I Sverige styrs välfärdsstaten av politiken. Det är det politiska styret som sätter ramar och regler för de offentliga verksamheterna. De professionellas arbetsuppgifter påverkas av verksamhetens ramar och regler som i sin tur påverkar brukare. Målet med att förskriva ett hjälpmedel är bland annat att möjliggöra för brukare att ha ett självständigt liv, att kunna vara delaktig på lika villkor i samhället som alla andra samt att öka möjligheten till ett aktivit liv för brukaren. Det ställs stora krav teoretiskt sätt på att brukaren ska vara delaktig och ha inflytande under förskrivningsprocessen av hjälpmedel.  Vikten av brukardelaktighet beskrivs vara central i forskning samt under förskrivning av hjälpmedel, samtidigt som en avsaknad av mätmetoder av upplevelsen lyfts fram. Syftet med studien är att undersöka de professionellas arbetssätt och metoder för att främja brukares delaktighet, inflytande och självbestämmande under processen kring hjälpmedelsförskrivning. Brukardelaktighetens komplexitet exemplifieras utifrån de professionellas perspektiv på brukardelaktighet. Arbetet bygger på en kvalitativ studie med utgångspunkt i teorin om gräsrotsbyråkration och Goffmans teori om stigma. Tidigare forskning visar att brukardelaktighet och inflytande påverkas av organisationers utformning samt prioriteringar. Forskning visar även att de professionellas arbete är komplext och präglas av en balansakt i det att de ska både kunna förhålla sig till brukares behov samt säkerställa att man förhåller sig till de ramar och riktlinjer som finns inom organisationen.  Resultatet av undersökningen belyser möjligheter och begränsningar samt understryker behovet av framtida forskning inom området. Främst ur de professionellas perspektiv då det upplevs saknas idag. / In Sweden, the welfare state is governed by politics. It is the political government that sets the framework and rules for public activities. The tasks of professionals are affected by the framwork and rules of operations, which in turn affect users. The goal of prescribing an aid is, among other things, to enable users to have an independent life, to be able to participate on equal terms in society as everyone else and to increase the possibility of an active life for the user. In theory, great demands are made on the user to be involved and have an influence during the prescribing process of an aid.  The importance of user participation is described as central in research and during the prescribing of aids, at the same time is a lack of mesurement method of the experience is highlighted. The purpose of the study is to investigate the professionals´ working methods and methods for promoting user participation, influence and self-determination during the process of prescribing assistive technology. The complexity of user participation is exemplified from the professionals´ perspective on users participation. The work is based on a qualitative study based on the theory of grassroots bureaucracy and Goffman´s theory of stigma. Previous reaserch shows that user participation and influence are affected by the design of organisations and priorities. Reaserch also shows that the work of professionals is complex and characterized by a blancing act in that they must both be able to relate to users´ needs and ensure that they relate to the frameworks and guidelines that exist within the organization.  The results of the survey highlight the opportunities and limitations and underline the need for future research in the field. Mainly from the professionals´ perspective as it is percived to be lacking today.

Social service’ information is crucial for a client’s possibilities to participate and influence. In this survey study we focus on the social workers’ relation to information:  What are the prerequisites for informing and how do they use their discretion? Previous research has shown communication problems due to insufficient or inadequate information material. Organizational support and social worker/client relationship have been shown as important factors for participation. The meaning and use of concepts such as participation and influence has also changed over time. No similar study has been carried out before, which makes the present study explorative. Through a mixed method questionnaire, we have tried to capture 125 respondents’ experiences of and attitudes to the clients' need for information. The study shows previously unidentified circumstances. One is that the vast amount of information provided to the client is perceived as a problem in itself. Another is the social workers’ emphasis on the clients’ understanding of the information. We perceive these circumstances as a sign of a juridification of social work, partly as a result of a cooptation process. Social service incorporate new elements in a way that strengthens the organisation's power at the expense of the street level bureaucrats’ discretion.