The adolescent in a children’s home forms part of the growing number of South African children who through the course of their lives have been exposed to physical, emotional and sexual abuse, malnutrition and neglect. This type of abuse could be the result of lack of parenting skills in the case of parents and carers fuelled by poverty and poor education. Consequently, these adolescents would be described as “in need” and would be eligible for placement in alternative care. Children’s homes fall in the category of alternative care, made available for children “in need”. In terms of the law, a young person is enforced to leave the children’s home at the age of 18. This is accompanied by feelings of fear, uncertainty and denial. These feelings could influence the young person’s adaptation in the community negatively. The emphasis is therefore placed on the role and the responsibility of the social worker to prepare the individual for successful emancipation from the children’s home. Preparing the adolescent optimally for emancipation from the children’s home and in addition to deliver support throughout, may lead to successful adaptation into the community. This particular responsibility should be available to the child throughout his/her life in the children’s home, not just prior to the emancipation process. Social workers should be made aware of different factors that could influence the successful adaptation, for example, social workers might lack knowledge and the focus should be on bridging such shortcomings. This study focused on various contributing factors that influence the success of the adolescents’ adaptation in the community. The aim of the study was to investigate the general adaptation of the adolescent after emancipation from the children’s home. In order to reach the required goal, a number of objectives were formulated. These included the formulation of a theoretical framework of knowledge about the adolescent’s general life around the time of emancipation; the role and responsibilities of the social worker in providing support and optimal preparation of the individual; and the positive and negative factors that contribute to the individual’s success. An empirical study, during which semi-structured interviews were used as a data collecting method, was undertaken to assess the adaptation of the adolescents after emancipation from the children’s home. The following main themes were identified: the current life situation of the adolescent over the age of 18 who lives outside the borders of the children’s home; his/her self-esteem and how this perception of him/herself influences the adaptation process after emancipation; how the adolescents adapt and experience the social environment; their opinion about participation in anti-social behaviour; their feelings about the optimal preparation before and after the process of emancipation and their opinion on specific areas of change to contribute to the optimal preparation of emancipation out of the children’s home. Ten participants took part in individual, semi-structured interviews. Applied research was undertaken as the researcher aimed at establishing solutions for the identified problem area, namely that social workers need more information on the contributing factors that influence the general adaptation process after emancipation. A qualitative approach was used in order to gather qualitative empirical data. To achieve the goal in this study, a phenomenological strategy was applied, as the focus was on the experience, meaning and concept of the individual as regards his/her general adaptation process after emancipation from the children’s home. The research question formulated for this study was: What are the contributing factors that influence the general adaptation process of the adolescent after emancipation from the children’s home? The research findings indicate that the adolescent generally adapts well after emancipation from the children’s home. Most individuals experience their lives as children in a children’s home as positive. This positive feedback could be attributed to the way these individuals have been treated in the children’s home. Their adaptation process depends on the value they attach to their lives in the children’s home. The following aspects was indicated to have a positive influence on the adaptation of the adolescent after leaving the children’s home: - - preparation for life outside the children’s home by social workers - - acceptance by the peer group - - support from social workers during the adolescent’s time in the children’s home and after leaving the children’s home - - facilitation of the adolescent’ s effective handling of his trauma during his stay in the children’s home. - - Spontaneous socialization outside the children’s home - - Supportive contact with family members This study revealed the experience of the adolescents after emancipation from the children’s home, which holds further research possibilities. The necessary information was acquired and could be used in further studies of adolescents in a similar situation. / Dissertation (MSD (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

