Syftet med denna kvalitativa intervjustudie var att få förståelse för hur socialsekreterarnas handlingsutrymme och kunskap används vid placeringsöverväganden av barn och unga i samhällsvård. Med hjälp av våra frågeställningar ville vi få svar på, dels hur socialsekreterarna beskriver sitt handlingsutrymme vid placeringsöverväganden, dels hur socialsekreterarna förhåller sig till kunskap vid dessa bedömningar. Studiens intervjupersoner var socialsekreterare som har arbetat eller arbetar med att placera barn och unga. Utifrån det våra intervjupersoner har berättat är vår slutsats att socialsekreterarnas bedömningar påverkas av flera faktorer. Dessa faktorer var bland annat resursbrist, lagstiftning samt vägledning av arbetsledning. Kunskapskällor som socialsekreterarna använde sig av var klienternas och kollegornas erfarenheter samt egna erfarenheter. Socialsekreterarna nämnde inte handlingsutrymme i arbetet utan poängterade enbart de begränsningar de hade vid utförandet av arbetet. Vår tolkning är att socialsekreterare beskriver begränsningar och diskussionerna i arbetet kan vara en anledning till att den inte vill ensamt ansvara i de svåra bedömningarna. / This is a qualitative interview study, of how social workers´ used their discretion and knowledge when they consider placements of children and youths in out-of-home-care. In our study we wanted to answer these questions. The first question we wanted to answer was how social workers´ describe their discretion in placement considerations. The second question was how social workers´ use knowledge in these judgments. The study's respondents were social workers´ who have worked or still working with children in out-of-home-care. Based on what our interviewees told, we came to the conclusion that social workers´ judgments’ are subject to several factors. These factors included lack of resources, legislation and supervision of management. However, the study revealed that social workers´ did not use research. Instead they used their own experiences, the clients´ actual situation and colleagues´ experiences as sources of knowledge. Social workers´ did not mention their discretion, but pointed out the limitations they had in performing the work. Their answers indicated that they did not want to be responsible in these difficult judgments and therefore they used their colleagues´ and the management.

