The big picture: Infographics for social work
by Pat Shelly
We’ve all heard the saying:
“A picture is worth a thousand words.”
image: TerrellCotton.com
Aristotle said, “The soul never thinks without a picture.”
Pictures can inform and inspire us.
One way to brighten and broaden the view of social work is through infographics.
An infographic is a visual representation of information or data. It combines data and design in a format that is easy to share and to understand.
image: Daniel Zeevi – Dashburst
Given the role of technology and the internet in knowledge-production and dissemination, this educational tool is especially useful today.
At the UB School of Social Work, we’ve found that this tool is a very popular one. Thousands of copies of our “How to Flourish in Social Work: Steps to Self-Care” have been distributed to students, alumni, agencies and other schools of social work in the USA and abroad.
Order copies of this free infographic here
And we expect our latest infographic, “A Social Worker’s Guide to Social Media,” will meet with equal success.
(Get your copy here.)
The list below — an eclectic selection of infographics that show good design, data, story and shareability — offers examples addressing 12 topics areas:
What is Social Work? / Social Work Careers / Macro Social Work /
Social Justice Issues / Human Rights / Social Media &Technology /
Health & Mental Health / ACEs / Trauma & Trauma-Informed Care /
The Brain / Child Welfare / Self-Care /
We hope that readers will send in links to more infographics to our “Comments” section below.
What is Social Work?
University of Southern California School of Social Work. (2012). [Social Work 101] [Infographic] Retrieved from http://visual.ly/social-work-101
Social Work Degree Center. (2013, August). [Looking for Leaders: The Crisis in Social Work] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.socialworkdegreecenter.com/social-work-leaders/
Social Work Careers
Social Work Career. (2015, February). [Top 10 Skills for Clinical Social Workers] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.socialwork.career/2015/02/the-top-10-skills-social-workers-must-develop.html
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University. (2014, March 4). [Making a Difference: Community Practice for Social Change] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://onlinesocialwork.case.edu/resources/infographics/making-a-difference/
Top 10 Online Colleges. (2015, July 2). [Top 10 Work Skills for 2020] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://www.best-infographics.com/2020-most-important-future-work-skills/
Macro Social Work
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University. (n.d.).
[Making An Impact Across Diverse Industries: Social Work Careers to Explore] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://onlinesocialwork.case.edu/resources/infographics/social-work-careers-to-explore/
Social Work Career. (2015, June). [7 Career Tips for Macro Social Workers] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.socialwork.career/2015/06/7-career-tips-for-macro-social-workers.html
Jane Ellen Stevens and ACEs Connection Network. (2015, April 8).[Roadmap to Resilience] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.janeellenstevens.com/ACEsRoadmaptoResilience.html
Social Justice Issues:
University of New England School of Social Work. (2013). [Social Work and Social Justice Ideals] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://visual.ly/social-work-and-ideals-social-justice
Good Magazine and Column Five (2012). [And Justice For All: Social Justice Index] [Infographic].
Retrieved from http://magazine.good.is/infographics/infographic-and-justice-for-all#open
Bustle. (2015, August 23). [What Does Black Lives Matter Want?] [Infographic].
Retrieved from http://www.bustle.com/ar
What Does #BlackLivesMatter Want?
Amnesty International United Kingdom. (n.d.). [6 Ways to Help End the Crisis in Syria: Justice for Syria] [Infographic].
