people confront
historical trauma and promoting community healing (Beltrán
& Begun, 2014). This project served as a safe space for the
local community to address generational marginalization and
oppression, which has created serious mental health and
social implications along the way. While this process was
only limited to one workshop, the process took into account
the cultural power of storytelling as a concept of medicine
within this indigenous community, rather than just framing
their story within dominant New Zealand narrative (Beltrán
& Begun, 2014).
While there are multiple learning opportunities for
the social workers, individuals and communities directly,
there are also opportunities for audience members outside
of the communities. Completed pieces are opportunities to
promote education and advocacy. Nottingham University
Division of Nursing and a patient advocacy group
collaborated in recording the challenges of new nurses and
patient experiences as a way to educate and emotionally
prepare recently graduated student nurses in their new
careers. This project helped the intended audience to
develop empathy skills and self-reflective skills in their
professional time after university (Stacey & Hardy, 2010).
The idea of empathy and education extend beyond the
nursing field and help bridge divides between segregated
communities, promote advocacy and exposure where there
may not previously have been any (Lennette, Cox, & Brough,
2013). With exposure, education and empathy, stories have the
power to inspire new dialogues among people of power and
marginalized communities in attempts to change policies and
social systems (Couldry, 2008; Given, 2006; Podkalicka &
Campbell, 2010).
When a social worker chooses to use digital
storytelling there are many ethical considerations that need to
be contemplated throughout the process. Many concerns
relate to the safety, consent, and self-representation of the
storytellers. The Center for Digital Storytelling has even
developed ethical guidelines and a Digital Storyteller’s Bill of
Rights as a means of protecting storyteller’s rights, safety and
agency. While the process of storytelling has the ability to
empower, it also has the risk of being triggering, causing the
individual to relive the trauma (Center for Digital Storytelling,
2015). Like all media productions, consent is also important.
And for consent to remain ethical, project leaders will need to
transparent in expressing project intent, story ownership and
story development among many other considerations.
Storytellers should have the agency to remove themselves and
their completed works at all times, as well as being able to
guide the content and creative aspects of their story (Center
for Digital Storytelling, 2015; Banks et al., 2013). Privacy of the
storyteller and individuals identified therein is another
important consideration (Lennette, Cox, & Brough, 2013).
Project leaders should also be culturally humble
through the development of these projects with particular
awareness of potential power dynamics between the
storytellers, project curators, and future audience members.
This is particularly important in assisting with the shaping of
the project so that technical advisors don’t alter a storyteller’s
message, or that a storyteller alters their own message to say
what they think someone else wants to hear (Wang, C., &
Redwood-Jones, 2001).
WINTER 2015 VOLUME 11
Social workers also need to think of not
perpetuating stereotypes through guiding and curating the
project, while allowing participants to naturally share the
stories they choose to show (Banks et al. 2013, Lennette,
Cox, & Brough, 2013). These considerations can help ensure
that a vulnerable population isn’t being exploited for
alternative agendas and that they are not further exposed to
potentially challenging situations.
Emphasis on a digital storytelling intervention’s process or final production provides different opportunities for individual and community growth. The process of creating and reflecting provides opportunities for individual interpersonal development and capacity building, that collectively adds to the strengths of their community. And while final products can impact the individual storytellers, they can collectively be used to promote awareness, education and advocacy change for communities. Social work practitioners need to develop a digital storytelling project that takes into account a community’s strengths and barriers, their collective goals for change, and many ethical considerations to ensure the promotion of agency and a successful project. While the social worker serves as a co-facilitator and producer, in the end, storytellers’ narratives and shared experiences are theirs, and serve as representations of strength, resilience, medicine and hope in their community and beyond.