Consumer credit has become a common source of finance for households, inevitable for the majority of them. Developments of credit markets that emerged as a result of economic hardship in 2008-2009, leads to the high relevance of the scientific researches on the topic. Traditional consumer loans provided by banks or credit unions are supplemented by the new debt instruments. The most popular and well known ones are payday loans (small amount, short term and high cost loans), having the high credit price (in APR terms) and are easily accessible. Because of such rapid growth and popularity of payday loans among socially vulnerable borrowers, these transactions became the object of regulation. The regulator here faces a very complex task - to balance the interests of the payday loan transaction parties (borrower and lender) throughout the process of the transaction. In the Baltic States, including Lithuania, payday lending transactions and their regulation is a well underexplored field of scientific research. Analysis of the scientific literature has revealed that there is a general disagreement on whether payday loans benefit or harm borrowers? Usually studies does not provide complete answer on how to regulate payday lending transactions in order to ensure access to credit and balance the interests of creditors and debtors. No one has offered a model of payday lending transactions regulation yet. Moreover, there is no generally established view on the balance of borrowers’ and... [to full text] / Vartojimo kreditavimas yra įprastas namų ūkių poreikių finansavimo šaltinis, neišvengiamas daugeliui jų. Kreditavimo rinkos pokyčiai, atsiradę ekonomikos sunkmečio laikotarpiu 2008-2009 metais, lemia ypatingai didelį šios tematikos mokslinių tyrimų aktualumą. Tradicines bankų ar kredito unijų teikiamas vartojimo paskolas papildė nauji skolinimo instrumentai, tarp kurių populiarūs ir žinomi – mažieji vartojimo kreditai, pasižymintys aukšta palūkanų norma ir lengvu prieinamumu. Dėl mažųjų vartojimo kreditų populiarumo tarp socialiai pažeidžiamų asmenų ir augimo, šie sandoriai tapo reguliavimo objektu. Reguliuotojui čia kyla sudėtingas uždavinys subalansuoti reguliavimo objekto – mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorio šalių (skolininko ir kreditoriaus) interesus šio sandorio proceso metu. Baltijos šalyse, įskaitant ir Lietuvoje, mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandoriai ir jų reguliavimas yra visiškai mokslininkų netyrinėtas reiškinys.Mokslinės literatūros analizė parodė, kad tyrėjai nesutaria ar visumoj mažieji vartojimo kreditai labiau padeda vartotojams, ar yra jiems labiau žalingi. Dažnai moksliniai tyrimai neatsako į klausimą - kaip reguliuoti mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorius, kad būtų užtikrintas kredito prieinamumas ir subalansuota skolininko bei kreditorių interesų apsauga. Mokslinėje literatūroje nėra pasiūlyto mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorių reguliavimo modelio, nėra nusistovėjusio požiūrio į priešingų skolininko ir kreditorių interesų balansavimą ar mažojo... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Vartojimo kreditavimas yra įprastas namų ūkių poreikių finansavimo šaltinis, neišvengiamas daugeliui jų. Kreditavimo rinkos pokyčiai, atsiradę ekonomikos sunkmečio laikotarpiu 2008-2009 metais, lemia ypatingai didelį šios tematikos mokslinių tyrimų aktualumą. Tradicines bankų ar kredito unijų teikiamas vartojimo paskolas papildė nauji skolinimo instrumentai, tarp kurių populiarūs ir žinomi – mažieji vartojimo kreditai, pasižymintys aukšta palūkanų norma ir lengvu prieinamumu. Dėl mažųjų vartojimo kreditų populiarumo tarp socialiai pažeidžiamų asmenų ir augimo, šie sandoriai tapo reguliavimo objektu. Reguliuotojui čia kyla sudėtingas uždavinys subalansuoti reguliavimo objekto – mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorio šalių (skolininko ir kreditoriaus) interesus šio sandorio proceso metu. Baltijos šalyse, įskaitant ir Lietuvoje, mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandoriai ir jų reguliavimas yra visiškai mokslininkų netyrinėtas reiškinys.Mokslinės literatūros analizė parodė, kad tyrėjai nesutaria ar visumoj mažieji vartojimo kreditai labiau padeda vartotojams, ar yra jiems labiau žalingi. Dažnai moksliniai tyrimai neatsako į klausimą - kaip reguliuoti mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorius, kad būtų užtikrintas kredito prieinamumas ir subalansuota skolininko bei kreditorių interesų apsauga. Mokslinėje literatūroje nėra pasiūlyto mažojo vartojimo kreditavimo sandorių reguliavimo modelio, nėra nusistovėjusio požiūrio į priešingų skolininko ir kreditorių interesų balansavimą ar mažojo... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Consumer credit has become a common source of finance for households, inevitable for the majority of them. Developments of credit markets that emerged as a result of economic hardship in 2008-2009, leads to the high relevance of the scientific researches on the topic. Traditional consumer loans provided by banks or credit unions are supplemented by the new debt instruments. The most popular and well known ones are payday loans (small amount, short term and high cost loans), having the high credit price (in APR terms) and are easily accessible. Because of such rapid growth and popularity of payday loans among socially vulnerable borrowers, these transactions became the object of regulation. The regulator here faces a very complex task - to balance the interests of the payday loan transaction parties (borrower and lender) throughout the process of the transaction. In the Baltic States, including Lithuania, payday lending transactions and their regulation is a well underexplored field of scientific research. Analysis of the scientific literature has revealed that there is a general disagreement on whether payday loans benefit or harm borrowers? Usually studies does not provide complete answer on how to regulate payday lending transactions in order to ensure access to credit and balance the interests of creditors and debtors. No one has offered a model of payday lending transactions regulation yet. Moreover, there is no generally established view on the balance of borrowers’ and... [to full text]

Crown selected youth diversion has received little academic attention in Canada. As a process that channels offenders out of the formal legal system, diversion purports to achieve contradictory self-serving system and offender-based goals. Using 50 randomly selected prosecution files – half of which the Crown diverted and half of which the Crown prosecuted – a mixed method investigation of diversion assesses cases through quantitative content analysis and grounded theory method. Based on the quantitative analysis, it is argued that there is an emerging patterned nature of Crown selected diversion that is not completely benign. This patterned nature of diversion unearths a distinctive discourse of diversion/non-diversion. Qualitatively, it is argued that the cases are organized around three temporal moments that create an area for distinctions to be made in terms of threat, responsibility, (in)tolerableness and recourse. Seemingly, there is a persistent paradoxical existence of the diversion process that emerges from the case files.

