This study examines the applicability of Michael Lipsky’s (1980) concept of “street-level bureaucracy” to the profession of social work in 2019. Street-level bureaucrats are public service workers “who interact with citizens in the regular course of their jobs; have significant independence in decision making, and potentially have extensive impact on the lives of their citizens” (Lipsky, 1980:3). They are faced with uncertainties in their work related to inadequate resources, unclear policies, and caseloads/workloads that defy what may be possible to achieve by any one worker. Workers develop routines and “coping mechanisms,” to manage their environments. The routines that they develop then become effective public policy for their clients. The street-level bureaucracy theory has been widely applied, but generally with the assumption that street-level bureaucrats are homogenous across occupations and settings. Recent research suggests the need for more nuanced approaches, especially with regard to the effects of professionalism, individual characteristics of workers, and the variety of circumstances in which they interact with clients. Yet most research utilizes small numbers of cases, making it difficult to measure differences among types of workers. The present study addresses that gap with a large survey of social workers in Louisiana. Findings show that these street-level bureaucrats do exercise discretion, but circumstances in which they do so vary significantly, even within a single profession. Further, ways in which they exercise discretion differ from those described by Lipsky. Instead of using coping mechanisms to buffer themselves from an otherwise overwhelming environment, the respondents in this study report consultation with peers and management to find ways to serve client needs. These findings have implications for both the study of street-level bureaucracy and the practice of social work. Keywords: Discretion, decision-making, street-level bureaucracy, social work, coping mechanisms

The aim of this study was to examine how professionals within Swedish child and youth department of social services reason regarding the establishment of a police report when they suspect that children have been exposed to violence. The aim of this study was also to examine if the professionals' experience that an established police report tends to influence their ongoing social investigations in any way. A thematic analysis was conducted based on six qualitative semi structured interviews with professionals working within the child and youth department of social services from two different workplaces. The empirical data was analyzed in relation to previous research regarding the topic of the study and selected theories. The theories that formed the basis for the analysis were Lipsky’s Street-Level Bureaucracy and Normative ethics in terms of Consequence ethics, Duty-based ethics and Situational ethics which are derived from various philosophers. The results of the study show that the professionals when they consider whether a police report should be filed or not reason about several different factors, making their assessments complex and difficult to describe in generalized terms. Some factors described as influencing their assessments are the degree of clarity in the received information, the severity of the suspected violence and the child's age and ability to tell about what they have experienced. The professionals also reason about possible consequences a police report may result in, in both positive and negative sense, which also influence their assessments. When making these assessments the professionals possess a relatively high degree of discretion using mainly consequence ethics and situational ethics. Further the result show that the ongoing social investigations are significantly affected by an established police report. The impact consists of difficulties in establishing a good alliance with the family and having to deal with the parents’ trauma. The social investigation is also affected by the parallel ongoing police process, because of the existing confidentiality during the preliminary police investigation.

Yrkesverksamma inom LSS (Lagen om stöd och service till vissa funktionshindrade) har i sin yrkesroll flera olika faktorer att förhålla sig till och tillmötesgå. De har LSS individualistiska förhållningssätt, organisationens regler och riktlinjer samt den enskilde stödanvändaren. De utgör ramen för yrkesrollens handlingsutrymme, inom vilket yrkesverksamma tar beslut. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur yrkesverksamma inom LSS upplever och hanterar sitt handlingsutrymme och vad som styr hur de används. För att uppfylla studiens syfte har kvalitativa intervjuer använts och därefter analyserats med Michael Lipskys teori gällande gräsrotsbyråkrati och det teoretiska begreppet handlingsutrymme. Resultatet visade att yrkesverksamma upplever att handlingsutrymmet innebär svårigheter men också möjligheter att tillmötesgå de olika parterna, trots det hanteras det genom maktutövning gentemot den enskilde. Vidare visade resultatet att yrkesverksammas erfarenheter styr hur handlingsutrymmet används, och påverkas av deras kunskap- och kompetensnivå samt möjlighet till reflektion. / Social workers within the Swedish act concerning support and service for persons with certain functional impairments (LSS) has in their profession several factors to take into account. They have the individualistic approaches of LSS, the organization´s rules and guidelines as well as the people receiving support. They provide the framework for the profession, within professional’s discretion. The aim of this study was to investigate how professionals experience and manage their discretion and what governs their use. In order to fulfill the aim of the study qualitative interviews have been used and subsequently analyzed by Michael Lipskys theory of street-level bureaucracy and the theoretical concept discretion. The result showed that professionals felt that their discretion meant difficulties but also opportunities for accommodate various parts, despite being handled by power. Furthermore, the result showed that occupational work experience control how the discretion is used and influenced by their knowledge and competence, as well as the possibility of reflection.

