Addressing the needs and demands of child welfare: A connection between AI Ethics and Ethics of Vulnerability

Abstract

"The AI is helpful because of velocity, more efficiency, and more precision. This is undeniable the balancing between different needs and interests in this field. (cf. Gapski 2020) The social worker can get helpful hints by the algorithm but his and her professionalism should not be touched and his and her ›hedging‹ of decisions that are by no means easy. This paper critically examined the use of AI in child welfare. We argued thatthesocialworkandethicsaspectsshouldnotbeseparated,butratherconsidered from the perspective of all stakeholders. The paper presented a status quo analysis based on an algorithm in New Zealand and the situation in Germany, and identified thresholds that needed to be considered when using AI in this field. The Ethics of Vulnerability was presented as a basis for weighing the best interests of the child, which included both social and individual ethical aspects. In the next chapter, resulting precautionary grounds were identified that should be taken into account. We highlighted that our innovative approach of combining the Ethics of Vulnerability with the Ethics of AI was the best way to address the needs and demands in child welfare. We highlighted the potential benefits and ethical considerations associated with the use of AI inchildwelfareandprotection.Theneedsanddemandsofsocialworkers,families and children were each addressed through an Ethics of Vulnerability, and the importance of simultaneously considering AI ethical issues such as transparency,bias awareness and data security was emphasised.In addition,it was suggested that AI could be used to examine systemic and institutional issues byanalysingdataforintersectionality.WhileAIcouldincreaseefficiency,accuracy and speed, these benefits needed to be balanced with the professionalism and decision-making skills of social workers. Ultimately, the use of AI in child welfare had to be done with caution, careful consideration and adherence to ethical principles." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Schlögl-Flierl, K. & Ziethmann, P. (2024): Addressing the needs and demands of child welfare: A connection between AI Ethics and Ethics of Vulnerability. In: (2024): Künstliche Intelligenz und ethische Verantwortung, Bielefeld, Transcript p. 85-100. DOI:10.14361/9783839469057-006