Vi har gjort en kvalitativ studie av fenomenet ungdomstjänst som infördes somenskild påföljd vid brott den 1 januari 2007. Vårt syfte med uppsatsen har varit attstudera lagstiftningen som ligger till grund för ungdomstjänst, alltså vilka tankarkring behandling och straff som har påverkat påföljden samt hur dessa tankar harhaft verkan på den verklighet som ungdomsbrottslingarna befinner sig i när degenomför sin ungdomstjänst. På ungdomstjänstplatserna finns det handledare tillungdomarna. Vår huvudfrågeställning har varit om handledarnas handledning ochsyn på sitt uppdrag överensstämmer med lagstiftarens intentioner. Vi harundersökt vad handledare och socialsekreterare anser vara viktigt när det gäller attvara handledare till ungdomar på ungdomstjänst, samt vad de hoppas attungdomarna ska ta med sig efter avslutad ungdomstjänst. Lagstiftarens intentionernär det gäller ungdomskriminalitet är att proportionalitet, förutsägbarhet ochkonsekvens i större utsträckning än tidigare ska vara en del i påföljderna. Förutomdessa principer har ungdomstjänst som funktion att vara gränssättande ochfostrande samtidigt som påföljden ska vara vägledande och reflekterande. Dehandledare vi har intervjuat har pekat på att deras roll har varit att visaungdomarna ett alternativ till kriminalitet vilket vi anser uppfyller lagstiftarensintentioner om att vara vägledande. Vi har sett ungdomstjänst som en straffrättsligpåföljd med behandlande inslag framförallt i den särskilt anordnade verksamhetenmen även i handlarnas bemötande och handlande kring ungdomen.

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the sentences handed down to young offenders can be considered fair. We wanted to take an in-depth look at the penalties to understand how they work. To clarify our purpose, we used the following questions: How does organizing sanctions work in practice? What support services are offered to the young? What can be done to ensure sentences are as favorable as possible for young people? The empirical material is based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with six social workers from two different municipalities. We also made use of previous research in the field as a reference tool. The analysis was made based on theories of phenomenology, symbolic interactionism and a scientific theory based of criminal law. Our results shows how the different municipalities organize their work and that the two municipalities consider the process young offenders go through to be fair.

<p>The essay investigates juvenile offenders experiences of the sanction ”ungdomstjänst” and how it may change attitudes towards committing criminal acts. The essay introduces qualitative interviews with four juvenile offenders, which have all executed ”ungdomstjänst”. The juveniles experiences of features that can be a part of the attitude change have been analyzed with a model of the motivation process, called ”Fyra F”, and four elements of persuading, which can affect an attitude change. The result shows that the juveniles experience ”ungdomstjänst” as punishing in varying degree, dependent of the different parts of the sanction. Positive experiences of the sanction include that it gives them an opportunity to see things from a different perspective as well as help to get out on the employment market. The analyze shows that ”ungdomstjänst” contain several aspects of the above model and elements which can affect the juveniles attitude to committing crimes. It also appears certain aspects which could be improved by professionals within “ungdomstjänst” in order to increase the number of opportunities to affect the different types of juvenile offenders that they encounter.</p>

The essay investigates juvenile offenders experiences of the sanction ”ungdomstjänst” and how it may change attitudes towards committing criminal acts. The essay introduces qualitative interviews with four juvenile offenders, which have all executed ”ungdomstjänst”. The juveniles experiences of features that can be a part of the attitude change have been analyzed with a model of the motivation process, called ”Fyra F”, and four elements of persuading, which can affect an attitude change. The result shows that the juveniles experience ”ungdomstjänst” as punishing in varying degree, dependent of the different parts of the sanction. Positive experiences of the sanction include that it gives them an opportunity to see things from a different perspective as well as help to get out on the employment market. The analyze shows that ”ungdomstjänst” contain several aspects of the above model and elements which can affect the juveniles attitude to committing crimes. It also appears certain aspects which could be improved by professionals within “ungdomstjänst” in order to increase the number of opportunities to affect the different types of juvenile offenders that they encounter.

This study, which was conducted in Sweden, was based on four qualitative semi-structured interviews. The aim of this study was to create an understanding of how a municipality designs the sanction for youth offenders called ”youth service” based on the law that establishes the existence of such a sentence. We interviewed social workers that work at the department of youth service in the municipality of Gothenburg, who exclusively deal with youth offenders’ sentenced to youth service as their job assignment. We asked the social workers how the municipality of Gothenburg has designed and structured its youth service as well as how and why the chosen design came to be. The result was thermalized with four topics: how is youth service designed? The reasoning behind Gothenburg’s design, the adjustment of the process of evaluating the suitability of the sentence youth service for the young offender and lastly, collaboration. Our analysis was based on neo-institutional organization theory and on protective factors that protect against negative outcomes. Based on the result that the semi-structured interviews yielded we found that Gothenburg’s designed work method very well resembled the law and guidelines issued two years subsequent the date the law gained legal force. Additionally, we found that the department for youth service in Gothenburg influenced the guidelines that were issued two years after the law gained legal force. To which degree could not be determined in this study, however some of the social workers stated that Gothenburg did not have to adjust to the guidelines when they were issued and that it was satisfying for them that the National Board of Health and Welfare listened to their organization in the process preceded the issuing of the guidelines. Lastly, the interviewed social workers reported that the municipalities collaborate regarding the design of their respective youth services to increase uniformity. The interviews indicated that Gothenburg’s designed work method was considered successful in that other municipalities contacted Gothenburg in order to study how they worked with the sanction that is youth service. This collaboration might lead to an increase of municipalities acquiring Gothenburg’s work method, which in the future may lead to a nationwide institutionalization of Gothenburg’s designed work method with youth service.

<p>The purpose with this essay has been to describe and understand why youth community service became a penalty in Sweden. The political discourse in which youth community service was established has been analyzed with Laclau & Mouffe´s discourse theory. A social constructivist onset and a discourse analysis were the methodological tools of the essay. The result is two folded. Youth community service was created to strengthen the constitutional state, combined with high beliefs of the social services competence. Furthermore the images of the youth offenders had an impact on the argumentation, as well as an ambition to keep the youths outside of the correctional treatment system. The evaluation ten years later showed good results from the new penalty, and wanted to increase the legal security for the youth offenders by making youth community service prescribed by law. The content as well as the intended group the penalty was designed for, has been changed a lot since 1997 when the idea was born.</p>

The purpose with this essay has been to describe and understand why youth community service became a penalty in Sweden. The political discourse in which youth community service was established has been analyzed with Laclau &amp; Mouffe´s discourse theory. A social constructivist onset and a discourse analysis were the methodological tools of the essay. The result is two folded. Youth community service was created to strengthen the constitutional state, combined with high beliefs of the social services competence. Furthermore the images of the youth offenders had an impact on the argumentation, as well as an ambition to keep the youths outside of the correctional treatment system. The evaluation ten years later showed good results from the new penalty, and wanted to increase the legal security for the youth offenders by making youth community service prescribed by law. The content as well as the intended group the penalty was designed for, has been changed a lot since 1997 when the idea was born.