Den föreliggande studien syftar till att undersöka hur socialsekreterare inomsektionen barn och familj, enheten för ekonomiskt bistånd upplever följandeaspekter: bemötandet i sig och dess betydelse samt vikten av bemötandet irelationsskapande och samarbete. Vidare syftar studien även till att undersöka ifallbemötandet är något som skiljer sig åt beroende på klient samt vilkaföreställningar det finns om hur ett gott bemötande skapas. Denna studie grundarsig på en kvalitativ ansats där vi i analys och resultat presenterar information somhar inhämtats från totalt 6 semistrukturerade intervjuer. I analysen tolkas deninhämtade informationen utifrån pliktetik, situationsetik och Michael Lipskysteori om vad som definierar en gräsrotsbyråkrat. Resultatet visar på skildaupplevelser kring vad ett gott bemötande är med en framträdande och gemensamupplevelse om att bemötande är något individuellt, och därför bör bemötandetäven anpassas utefter varje klient, situation och ärende. Utgångspunkten ärdäremot att alla klienter skall bemötas med respekt och stå lika inför lag. I studienobserveras även olika föreställningar om hur ett gott bemötande skapas, vilketyttrar sig som olika aspekter som underlättar för att socialsekreteraren skall kunnage ett gott bemötande: erfarenhet, kompetens, en / The aim of this study is to examine how social secretaries in the child and familysection, unit of economic assistance, experience the following aspects of treatmenttoward clients: the concept itself and its meaning in relationships and cooperation.Furthermore the study also aim to examine if the treatment varies on account ofthe client and what concepts there are as to what generates a good treatment. Thisstudy is based on a qualitative approach where the information has been gatheredfrom six semi-structured interviews. The information has been interpreted andanalyzed on the basis of duty ethics, situational ethics and Michael Lipsky’stheory of what defines a street-level bureaucrat. The results shows differentexperiences on what a good treatment is, the most prominent and commonexperience is that treatment is something individual and therefore all clientsshould be treated accordingly. However, the main point is that every client shouldbe treated with respect and stand equally under the law. The study also showsdifferent conceptions on how a good treatment is created and these are:experience, competence, a good relationship and an effective cooperation betweenthe social secretary and the client.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur arbetsmarknadssekreterare och socialsekreterare inom socialtjänsten Väster i Malmö upplever pilotprojektet Tidig inskrivning samt hur deras handlingsutrymme och inbördes samverkan förändrats i projektet. Syftet med projektet är att förkorta vägen mot självförsörjning och skapa en tidig planering för klienten. Projektet riktas mot de klienter som erhåller ekonomiskt bistånd. Pilotprojektet implementerades den åttonde januari 2018 och skall avslutas den 30 juni 2018. Vi undersöker således hur projektet erfars av arbetsmarknadssekreterare och socialsekreterare angående projektet och dess implementering samt hur informanterna upplever att pilotprojektet påverkat deras handlingsutrymme och inbördes samverkan. De teoretiska utgångspunkterna för uppsatsens är ett instrumentellt organisationsteoretiskt perspektiv samt Michael Lipskys teori angående street-level bureaucracy. Använd metod för denna uppsats är en kvalitativ metod med semistrukturerade intervjuer. Vi har intervjuat tre arbetsmarknadssekreterare och tre socialsekreterare som arbetar med projektet. Vi fann i det empiriska materialet att informanterna upplevde implementeringen som vag och ytterst lite information gavs till arbetsmarknadssekreterarna och socialsekreterarna angående hur projektet skulle förändra deras arbetsgång. Informanterna upplevde även en frustration både hos kollegor, de själva och klienten i ärendegången i projektet. Informanternas handlingsutrymme och inbördes samverkan har förändrats i projektet då resurs-och tidsbrist skapat förändringar i både samverkan och handlingsutrymme för de båda professionerna. / The aim of this bachelor essay is to examine the experience of the social workers in the project pilot called the “Tidig inskrivning”, meaning early enrollment. The aim of this project is to plan the enrolment towars the regular labour market. The project pilot launched in 8th of January and ended in 30th of June in 2018. The involved professions in the project on a daily basis is labour secretaries and social secretaries. The issues concerning our essay is: How does the labour secretaries and social secretaries experience the project pilot and how do the informants experience that the Early Enrollment pilot project has influenced their leeway and mutual cooperation?The theoretical premise for this essay is an instrumental organization theory and Michael Lipsky’s theory concerning street-level-bureaucracy. The method used in this essay was a qualitive method using a semi structured interview. The project pilot is directed to all clients that applies for a social assistance. These clients are the called to a meeting with the labour secretaries to a survey including the clients past work experiences and education. The client is then to have a meeting to review the conditions of the social assistance. We found that the labour secretaries did not experience the project as useful, they found the project as time consuming and unnecessary for both the client and to them as labour secretaries. The social secretaries experienced the project and unnecessary and informed us that the client found the project as time consuming and frustrating. The leeway for the labour secretaries and the social secretaries has changed within the project pilot. The cooperation between the two professions is affected by the project in the sense that it is greatly time consuming for the labour secretaries and the social secretaries have no chance to a cooperation with the labour secretaries as they did before. The changes made to the leeway and cooperation between the two professions have changed because of lack of resources and time.