Uppsatsen syftade till att belysa svenska socialarbetares reflektioner kring sin närmsta chefs ledarskap och dess betydelse för sina arbetsvillkor. Två socialarbetare, verksamma inom enhet för barn- och ungdomsvård, intervjuades. Informanterna beskrev att en chef som var lyhörd, tydlig i sin kommunikation och aktivt visade ett intresse för de anställdas välmående påverkade deras arbetsvillkor positivt. Likaledes upplevde informanterna att en chef som var otydlig i sitt sätt att förmedla information, visade oförståelse för sina anställdas behov och som inte gav tillräckligt med socialt stöd påverkade deras arbetsvillkor negativt. Detta var i paritet med resultat från tidigare studier. Vikten av att framtidens socialtjänst fokuserar på utvecklingen av ett ledarskap som är gynnsamt för socialarbetares arbetsvillkor diskuterades. / The aim of this study was to investigate how social workers reflect on the leadership of their closest manager, and the significance of leadership in relation to their working conditions. Two social workers, working in child welfare social services, were interviewed. The informants described that a manager who was responsive to the needs of their employees, was clear in his/her communication, and showed an active interest in the wellbeing of the employees influenced their working conditions positively. Furthermore, the informants experienced that a manager who communicated in an unclear way, showed a lack of understanding of the needs of the employees, and did not give enough social support negatively influenced their working conditions. These results were in parity with earlier studies. The importance for future social services to focus on the development of a leadership favorable for the working conditions of social workers was discussed.

This scientific paper examines five newly qualified social workers (NQSW) in Sweden who are in an intermediate position after graduation between education and working life in social work. The study aimed to investigate how the graduates felt prepared after training to execute professional conversations and meetings in social work with clients. Qualitative interviews were conducted for this paper, where the results show that the NQSW felt partially prepared for this. Some challenges were seen in the result related to conversations and meetings, amongst these, were their role in the exercise of authority, that showed that they had met deeper dimensions of authority than what their education had prepared them for. Through theories related to different roles based on Erving Goffman (2011), analysis has been made to different roles that NQSW needs to take on, and its impact on them. Results show, among other things, that NQSW perceive it as a difficult balance between being personal and professional in meetings with clients. The result also highlights personal and professional development for self-awareness from the education as helpful, but there was a wish for more of this during the social work program.With theories of knowledge according to Gustavsson (2000; 2002), the results were also analyzed and presented about how NQSW obtained knowledge and how education made it possible to gather knowledge for conversations and meetings in the social work. It was found in the results, as in previous research, that theoretical knowledge from education that was linked to actual situations or practice, has been beneficial to NQSW in their professional practice. However, NQSW felt that the education could continue to be more related to practice and wished for more reality-based education. Based on this essay, one can also point out the importance of the transition between education and practical work. NQSW could be seen as they carried a certain vulnerability in the form of knowledge gaps, uncertainty of their role, and how practical social work is executed when the NQSW goes from education. They felt that introduction to the field was important given from the new workplaces. In this essay, they meant that they were given some opportunity and support in continuing developing their knowledge, related to meetings and conversations through further education and collegial support at their workplaces.

No description available.

The aim of this literature study was to investigate and analyze how social workers do to communicate with newly arrived people who cannot speak Swedish. The aim of the study was also to investigate what obstacles and opportunities arise when the social worker and the newly arrived must speak through an interpreter. We then processed the result and analyzed it with the help of power theory, role theory, a communication theory and stigma. Our results showed that the interpreter has a central role in the communication between social workers and the newly arrived and the interpreter's actions and professionalism influence how well the communication works in the meeting between social workers and the newly arrived. We also discovered that it places higher demands on the social worker as he tries to communicate and build a relationship with newly arrived.

