På ett år anger 27% av alla vuxna i åldern 18–65 inom EU, Island, Norge och Schweiz någon form av psykisk ohälsa. Trots denna statistik finns en kunskapslucka kring forskning mellan ledarskap och hälsa, då ledarskap tidigare har undersökts i relation till effektivitet, produktivitet och resultat (Wallo & Lundqvist, 2020). Denna studie undersöker i stället hur enhetschefer inom kommunal äldreomsorg beskriver att deras ledarskap kan bidra till psykiskt välbefinnande hos sina medarbetare. För att göra detta är studien utformad som en kvalitativ studie för att få en djupare förståelse om enhetschefernas upplevelser kring ämnet. Semistrukturerade intervjuer har utförts på nio respondenter för att kunna besvara syftet och studiens tre frågeställningar. Empirin som har samlats in har bearbetats genom en hermeneutisk ansats eftersom vi är intresserade av att tolka och förstå de meningsfulla fenomen som respondenterna har delat med sig av. Därefter har materialet tolkats utifrån våra valda teorier KASAM och Salutogent ledarskap. Resultatet i studien visar att enhetschefernas uppfattning om hur de kan arbeta för att öka det psykiska välbefinnandet är genom situationsanpassat ledarskap, men också att vara närvarande och bidra till gemenskap. Om ett mindre fungerande ledarskap hade tagit plats visar resultatet att effekterna hade blivit att medarbetarna kan känna en meningslöshet att gå till jobbet och en känsla av att inte bli stöttad. Till sist visar studiens resultat att effekten av ett fungerande ledarskap, där ledaren är närvarande, tydlig och kommunicerar med sina medarbetare, är ett ökat psykiskt välbefinnande. / In one year, 27% of all adults aged 18-65 in the European Union, Iceland, Norway and Schweiz report some form of mental illness. Despite these statistics, there is a knowledge gap around research between leadership and health, as leadership has previously been investigated in relation to efficiency, productivity and results (Wallo & Lundqvist, 2020). This study examines how unit managers in municipal elderly care describes that their leadership can contribute to the mental well-being of their co-workers. To do this, the study is designed as a qualitative study which aims at increasing the knowledge of the unit manager’s experiences within the subject. Semi-constructed interviews have been executed with nine respondents to be able to answer the purpose and the study’s three questions. The collected empirics have been processed through a hermeneutic approach since we are interested in interpreting and understanding the meaningful phenomena which the respondents have shared. After this, the material has been interpreted from our chosen theories KASAM and Salutogenic leadership. The results of this study show that the unit managers perception of how they can work to increase mental well-being is through situation-adapted leadership, but also to be present and supportive. If a less functioning leadership had taken place, the results show that the effects would have been that the employees could feel a meaninglessness to go to work and a feeling of not being supported. Finally, the results of the study show that the effect of a functioning leadership, where the leader is present, clear, and communicates with the co-workers, is an increased mental well-being.

The most usual form of out-of-home care for children in Sweden is foster care. The responsibility lies with the municipalities' social services, while implementation can be handed over to independent foster care agencies, IFA. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the unit managers’ experiences with IFA, with a focus on support towards the foster parents. The thesis was conducted through semi-structured interviews with eight unit managers from various parts of the country and analyzed through qualitative thematic analysis. The results showed that the quality of the service varied between different providers, and that most municipalities wanted to become independent again with the management of foster homes, due to excessive costs and a lack of transparency. The result also showed that support such as high availability of the consultant could be a contributing factor when engaging the service, especially in more difficult cases. The unit managers often experienced a competition for the few available foster homes, while at the same time they believed that the recruitment work of private actors was deficient as they approved unsuitable foster homes. This result creates uncertainty about whether the children's needs are met in a legally secure manner.