This study, written by Fredrica Eurén and Linnea Skoglund, is about how prison guards who work in a detention department in Stockholm experience the treatment of homeless people who are taken into care due to intoxication. The captive homeless often receive an extra favorable treatment from the prison guards that differs from the standardized work routines. The motivations for special treatment are based on the meeting that takes place between the homeless person in care and the prison guard. The deviations that are made, as well as extra benefits that are given to the homeless in care, include food and drink and also the opportunity to stay longer in custody so that the homeless person can spend a little more time inside. The results are analyzed using two theories: emotional work and street level bureaucracy. These theories partly explain how employees in certain professions cope with emotions, and partly how employees at street level within government organizations use their discretion in decision making. Similar studies have been carried out in prison, but not in arrest as examined in this study. The results suggest that the prison guards, to some extent, feel a kind of civil courage towards the homeless, which in turn means that they provide more favorable treatment to the homeless in custody. / Denna studie av Fredrica Eurén och Linnea Skoglund, handlar om hur kriminalvårdare som arbetar på arrestavdelning i Stockholm upplever hanteringen av hemlösa som omhändertas på grund av berusning. De omhändertagna hemlösa erhåller många gånger en extra förmånlig behandling av kriminalvårdarna, vilket skiljer sig från de standardiserade arbetsrutiner som finns inom myndigheten. Avstegen från rutinerna som görs, samt även motiveringarna till denna specialbehandling, baseras i grunden på det möte som sker mellan den omhändertagna hemlöse och kriminalvårdaren. De avsteg samt extra förmåner som ges till omhändertagna hemlösa, är bland annat mat och dryck samt möjligheten till att få stanna längre på arresten för att den intagne ska få spendera lite mer tid under tak. Resultatet analyseras med hjälp av två teorier: emotionellt arbete och gräsrotsbyråkrati. Dessa förklarar dels hur medarbetare inom vissa yrken arbetar med känslor på arbetet samt hur de hanterar dessa, dels hur medarbetare på gatunivå inom myndighetsorganisationer agerar inom ett visst handlingsutrymme som ges dem. Liknande studier har genomförts på anstalter, men inte på arresten såsom denna studie undersöker. Resultatet talar för att kriminalvårdarna till viss del känner en typ av civilkurage gentemot de hemlösa, vilket i sin tur gör att de ger mer förmånlig behandling till omhändertagna hemlösa.

Honour-related violence and oppression has been politically prioritised in Sweden during the past two decades. National policies have been formulated, laws adopted, and the school has been identified as a crucial actor for preventing this type of violence at the local level. Yet, the prevalence of the violence still constitutes a threat to the freedom and safety of children and youths in the Swedish society. To gain a deeper understanding about the apparent discrepancy between policy and practice, this study adopts a micro-level perspective and zooms in onto the actors responsible for implementing existing policies. Teachers from four different purposefully selected schools have been interviewed. Drawing on insights from street-level policy implementation theories, the study explores how the teachers work to implement the National Agency for Education’s policy targeting honour-related violence and oppression. Notably, Lipsky’s analytical categories for successful street-level policy implementation, comprehension, capacity and will, function as point of departure. The broad nature of the categories have allowed for contextual insights to be included and a number of constraining and enabling mechanisms for successful micro-level policy implementation to be identified. The findings demonstrate how the teachers’ access to information is contingent upon their personal interest in the topic or on other individuals’ commitment. The large room for manoeuvre permits teachers to use their creativity to include the perspective of honour, but likewise allows for misunderstandings and resistance to influence the policy outcomes. The lack of clear bureaucratic goals, limited resources and a high level of discretion force teachers to find their own strategies to adequately implement the policy. To deal with increased pressure they are however likely to resort to simplifications and familiar routines. In turn these may obstruct at-risk students from receiving appropriate support. Finally, the findings confirm the importance of taking the strategies, decisions and motivations of implementing actors seriously when trying to understand policy success or policy failure.

