Navigating social media: Its impact on the online and offline well-being of social workers in private practice

Lalache’ La’Beth Anthony, Robyn-Ann Coleman & William Shu Neba

Volume 6 Issue 2, June 2026

Abstract

The study examined how social media impacts the online and offline well-being of social workers in private practice within the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality. Employing an exploratory research design within a qualitative research approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 participants selected through purposive and snowball sampling techniques. The Uses and Gratifications Theory served as the study’s theoretical framework, and thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The results showed that social media is not one of the primary causes of anxiety and depression; however, it can worsen these conditions among individuals who already experience them. Findings regarding the tools and techniques used by private practice social workers to support their well-being revealed that social media offers several benefits, including attracting new clients, strengthening relationships with existing clients, and providing psychosocial support to individuals in need. The findings further revealed that social media affects social workers’ ability to manage their well-being both online and offline, as creating content for social media marketing requires considerable creativity and time. The study implies that a secure, accessible, and affordable platform should be developed specifically for social work private practitioners to enable them to practice safely while limiting exposure to potential risks such as hacking and scamming.

Keywords

Author information & Contribution

Lalache’ La’Beth Anthony. Corresponding author. PhD. Postdoctoral research fellow, University of Fort Hare, Alice Campus, 5700, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Email: shuwlly@yahoo.com

Robyn-Ann Coleman. Honours Graduate. University of Fort Hare, Alice Campus, 5700, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Email: anthonylalache@gmail.com

William Shu Neba. Lecturer, University of Fort Hare, Alice Campus, 5700, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Email: rcoleman@ufh.ac.za

"All authors equally contributed to the conception, design, preparation, data gathering, analysis, and writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved of the final manuscript."

Disclosure statement

Funding

Institutional Review Board Statement

Data and Materials Availability

AI Declaration

Notes

Acknowledgement

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Cite this article:

Anthony, L.L., Coleman, R. & Neba, W.S. (2026). Navigating social media: Its impact on the online and offline well-being of social workers in private practice. International Review of Social Sciences Research, 6(2), 204-226. https://doi.org/10.53378/irssr.353359