An employee is usually entitled to representation in a disciplinary hearing. The question arises whether this representation includes legal representation or whether it is limited to representation by union representatives or a fellow employee? An employee's right to legal representation will in most cases be determined by a collective agreement, the employment contract or a disciplinary code. Over the years the Courts have indicated that they are not prepared to grant an absolute right to legal representation in disciplinary enquiries. Yet in some cases the courts found legal representation to be a sine qua non for a fair hearing and an intrinsic part of natural justice. It seems that the conclusion that can be drawn from this research is that legal representation might soon become a requirement for a fair disciplinary hearing in serious and complex matters. This research looks at numerous decisions both in die public and private sector before and after 1994. The right to legal representation is also discussed in the light of a fair hearing. The various advantages and disadvantages of legal representation are briefly examined. It is argued that all employees should be granted legal representation in complex and serious matters where the employee is likely to be dismissed. It is thus said that all presiding officers should be granted a discretion to allow legal representation in serious and complex matters. / Thesis (LL.M. (Labour Law))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

In multicultural societies people with different cultures and values meet, and value conflicts naturally arise. To handle such value conflicts is an increasingly important, yet challenging, task for public administration. This study aims at increasing the understanding of how civil servants approach existing value conflicts, as well as their discretion to handle this. The study is based on qualitative interviews with public officials in the municipality of Örebro. Those interviewed for this study are either social workers or heads of various units within the social services. The analysis is based on the interviewees perceptions and experiences, interpreted with help of a theoretical framework including various approaches to value conflicts. The essay concludes that officials aim at treating all individuals equally, regardless of cultural background. The results also show that in certain situations, where coercive legislation is applied, the officials' room for maneuver is rather limited.

The purpose of this study is to understand the collaboration between the head of unit, coordinators and accommodation supervisors in a residential care homes for children. It also aims to critically analyze how the staff experience the effects of an increased workload which caused the organization to the reorganize. This requires good interaction between the different functions in the organization which is the primary focus of this study. The study analyzes how the reorganization affects collaboration between the professions and examines what effect the organizations’ different functions have on collaboration. The coordinator has a new function in the organization and that involves a new condition that needs to be emphasized. The study is based on seven semi-structured interviews. Theories that have been the basis for the analysis is Lipskys theories of street-level bureaucracy and discretion as well as interaction based on i.a. Danemarks theories. The result of the essay shows that the professions are effected by the increased work overload. They therefor request clearness in their function and role in the organization. Simply the time is not enough and major difficulties occur for the personal to handle the lodge and at the same time have time for the children living there. The reorganization is also an effect of the collaboration between the professions.

The purpose of this study is to explore the eldercare managers' descriptions of their work situation, and through our research, reach a comprehesive view of the managers discretion in the municipational eldercare system in Sweden. Our questions in focus are: In what sense do the managers feel that laws, guidelines and objectives control their decisions? In what sense do the magangers feel that colleagues influence their decisions? How do the managers experince that superior managers and politicians influence their decisions? The essay is based on semi-structured interviews, with six different managers in the eldercare, from three different municipalities. We have made a questionnaire as a tool for our interviews, so that no questions were forgotten during the interview sessions, (with a few additional follow up questions). We analyze our results by using DiMaggio and Powell theory; we have chosen to work with two of the isomorphisms, in order to show how the managers relate to the organisations. We are also using Lipsky’s theory of street-level bureaucrats and their professional discretion, to see the manger from the other perspective; as an individual person in the organisation. Our results and analysis indicates that managers in the eldercare have a wide ability to control and shape their discretion. The factors, which control how the managers form their discretion, are laws, guidelines, goals, colleagues and superior management levels. These factors are largely interpretable, which gives the managers a wider possibility to shape decisions based on the existing guidelines and framework. The study shows that the most limiting factor to constrain the discretion is the financial resources.