”Socionomers syn på bemötande i relation till unga vuxna”. En kvalitativ studie av socialt arbete i Malmö. Examensarbete i socialt arbete 15 högskolepoäng. Malmö universitet: Fakulteten för hälsa och samhälle, institutionen för socionomprogrammet, 2020.Syftet med denna studien är att beskriva hur socionomer bemöter unga vuxna i Malmö. Studien undersöker hur socionomer i Malmö förhåller sig till olika aspekter av bemötande och vilken betydelse bemötandet har, särskilt för att skapa en god relation mellan klienten och den professionelle, samtidigt som uppsatsen belyser utmaningar som socionomer ställs inför i sin arbetssituation. Empirin samlades in genom fem semistrukturerade intervjuer av kuratorer och socialtjänsthandledare. Vidare har jag använt mig av professionsetik, pliktetik och dygdetik som teoretiska utgångspunkter. Den insamlade empirin har analyserats utifrån de tre valda teorierna samt tidigare forskning och bakgrund. Resultatet visar att en god relation byggs genom att socionomen har förståelsen kring bemötandets innebörd och förhåller sig till bemötandet av klienten genom att förstå vikten av kommunikation. Språket, att vara lyhörd, tydlig och respektfull är betydelsefullt i bemötandet. Det framkommer också att socionomen har ett ansvar att följa etiska riktlinjer och förhållningssätt, men samtidigt måste socionomen använda sig av personlig närvaro i sitt relationskapande utan att vara privat. Informanterna bekräftar vikten av att förstå och hantera den makt en socionom ofta besitter i relationen till klienten. Medvetenhet om maktpositionens betydelse i relationen sågs som viktig. / The purpose of this study is to describe how social workers approach young adults in Malmö. It examines the different aspects of the approach and its significance, especially in order to establish a good relationship between the professional and the client, while at the same time highlighting the challenges that social workers face. The essay was compiled through five semi-structured interviews by counselors and social services workers. Furthermore, theoratical points of departure are proffesionethics, duty ethics and virtue ethics. The empirical data collected has been analyzed on the basis of the three chosen theories as well as previous research and background. The result shows that a good relationship is built by the social worker having an understanding of the meaning of the care and understanding the importance of listening, being clear, and being respectful towards the client. Also, the social worker has a responsibility to follow ethical guidelines and attitudes, but at the same time must make use of personal presence in building the relationship without being too personal. The participants confirm the importance of understanding and managing the power that a social worker often possesses in the relationship with the client. Awareness of this issue was seen as important.

Sweden is considered one of the EU countries with the highest proportion of individuals witha foreign background. Sweden is therefore a highly culturally heterogenous country withdifferent ethnicities and religions. Certain terms, such as “immigrants”, are for this reason,often vague and negatively charged identities for individuals. The aim of this study was toexamine how social workers with a foreign background experience being treated by clientswith different backgrounds. The aim has been broken down into three questions: Does thetreatment differ from the client depending on his/her background? Does the social workerfeel that the treatment changes depending on his/her background? In what way do socialworkers believe that their way of looking at themselves is influenced by the client'streatment? A qualitative method, with semi-structured interviews with eight participants,was used. Data was analyzed using a thematic analysis and the selected themes werebackground, power, age and to tolerate and understand. Data were discussed from anintersectional perspective and with the help of previous research. The results show thatethnicity in many of the cases did not have a negative impact on how social workers weretreated. Something that affected the treatment to a greater extent was the social workers’ age,experience and positions of power. / Sverige anses idag vara ett av de EU-länder med den högsta andelen individer med utländskbakgrund. Sverige är därför ett mycket kulturellt, etniskt, religiöst och socialt heterogentland. Vissa begrepp, som exempelvis ”invandrare”, är därför ofta vaga och negativt laddadeidentiteter för många individer. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur socionomermed utländsk bakgrund upplever sig bli bemötta av klienter med olika etniska bakgrunder.Syftet har även brutits ner i tre frågeställningar: Skiljer sig bemötandet från klientenberoende på klientens bakgrund? Upplever socionomen att bemötandet förändras beroendepå dennes bakgrund? På vilket sätt menar socionomer att deras sätt att se på sig självapåverkas av klientens bemötande? En kvalitativ metod tillämpades och semistruktureradeintervjuer genomfördes med åtta deltagare. Data analyserades med hjälp av en tematiskanalys och de teman som valdes ut var bakgrund, makt, ålder samt att tolerera och förstå.Data diskuterades utifrån ett intersektionellt perspektiv samt med stöd av tidigare forskning.Resultaten visar att respondenterna bedömer att etnicitet i många av fallen inte påverkadebemötandet negativt. Något som påverkade bemötandet i högre grad var socionomens ålder,erfarenhet samt maktpositioner.

