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Introduction to Trauma-Informed Technology and the Vital Role Clinicians Play
Original Recording Date :
Course Format
Recorded webinar.
Description: Today, almost everything we do has at least an atom of technology – from the websites that tell the world what we offer to the online forms and technology we use with clients. Much of our personal and professional lives are saturated with technology.
Trauma-informed technology can help prevent or mitigate the harms of designing and using technology. With trauma on the rise, tech professionals inevitably conduct research with and design products for people with trauma histories. But what does trauma-informed technology mean, and what role do clinicians play?
In this workshop, you’ll learn about trauma-informed technology, including user experience research and design, an overview of how technology is not currently trauma-informed, and first-hand examples of tech harms. We’ll explore synergies between trauma-informed approaches, human-centered design strategies, and clinicians' vital roles. Together, we’ll work through hands-on examples of how clinicians and designers can co-create trauma-informed technology. We’ll conclude with a call to action and ways to move forward to co-create a world where tech is helpful and healing instead of harmful and exclusionary.
Learning Objectives:
- Develop an understanding of trauma-informed technology, including the theoretical, practical, and research-based underpinnings.
- Compare trauma-informed practice with human-centered design, and in doing so, realize the similarities and differences between user experience designers and clinicians.
- Discover and co-construct trauma-informed technology examples that can be applied in daily practice or work.
- Analyze/Compare current perspectives on tech and experiment with alternatives.
- Formulate next steps and ideas for future practice.
Research: See the learning page on Carol and Melissa’s website for various articles, books, and blog posts on this topic.
You can also read Carol’s trauma-informed social media paper.
Read Melissa’s paper about repairing digital design harm using a trauma-informed approach.
Carol and Melissa co-authored this paper about the critical role of interdisciplinary partnerships between social work and tech with fellow social work researchers, including Maria Rodriguez (UBSSW Assistant Professor).
Here’s their UPXA article. It briefly outlines trauma-informed design.
Target Audience: social workers, mental health practitioners, creative arts therapists, marriage and facility therapists, psychologists, addiction professionals, case managers, and other interested individuals.
Customer ServiceWe are happy to respond to any concerns or questions you may have. Please contact us at by email at sw-ce@buffalo.edu or by phone at 716-829-5841.
ADA Accommodations: If you require any support for your ADA needs in the United States, please contact us by email at least 3 weeks prior to the event by email at sw-ce@buffalo.edu or by phone at 716-829-5841.
Carol F. Scott, PhD, MSW
As a UBSSW grad, Carol F. Scott, Ph.D., M.S.W., has studied trauma and applied trauma-informed approaches since 2012. After graduation, Carol obtained four years of Postdoctoral training from the University of Michigan School of Information, wherein she leveraged her social work and trauma-informed training in social computing, human-computer interaction, and health informatics research. Carol’s research focuses on the impact digital technologies like social media have on the health and well-being of young users, including anxiety, depression, and substance misuse. As the Co-Founder of Trauma-Informed Technology, Carol now applies her interdisciplinary training and trauma expertise to help user experience designers and researchers become more trauma-informed.
Melissa Eggleston
With 15 years of tech experience, Melissa Eggleston, M.A., Ph.D. student, is an expert in user experience design and research. She has worked with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare, and SAMHSA’s 988 Office, among others. Melissa won the Aquent Design for Good grant in 2017 to apply trauma-informed principles to a domestic violence agency website. Since then, she has been designing digital technology for people with lived experience of trauma, including interpersonal violence, human trafficking, PTSD, and severe mental illness. In 2022, Melissa co-founded Trauma-Informed Technology. She helps others in the tech industry become more trauma-informed.
