Limited Benefits of Technological Advances in Human Service Organizations: Going Beyond the Hype Using Sociotechnical Knowledge Management System

Background: The field of human service has sought continuous advancements in Information Communication Technology (ICT) to yield a return for such expensive investment effectiveness in practice. Responding to persisting mixed results regarding ICTs efficacy, this study attempts to bridge the research gap by searching for explanations. A knowledge management system (KMS) framework is used to explore the associations of Technological KMS and Sociotechnical KMS on Organizational Effectiveness via Knowledge Integration.

Methods: This study employs a cross-sectional survey design to examine major variables of this research interest and testing the associations between them using a moderating mediation model. It used secondary data that was collected through Survey of Employee Engagement (SEE) in 2022. A sample of 1,708 child protective services frontline caseworkers were analyzed using SPSS descriptive analyses and Hayes’ Process Macro.

Results: The insignificant synergy effect of Technological KMS and Sociocultural KMS suggests that each dimension independently supports Knowledge Integration and consequently enhance Organizational Effectiveness. A simple mediation model of Technological KMS on Organizational Effectiveness via Knowledge Integration yielded asignificant indirect effect on OE through (95% CI [.0041, .0323]). Its direct effect after accounting for the mediation effect has been reduced but remained positive and significant (t=2.770, p = .0229). A simple mediation model of Sociotechnical KMS on Organizational Effectiveness via Knowledge Integration indicated its significant indirect effect (95% CI [.0393, .1185]). Its direct effect after accounting for the mediation effect remained positive and significant (t=4.9957, p < 0.0001). Although CPS caseworkers were satisfied the most with Technological KMS than other work environment, its total effect on Organizational Effectiveness was smaller (t=2.6861, p=0,0073) than Sociotechnical KMS (t=8.2141, p < .0001). An examination of the overall patterns in the associations between the variables were consistent results with a previous study that used the 2008 survey, indicating improvement in the efficacy of technology is limited.

Discussion: The results indicate that human services organizations can enhance ICT efficacy by shifting from an information-centric and technology-focused resource management paradigm to a knowledge-driven and sociotechnical one. Considering AI applications within this new paradigm highlights their potential if emerging technologies and business processes are properly tailored for practice and ethical concerns, cybersecurity, and privacy issues are adequately addressed. It is recommended that practitioners, administrators, policymakers, and educators from various disciplines collaborate to develop innovative strategies for maximizing knowledge resources in human service delivery.