Where is Social Work?

This paper examines disciplines of those engaged in research regarding the impact of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) on college athletes. The authors reviewed scholarly articles published from July 2019, which marks the beginning of the Pay to Play Act, until November 2023, examining the first author's discipline and the type of research completed. The study found that most of the research on NIL has come from the law profession (56%) and sports management (17%) and that only 14% involved actual primary data collection. No NIL research was found within social work scholarship. The authors outline a case for the inclusion of social work in NIL space, given the profession's long and rich history in social justice. The authors also argue from a social-ecological perspective that there is an urgent need for social work to actively engage in NIL research, given its potential to impact the lives of college athletes significantly