This diploma thesis dealt with the topic - Motivation and burnout syndrome of social workers. With the help of professional literature, three theoretical chapters were prepared, which dealt with motivation, burnout syndrome and supervision. Each of the three chapters consisted of several small subchapters, which dealt with the subtopics of the factor. The aim of this diploma thesis was to find out how motivated, demotivated or burnout workers in social services are. With the help of questionnaires with social workers, the results for the given goal were found. At the end of this diploma thesis, the questionnaire was presented as an appendix.

Socialarbetares bemötande av personer de möter är av yttersta vikt i förändringsprocessen. Syftet med denna studie var att belysa de olika faktorer som ligger till grund för ett bra bemötande med ungdomar som har psykisk ohälsa utifrån de professionellas perspektiv samt undersöka vilka utmaningar som kan upplevas i sådana möten. Datainsamlingen skedde genom kvalitativa intervjuer med sex socialarbetare. Materialet analyserades genom tematisk-analys. De teoretiska utgångspunkterna som tillämpades i denna studie var lösningsfokuserad teori och Goffmans teori om stigma. Resultatet visar att ett bra bemötande grundar sig i ömsesidig respekt, förståelse och trygghet mellan socialarbetaren och ungdomen. Dessutom bör socialarbetaren inneha kunskap, erfarenhet, lyhördhet, empati, tålamod och accepterande för att ha ett bra bemötande. Det framkom även att socialarbetare kan uppleva utmaningar i möten med ungdomar, såsom att ungdomarna är motstridiga inför att söka hjälp, brister i deras motivation eller att ungdomarna mår så dåligt att de inte orkar söka hjälp. / Social workers encounter with individuals is important to support individuals to reach a positive change in their lives. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the various factors that form the basis for a good encounter with young people who have mental illness from the perspective of the professionals, as well as what challenges can be experienced in such meetings. Data collection was done through qualitative interviews with six social workers. The material was analyzed by a thematic analysis. The theoretical starting points used in this study were solution focused theory and Goffman's theory of stigma. The result of the study shows that a good encounter is based on mutual respect, understanding and security between the social worker and the youth. In addition, the social worker should possess knowledge and experience, be responsive, empathetic, patient and show acceptance in order to have a good approach. It also emerged that social workers may experience challenges in encounters with young people, such as that young people are contradictory to seek help, lack of motivation, or that young people’s mental illness is so bad that they are unable to seek help.