The municipal social services under the Social Services Act is responsible for the municipality’s citizens, but is at risk because of the situation in social services as social secretaries choose professions other than the exercise of authority. Social service work may be compromised on the basis that there will be a heavy workload for those social secretaries that stays when there are not enough resources. How social secretaries experience control in their work affects the way to trade and manage their work situation and the perceived control may be a discretion. The purpose of this study was to investigate how social secretaries perceive their work situation. The study was conducted based on a qualitative method and consisted of interviews of five social secretaries that all work in the same municipality. It was revealed from the qualitative content analysis that the social secretary job situation may seem complicated and the social secretaries tend to ”end up trapped” on the basis o fits position between the organization and the client. The conclusion of the study show that social secretaries work situation is characterized by frustration, both from the client and from the social secretaries own frustration to feel limited in their role as street-level bureaucrat. The framework constituting the discretion consists of organizational and social factors that the social secretaries needed to relate to. The discretion was perceived limited but constituted mainly a security in the complex work. / Kommunens socialtjänst har enligt socialtjänstlagen det yttersta ansvaret för kommunens medborgare, men detta riskeras på grund av den situation som råder inom socialtjänsten då socialsekreterare väljer andra yrken än myndighetsutövningen. Socialtjänstens arbete kan äventyras utifrån att det blir en hög arbetsbelastning för de socialsekreterare som arbetar kvar och att resurserna inte räcker till. Hur socialsekreterare upplever kontrollen i arbetet påverkar deras sätt att handla och hantera sin arbetssituation och den upplevda kontrollen kan utgöras av ett handlingsutrymme. Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur socialsekreterare upplever sin arbetssituation. Studien genomfördes utifrån en kvalitativ metod och bestod av intervjuer av fem socialsekreterare som arbetar inom samma kommun. Det framkom av den kvalitativa innehållsanalysen att socialsekreterares arbetssituation kan upplevas som komplicerad och att socialsekreterare tenderar att ”hamna i kläm” utifrån sin position mellan organisationen och klienten. Slutsatsen av studien visar att socialsekreterarnas arbetssituation präglas av frustration, dels från klient och dels från socialsekreterarnas egen frustration i att känna sig begränsad i sin roll som gräsrotsbyråkrat. Ramen som utgör handlingsutrymmet består av organisatoriska och sociala faktorer som socialsekreterarna behövde förhålla sig till i arbetet. Handlingsutrymmet upplevdes begränsat men utgjorde till största del en trygghet i det komplicerade arbetet.

Although immigration is considered the responsibility and authority of the federal government, there is no clear federal policy regarding undocumented students and higher education. This leaves the power to regulate undocumented students in higher education to state governments. In Virginia, there is no specific, state-wide policy that addresses undocumented students and admission and enrollment in public higher education. Because of this, policies and practices related to the admission and enrollment of undocumented students are created at the university level. There is, however, state policy in Virginia related to legal immigration status and eligibility for in-state tuition. This creates a complex dynamic in which immigration-related practices, which are legally regulated on the federal level, are actually determined on the state and institutional level. Through interviews with admissions professionals at 12 Virginia, public 4-year colleges and universities, this research study uses a descriptive qualitative case study to explore the application of institution level undergraduate policies and practices related to undocumented students. The findings suggest that of the 12 institutions, five knowingly enroll undocumented students; six admit undocumented students but do not knowingly enroll undocumented students; and one institution does not admit or enroll undocumented students. None of the schools offers in-state tuition to undocumented students. Seven themes emerged from the 12 interviews, and these themes are grouped into two categories. The themes in the first category relate to the experiences of undocumented students and include funding challenges, fear, lack of knowledge of higher education processes, and post-graduation challenges. The themes in the second category are related to policy and practice, and the professionals who create and implement those policies and practices. The themes that emerged in this category are changing demographics, ambiguity, and professional and personal values. These themes are interpreted and discussed through the theoretical frameworks of administrative discretion and wicked problems. Recommendations for future research are provided.