Samhället står inför stora utmaningar, där fler blir äldre och färre vill utbilda sig inom vård- och omsorg. Vårdärenden blir alltmer komplexa, vilket verksamheter behöver möta med rätt kompetens. Kommuner och regioner behöver skapa nya arbetssätt i syfte att behålla sina anställda samt arbeta med kompetensförsörjning inom sina verksamheter.  För att kunna lyckas med detta uppdrag krävs det vissa förutsättningar, som exempelvis chefer som kan bedriva ett hållbart ledarskap inom sina verksamheter.  En kvalitativ studie med semistrukturerade intervjuer med sju chefer inom äldreomsorgen genomfördes i syfte att belysa vilka utmaningar och förutsättningar som finns för första linjens chefer verksamma på särskilt boende för äldre personer. Empiriska data resulterade i två kategorier: Ledarskapets dimensioner och Organisatoriska utmaningar, vidare identifierades åtta tillhörande underkategorier: Kompetens och ledarskapsstrategi, Förändring och utveckling, Uppdrag och ansvar, Medarbetarskap, Stödfunktioner, Ledningssystem, Politisk anpassning och Omgivningsfaktorer. Resultatet visar på flera utmaningar inom verksamheten men också förutsättningar som är framträdande för ett hållbart ledarskap inom vård och omsorg.

The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge on how first line managers in elder care in western Sweden perceive their work situation with respect to the social aspects of a sustainable working life. The study is based on a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews. The results are based on eight interviews, which were analyzed through thematic analysis supported by theoretical frameworks consisting of the SwAge-model, the demand-control and support-model, and a theory of social support. According to the informants experiences, first line managers in elder care have good opportunities for a sustainable working life as access to social support appears to be satisfactory. The greatest threat to a socially sustainable work situation is attributed to a lack of control at work and an imbalance between work and private life. The study also showed that the work situation is most demanding when newly employed at a eldery care home, regardless of experience level. After comparing the study's conclusion with previous research, increased instrumental support can also be attributed value for improving first line managers work environment. Finally, the study has generated new knowledge in the field, which is that newly employed individuals, regardless of experience level, are the most exposed to an unsustainable working life. This knowledge can contribute to inspiration for future research and improvement measures. / Syftet med denna studie är att utveckla kunskaper om hur enhetschefer inom äldreomsorgen i Västsverige upplever sin arbetssituation med avseende på sociala aspekter av ett hållbart arbetsliv. Studien har utgått från en kvalitativ ansats i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer. Resultatet är baserat på åtta intervjuer som genom en tematisk analys har analyserats med stöd i teoretiska ramverk bestående av SwAgemodellen, krav-kontroll & stöd-modellen samt en teori om socialt stöd. Utifrån informanternas upplevelser framgår det att enhetschefer inom äldreomsorgen har goda möjligheter till ett socialt hållbart arbetsliv då tillgången till socialt stöd verkar tillfredsställt. Det största hotet mot en socialt hållbar arbetssituation kan härledas till bristande kontroll i arbetet och obalans mellan arbete och privatliv. Studien har även uppvisat att arbetssituationen är som mest krävande vid nyanställning på ett boende, oavsett erfarenhetsnivå. Efter att ha jämfört studiens slutsats med tidigare forskning kan också ökat instrumentellt stöd tillskrivas värde för att förbättra enhetschefers arbetsmiljö. Avslutningsvis har studien genererat ny kunskap i ämnet vilket är att nyanställda oavsett erfarenhetsnivå är som mest utsatta för ett socialt ohållbart arbetsliv. Denna kunskap kan bidra till inspiration för framtida forskning och förbättringsåtgärder.

