The aim of this study was to examine the issues surrounding the perception of young girls' and boys' sexuality and how it may influence decisions regarding care according to the Act (1990:52) with Special Provisions for the Care of Young Persons (LVU). By analyzing judgments from the administrative court, where the criterion of "other socially destructive behavior" under LVU is applied, the study explores how sexuality is constructed and interpreted. The study adopts a social constructivist approach with Hirdman's gender system and sexual scripts as the theoretical framework. Fairclough's three-dimensional model was employed as the analytical method. Previous research has indicated a trend where girls' sexuality is often viewed as problematic and deviant from norms, while boys' sexuality is rarely addressed in the same manner. The main finding of our study revealed differences in how young individuals were described based on gender-related discourses. Girls are portrayed as vulnerable, exposed, and in need of protection, while boys are depicted as risks, perpetrators, and dangers to girls. The discussion revolved around how gender-specific norms manifest in legal decisions and how these decisions may impact the young girls and boys who are the focus of our study. The results indicated that societal power dynamics maintain a distance between genders, where we observed differential assessments of girls' and boys' behavior. By exploring these issues, the study aims to enhance understanding of how the legal system influences and reproduces norms regarding sexuality and sexual behavior, as well as the implications for social work and the young girls and boys involved.
Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-130658 |
Date | January 2024 |
Creators | Appel, Karin, Kornberg, Isabell |
Publisher | Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för socialt arbete (SA) |
Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
Language | Swedish |
Detected Language | English |
Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
Format | application/pdf |
Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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