Uppsatsen syftade till att undersöka vilket handlingsutrymme socialtjänstens handläggare i en mindre kommun har vid utredning av insatsen boendestöd. Sju informanter, två stycken enhetschefer och fem stycken handläggare, från två enheter deltog i en intervjustudie kompletterad med tre stycken vinjettfall. En av enheterna arbetar gentemot beroende och den andra mot socialpsykiatri. I resultatet framkom en viss skillnad i hur enheternas personal förklarar och beskriver sitt handlingsutrymme. I den aktuella kommunen saknas lokala riktlinjer för insatsen boendestöd vilket påverkar handläggarnas handlingsutrymme och handlingsfrihet på flera sätt enligt informanterna. Några informanter känner sig begränsade i sitt arbete på grund av avsaknaden av lokala riktlinjer medan andra ger intryck av att känna sig friare i sitt arbete. För att beviljas boendestöd från socialpsykiatrin krävs en längre tids kontakt med psykiatrin, medan det inte krävs någon dokumentation gällande ett missbruks varaktighet för att beviljas boendestöd från beroende.

The aim of this study was to explore job-coaches and work consultant’s discretion in work with activation of social assistance recipients. Semistructured interviews have been conducted with 4 job-coaches and 4 work consultants within 2 different municipalities. The interviews have been analyzed using Lipsky's theory on street-level bureaucracy and new institutional organization theory. The results of the study showed that job-coaches and work consultant’s report having a large discretion in the work with activation. Further results show that their experienced discretion in their work is not assessed as being affected by the level of education and age but that the work experience is seen essential. On an organizational level a large supply of activation measures and routines giving support was viewed as important. On a political level political priorities was viewed as an important aspect in regards to the discretion. / Syftet med den föreliggande studien har varit att undersöka jobbcoachers och arbetskonsulenters handlingsutrymme i aktiveringsarbetet med socialbidragsklienter. Semistrukturerade intervjuer har genomförts med 8 jobbcoacher och arbetskonsulenter i två kommuner. Intervjumaterialet har analyserats med hjälp av Lipsky´s teori om fornlinjebyråkrati och nyinstitutionell organisationsteori.  Studiens resultat visade att jobbcoacher och arbetskonsulenter upplever en stor handlingsfrihet i arbetet med aktivering. Vidare resultat visar att det upplevda handlingsutrymmet i arbetet bedöms inte påverkas av utbildningsnivå och ålder men att yrkeserfarenhet upplevs som betydelsefull. På organisationsnivå ansågs ett stort utbud av aktiveringsåtgärder och stöd inom verksamheten vara av vikt. På politisk nivå ansågs politiska prioriteringar som en viktig aspekt när det gäller handlingsutrymme.

Huvudsyftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur socialsekreterare upplever barnperspektivet i arbetet inom ekonomiskt bistånd innan och efter inkorporeringen av Barnkonventionen. Vi undersökte även vilken position barn har i socialsekreterarnas utredningar. Föreliggande studie avsåg att vara en kvalitativ intervjustudie där empirin grundar sig på sex stycken intervjuer med socialsekreterare som arbetar inom ekonomiskt bistånd i olika kommuner i Sverige. Empirin har analyserats med hjälp av barndomssociologi samt Michael Lipskys teori om gräsrotsbyråkrater. Analysmetoden som användes för att analysera respondenternas utsagor var tematisk innehållsanalys. Studiens resultat visade att flertalet socialsekreterare ansåg att barnperspektivet är tvetydigt och komplext i praktiken på grund av de många lagar och riktlinjer som präglar arbetet med ekonomiskt bistånd. Trots detta ansåg samtliga socialsekreterare att barnperspektivet är viktigt men att deras arbetsplatser har en del utrymme för ytterligare förbättring. Resultatet visade fortsättningsvis även att barn tenderar att bli mindre uppmärksammade än vuxna samt att socialsekreterarna saknade tillräckliga resurser, i form av tid och vidareutbildning, för att kunna arbeta enligt ett barnperspektiv fullt ut. / The main purpose of this study was to investigate how social workers in the social services’ management of financial assistance experience the use of the child perspective before and after the incorporation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. We also examined how children were being positioned in social workers investigations. The method applied is a qualitative interview study and the empirical data lies in six interviews with social workers that work with financial assistance in different municipalities in Sweden. The empirical data has been analyzed through childhood sociology and Michael Lipsky's theory of street-level bureaucrats. The empirical data was evaluated through thematic analysis. The results showed that most of the social workers consider that the meaning of the child perspective appears to be somehow ambiguous and complex due to laws and regulations that characterize the work within financial assistance. Although all informants consider the child perspective to be important, they experience that their workplaces have room for improvement. The results also showed that children seem to be noted less in comparison to adults and that social workers don’t have enough resources, in terms of time and further education, to fully commit to the child perspective.