This dissertation examines how perceptions of competence affect the care of older persons, and the values ​​and vocational conceptions of care work and care recipients that are tied to the perceptions of what skills that are needed and why. Competence is defined by three parts with relevance for the content of care work: what knowledge the care workers should have, what tasks they should perform and how they should respond to care recipients. The aim of this dissertation is to analyse how the care managers' and care workers' perceptions of competence form the direction of the care work and how that direction relates to the care recipients’ perceptions of and expectations on the care work.   The care work is characterised by what is analysed as an activation of the recipients - that the recipients themselves should perform as much of the care work as possible. The activation aims at managing the decay of the aging body and is motivated by a vocational conception of the care recipients as different from others, with designations as grateful and passive. This conception is analysed as generation character based on an idea among the care managers and care workers that the society in which the recipients grew up gave them certain cognitive prerequisites that have to be managed in the practical care work.   The care recipients in the study have opposing conceptions and perceptions of care work compared with the care managers and care workers. The recipients’ central objective with the care work is to prevent what has been interpreted as the disrepair of the home. The care recipients’ position in the organisation raises the problem of loyalty towards the care workers and in some sense the care managers. Their loyalty reduces their ability to complain and to influence their situation to the better.   Keywords: care of older persons, care needs, care work, care relationship, care receivers, care workers, care managers, competence, technologies, activation, generation character

Kommunen är en stor arbetsgivare och verksamheten inom kommunal hemtjänst berördessutom många människor som kommer i kontakt med anställda inom hemtjänsten i rollensom vårdtagare. För att uppfylla organisationens mål om att en god omvårdnad ska bedrivashar forskningen tidigare mest fokuserat på betydelsen av en framgångsrik ledare. På senare tidhar även följarnas betydelse för både organisation och ledarskapet lyfts fram. Teorin om Leader-Member Exchange handlar om relationen mellan ledare och följare och detutbyte som sker där. Ledaren värderar följarens bidrag till utbytet i relationen baserat på sinagenerella föreställningar om följare, även kallat Implicit Followership Theories. Tidigareforskning har visat att om dessa generella föreställningar hos ledaren är av positiv karaktär ökardet ledarens förväntningar på följaren och kan förbättra relationen. Syftet med vårundersökning är att undersöka hur ledare inom kommunal hemtjänst ser på följarskap och omde upplever att följarskapet påverkar deras möjlighet att leda. Semistrukturerade intervjuer och tematisk analys ligger till grund för denna undersökning somutförts i en chefsgrupp inom kommunal hemtjänst. Resultaten beskriver inledningsvisdeltagarnas uppfattning om begreppet följarskap och vilka egenskaper och beteenden som ingåri deras generella uppfattning om följare. Vidare beskriver resultatet av undersökningen hurdeltagarna uppfattar sina faktiska följare och att deras generella förväntningar på följare intehelt stämmer överens med det faktiska följarskapet. Slutligen visar undersökningen tydligt attföljarskapet har påverkan på förutsättningarna för att leda. / The municipality is a large employer and the activities within the municipal home care servicealso affect many people who encounter employees within the home care service in the role ofcare recipient. To fulfill the organization's goal that good nursing should be conducted; researchhas previously mostly focused on the importance of a successful leader. In recent times, theimportance of followers for both organization and leadership has also been highlighted. The theory of Leader-Member Exchange is about the relationship between leader and followerand the exchange that takes place there. The leader values the follower's contribution to theexchange in the relationship based on his general notions of followers, also called ImplicitFollowership Theories. Previous research has shown that if these general perceptions of theleader are of a positive nature, it increases the leader's expectations of the follower and canimprove the relationship. The purpose of our survey is to investigate how leaders in themunicipal home care service view followers and whether they feel that the followers affecttheir ability to lead. Semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis form the basis for this study, which wasconducted in a management group within municipal home care. The results initially describethe participants' perception of the concept of following and what characteristics and behaviorsare included in their general perception of followers. Furthermore, the results of the surveydescribe how the participants perceive their actual followers and that their general expectationsof followers do not fully correspond to the actual followership. Finally, the survey clearlyshows that following has an impact on the conditions for leading.

Mental helathcare in Sweden is organized both by the healthcare sector and the municipal sector. Historically, there has been great ideological adaption which has given the municipalities a greater responsibility in mental healthcare. This change was concieved by political reforms and legislation with the aim of conducting more client-focused interventions to promote the users´ indenpendence and influence in their own life and care. This study focuses on how the unit managers of municipal mental healthcare organizations generate possibilities to involve user influence in their organizations. Through eight semi-structured interviews with unit managers, we find that the individual manager, legislation and the lack of political orientations and policies affect the outcome of user influence in the social work of mental health care. Through the result the authors could identify a few distinct key notions which contributed to the mapping of the discourse. Furthermore, the use of these key notions by the unit managers gives them the power to reproduce and construct the discourse which constitutes the practice of user influence in mental healthcare.

Som chef inom vård och omsorg är en viktig del att hantera utmanande samtal, även om chefen saknar formell utbildning för att genomföra dessa samtal. Det finns förväntningar från verksamheten att du som chef ska kunna hantera dessa utmanande samtal. I dessa samtal blir kommunikationsförmåga, ledarstil och samtalskompetens avgörande faktorer för hur väl samtalen faller ut. Syfte med studien är att undersöka och förstå hur chefer inom vård och omsorg uppfattar och hanterar svåra samtal med sina medarbetare. Studie när kvalitativ och utgår från en fenomenografisk ansats. 10 enhetschefer inom tre olika verksamhetsområden intervjuades. Samtliga chefer som deltar i studien är anställda inom vård och omsorg i offentlig sektor såväl som privat verksamhet. Den fenomenografiska analysen utmynnade i tre beskrivningskategorier; Samtalstyper, Förberedelse och Stöd. Beskrivningskategorierna presenterar resultatets variationer med nio olika uppfattningar. / As a manager in healthcare sector, an important part is handling challenging conversations, even if you lack formal training to carry out these conversations. There are expectations from the organization and employer that you will be able to handle these challenging conversations. In these conversations, communication skills, leadership style and conversation skills become decisive factors in how well the conversations turn out. The purpose of the study is to investigate and understand how managers in healthcare and social care perceive and handle difficult conversations with their employees. The study is qualitative and based on a phenomenographic approach. 10 unit managers within three different operational areas were interviewed. All managers who participate in the study are employed in health care in the public sector as well as private operations. The phenomenographic analysis resulted in three description categories; Conversation types, Organization and Support. The description categories present the variations of the result with nine different perceptions operational areas were interviewed.

The aim of this study was to examine the level of crisis readiness within the eldercare sector. Because of the worsened security landscape in the world, crisis readiness has become a focal point on the political agenda. The crisis we explore are the types of crisis that could follow a war or the grayzone between war and peace which in Swedish is called “skymningsläge”. The crisis we focus on in the study are power failure, crisis regarding water supply, food and medicin distribution and cyber-attacks. Our survey aimed to explore the new institutional theory to gain insights into the dynamics of social work within the context of crisis management,focusing on organizations' adaptability to new security challenges. By examining the responses of frontline managers, we sought to understand the impact the organizations have on the elder care facilities. Our findings showed discrepancies between municipal and private sectors with front line managers within the private sector demonstrating a culture of greater openness to make changes for improved crisis readiness. However, in terms of crisis readiness, no significant advantage was found for private facilities. By exploring the perspectives of the first line managers we could also understand what impact the organizations have on the managers situation. Our study also showed a correlation between training in crisis management and confidence in leading during crises. The survey also showed that the organizations has taken measures to develop crisis readiness after the pandemic to be more resilient.

This is a qualitative study based on interviews with unit managers working by the entitlement law LSS, Act concerning Support and Service for Persons with Certain Functional Impairments. The purpose of this study is to get an understanding of how unit managers in the LSS area perceive, work with and have experience of user influence in their organizations. The implementation of previous research makes an easier understanding of what the professional role means for both the organization and the user of welfare services. The main result of the study shows that the unit managers have a significant role for the user influence and that user influence needs further development in their organizations. Unit managers work to equalize social differences and compensate for the user's care needs. User influence is therefore needed for users to be able to become as independent as possible.  The unit manager works according to organizational conditions and creates strategies while using their professional discretion. Which promotes participation and self-determination for the user and their way of life. The result fills a knowledge gap regarding the unit manager's professional role and work for and with user influence in practice within the law of LSS. The study's theoretical approach is based on the theories of human-treating organizations, social citizenship and a model that explains society views different levels of disability and the user's personal autonomy.