Retrieved from http://visual.ly/syria-6-ways-help-end-crisis
Human Rights
United Nations. (n.d.) [The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://zenpencils.com/comic/134-the-universal-declaration-of-human-rights/
Association for Progressive Communications. (n.d.). [The Impact of the Internet on Human Rights] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://visual.ly/impact-internet-human-rights
Health/ Mental Health
Disabled World. (2011, May). [Disability in America] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/statistics/american-disability.php
Recovery Connection. (n.d.). [What is a Dual Diagnosis?] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.aboutdepressionfacts.com/what-is-dual-diagnosis-infographic.html
Social Work Degree Center. (2014). [Suicide] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.socialworkdegreecenter.com/suicide-notes/
ACEs – Adverse Childhood Experiences
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014, May 13). [The ACE Study] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/index.html
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (2013). [The Truth About ACEs] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.rwjf.org/en/library/infographics/the-truth-about-aces.html
Trauma / Trauma-Informed Practice
National Council for Community Behavioral Health. (n.d.) [How to Manage Trauma] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Trauma-Infographic-Print.pdf
University at Buffalo School of Social Work. (2014). [Trauma & Trauma-Informed-Care] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://socialwork.buffalo.edu/social-research/institutes-centers/institute-on-trauma-and-trauma-informed-care/about-us/trauma-informed-care-infographic.html
Neuroscience
Impact Lab. (2014, January 30). [ Neuroplasticity: How Our Brain Rewires and Adapts] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://www.impactlab.net/2014/01/30/neuroplasticity-how-our-brain-rewires-and-adapts-infographic/
Best Psychology Degrees. (n.d.). [The Brain: A User’s Guide to Emotions] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://www.business2community.com/infographics/the-brain-a-users-guide-to-emotions-0433838
Child Welfare
Institute of Medicine and National Research Council of the National Academies. (2013, September 11). [Understanding Child Abuse & Neglect] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://iom.nationalacademies.org/Reports/2013/New-Directions-in-Child-Abuse-and-Neglect-Research/Child-Abuse-Infographic.aspx
Melanie Sage. (2014, May 27). [What Do You Know About the Indian Child Welfare Act?] [Infographic].Retrieved from
http://melaniesagephd.blogspot.com/2014/05/what-do-you-know-about-indian-child.html
Human Rights Campaign. (n.d.) [LGBT Youth Growing up in America] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.hrc.org/youth/view-statistics/#.VduK_LVWJdw
Self-Care
University at Buffalo School of Social Work. (2013). [How to flourish in social work: Steps to self-care] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://socialwork.buffalo.edu/resources/self-care-starter-kit/how-to-flourish-in-social-work.html
Social Work Tech and Ignacio Pacheco. (2011, May 25). [Social Work Tech Self-Care Plan Template] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.socialworktech.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Social-Work-Tech-Self-Care-Plan.jpg
Vanessa Velez and Kindness Blog. (2014, June 6). [9 Little Ways to Take Care of You] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://kindnessblog.com/2014/06/16/9-little-ways-to-take-care-of-you/
Social Media / Technology
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. Case Western Reserve University. (n.d.).
[Technology is Revolutionizing Social Work] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.visualistan.com/2014/12/technology-is-revolutionizing-social-work-field.html
University of San Francisco and Social Media Today. (2012). [Can Social Media Help During Disasters?] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://onlinempa.usfca.edu/resources/webinars-infographics/social-media/
Float Mobile Learning. (2015). [Mobile Medicine and Mobile Healthcare] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://floatlearning.com/mhealth/
University at Buffalo School of Social Work. (2015). [Social Worker’s Guide to Social Media] [Infographic]. Retrieved from
http://socialwork.buffalo.edu/resources/social-media-guide.html
Melanie Sage. (2014). [How Do Social Workers Use Social Media?] [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://melaniesagephd.blogspot.com/2014/02/social-media-and-social-workers.html
We hope you will add to the list – send us the links to your best infographics on social work!
image: colors splashing upwards: TerrellCotton. (2015). Retrieved from: http://www.terrellcotton.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/hd-wallpapers-paint-splash-artistic-wallpaper-desktop-1920×1080-wallpaper-600×300.jpg
image:
Zeev, D. (2015, June 22). [What Makes a Good Infographic?] [Infographic] Retrieved from: https://dashburst.com/search/What+makes%20a%20good%20inforgraphic
SocialWorkSynergy 
Thanks for this great round-up of infographics for social work, Pat!
I think it’s a good idea to present content visually whenever possible. It not only makes the content more appealing to readers but they are also more likely to remember what it is they are reading 🙂
Also, thanks so much for including two of my infographics (Top 10 Clinical Skills for Social Workers and 7 Career Tips for Macro Social Workers) in your collection!
Glad you produced the infographics, Dorlee. I’m looking forward to see what readers suggest, too.
What a fabulous collection of infographics here…thanks so much for curating this list, Pat! I agree completely with Dorlee — visual is the best way to share information (and to get others to share it as, well). I actually wrote a blog post on this trend several years ago and the title of that post has become my mantra: “Visual is the New Black” https://njsmyth.wordpress.com/2012/11/24/why-visual-is-the-new-black/ There’s a little bit of some of the reasoning and research on why infographics can be so powerful.
Thanks, Nancy for the link to your post on “Why Visual is the New Black.” The research continues to affirm the benefits of using visuals in teaching:
Study: Students Learn Better When Lectures Come With Visual Aids:
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2015/06/visual-diagrams-help-students-take-notes.html
also
Studies Confirm the Power of Visuals in eLearning:
http://info.shiftelearning.com/blog/bid/350326/Studies-Confirm-the-Power-of-Visuals-in-eLearning
Can folks share what students use to create infographics? It is mostly Canva?
Hello, Kristina,
Share with credit to the creator, sure.
Canva and Piktochart are the 2 most frequently mentioned – both have free programs for your use.
Hope this helps!