Abstract According to the Social Services Act, SFS (2001: 453), field work is to be used as a method of preventive social work. The purpose of this study was to investigate how field assistants work with preventive social work to combat juvenile delinquency in exposed residential areas in the Stockholm region. The qualitative interview study consists of four field assistants and a prevention coordinator from two vulnerable areas. The interview material was analyzed by using system theory and empowerment theory. The study shows that juvenile delinquency is a symptom of already existing problems in relation to the surrounding system. Exclusion, confinement, machoculture, low socioeconomic status with many living with supply support, low or no education and difficulties for young people to get a job is associated with the problematic behavior according to the systems theory. Because juvenile delinquency is one of the multi-dimensional social issues in relation to vulnerable areas, the field assistants affect by seeking out the activitiees of young people s natural circles and creating mutual contact, trustand voluntility among young people. Their social change work is also linked to empowerment by raiseng awareness of destructive norms, identifying common problems and its causes, in order to create better self-confidence, self-image, skills and knowledge.   Keywords: Exposed residential areas, Youth crime, Social prevention work, Field work

The aim of this study was to explore perceptions of social workers in the prevention of juvenile crime. The theoretical framework guiding the study consisted of resilience, risk and prevention factors as well as preventions levels of preventive social work. These concepts were applied to analyze the empirical data. Qualitative group interviews were conducted with social workers from three different counties. Results showed that preventative social work is both complex and challenging. Futhermore it requires collaborations between various actors from different sectors of society. Identifying children at risk as well as the establishment of early contact by social services is imperative for the interventions to work effectively. The allocation of social service resources as well as earlier onset of criminality among minors prove to be future challenges in the field. Social workers preventative work was done primarily on an “indicated and selected level”. Risk and prevention factors identified in the study were found primarily in the local community, within the family as well as the interrelationship among peer groups. / Studien syftade till att undersöka fältassistenters erfarenheter av att arbeta förebyggande med barn och unga upp till 18 år som riskerar att hamna i kriminalitet. Studiens teoretiska ram bestod av resiliens, risk- och skyddsfaktorer samt de olika preventionsnivåer för socialt förebyggande arbete, dessa begrepp tillämpades för att analysera det empiriska materialet. Tre kvalitativa gruppintervjuer genomfördes med fältassistenter från tre olika kommuner. Resultatet visade att det förebyggande arbetet är komplext och utmanande, bedrivs i nära samverkan med aktörer från olika delar av samhället. Identifiering av barn och unga som riskerar att hamna i kriminalitet likväl som etablering av kontakt i ett tidigt skede framkom som en förutsättning för att insatserna ska fungera förebyggande. Politiska beslut gällande resursfördelning för fältverksamhet och att allt yngre barn debuterar i kriminalitet är framtida utmaningar.Respondenterna beskrev att deras förebyggande arbete framförallt sker på indikerad och selektiv nivå. Dem risk- och skyddsfaktorer de identifierar i sitt arbete visade sig framförallt ligga på närsamhället, inom familjen och kamratgrupper.