Child trafficking is a global problem which affects every country. It is a serious crime that many governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community based organizations (CBOs) around the world are trying to address. Child trafficking involves multiple forms of exploitation, therefore it has been described as a form of modern slavery. South Africa, like most countries, is a place of origin, transit and destination. Children are increasingly being trafficked for purposes of sexual and labour exploitation. However, child trafficking has traumatic and devastating effects on the victims, affected families, communities as well as countries as a whole. The effects suffered by victims range from psychological, physical, emotional, social and economical in nature. The particular psychological, physical, emotional and social harm suffered by the trafficked children and their increased vulnerability to exploitation require that the governments and NGOs deal with them separately from adult trafficked victims in terms of laws, policies, programs and interventions. The best interest of the child must be the primary consideration in all actions concerning trafficked children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies. Research has confirmed that the population of children vulnerable to trafficking is growing worldwide with potentially disastrous effects. The number of orphans in many developing countries, including South Africa, is also rising dramatically due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The rapid rise of child-headed households is also creating fertile ground for traffickers. Literature also indicated that children have fewer control decisions about their lives, and that the national systems of child justice and child welfare often have inadequate means of protecting them against trafficking and, as a result, children remain vulnerable to the possible exposure of child trafficking. A great deal of internal trafficking of children occurs within South Africa for reasons of labour and sexual exploitation. It is confirmed in existent literature that South Africa is a major destination for regional and extra-regional trafficking activities. In this study, the researcher explored through a qualitative, applied study the role of the social worker in the prevention of child trafficking. The empirical study confirms that the information gathered from this study will benefit not only vulnerable children, families and victims of child trafficking, but also empower the social workers and other role players to render a more effective service to children vulnerable to possible child trafficking. Through an empirical study, it was concluded that the government in collaboration with NGOs, need to empower social workers in order for them to successfully execute their role in preventing child trafficking in South Africa. Prevention of child trafficking requires a short- and long-term strategy which should target tracking down the perpetrators and providing protection for vulnerable children who end up being victims of trafficking. Prevention of child trafficking focuses on three levels, namely primary, secondary and tertiary strategies. AFRIKAANS : Kinderhandel is ʼn globale probleem wat alle lande raak. Dit is ʼn ernstige probleem wat deur baie regerings sowel as nie-regeringsorganisasies aangespreek word. Kinderhandel is ʼn vorm van hedendaagse slawerny en sluit baie vorme van blootstelling in. Kinders word in toenemende mate verkoop vir kinderarbeid, asook vir seksuele blootstelling. Kinderhandel het traumatiese en vernietigende gevolge vir die slagoffers, hulle families, die gemeenskap asook die betrokke lande. Die letsels wat gelaat word wissel van sielkundig, fisies, emosioneel, sosiaal tot ekonomies van aard. Die spesifieke sielkundige, fisiese, emosionele en sosiale skade wat deur slagoffers van kinderhandel gely word, asook hulle toenemende weerloosheid vir blootstelling vereis dat regerings en nie-regeringsorganisasies ʼn ander aanslag moet gebruik as in die geval van volwasse slagoffers in terme van beleid, programme, die wet en terapeutiese intervensies. Kinders se behoeftes moet sentraal gestel word in alle aksies rakende kinderhandel – deur regerings-of deur nie-regeringsorganisasies, die hof, administratiewe of wetgewende liggame. Navorsing het bevestig dat die aantal kinders wat kwesbaar is tot kinderhandel wêreldwys kommerwekkend toeneem, met potensieel vernietigende gevolge. Die aantal weeskinders in ontwikkelende lande, insluitend Suid-Afrika, styg kommerwekkend as gevolg van die MIV-pandemie. Die voorkoms van huishoudings wat deur kinders gelei word, is vrugbare grond vir kinderhandelaars. In die literatuur word dit ook duidelik getoon dat kinders minder beheer het om oor hulle eie lewens te besluit, en dat nasionale sisteme van kinderreg en kinderwelsyn nie genoegsame kapasiteit het om kinders teen kinderhandel te beskerm nie. Die gevolg is dat kinders steeds blootgestel word aan kinderhandel. Kinderhandel binne die grense van Suid-Afrika sluit kinderarbeid en seksuele blootstelling in. Dit word bevestig in die bestudeerde literatuur dat Suid-Afrika ʼn eindbestemming vir streeks- en wyer mensehandelpraktyke is. In hierdie studie poog die navorser om deur middel van ʼn kwalitatiewe studie, die rol van die maatskaplike werker in die voorkoming van kinderhandel te ontdek. Die empiriese studie bevestig dat die inligting wat van hierdie studie verkry is, nie net weerlose kinders, families en slagoffers kan bevoordeel nie, maar dat dit ook maatskaplike werkers en ander rolspelers kan bemagtig om meer effektiewe diens aan kinders wat blootgestel is aan kinderhandel diens te lewer. Deur middel van die empiriese studie, is daar gevind dat regerings- sowel as nie-regeringsorganisasies in samewerking met mekaar maatskaplike werkers behoort te bemagtig, om hulle rol in die voorkoming van kinderhandel in Suid-Afrika meer suksesvol te kan vervul. Voorkoming van kinderhandel vereis ʼn kort- sowel as langtermynstrategieë wat daarop gemik moet wees om kinderhandelaars te identifiseer, en beskerming te bied aan weerlose kinders wat moontlike slagoffers van kinderhandel kan word. Voorkoming van kinderhandel fokus op drie vlakke, naamlik: primêre, sekondêre en tersiêre strategieë. Copyright / Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted