Children undergoing investigation by the social services have a right to participate during the process. The social services must accommodate this right according to law. Participation is created when the social worker meets the child, which makes the social worker a significant person when the child’s right to participation is implemented in social work practices. The aim of this study is to examine the experiences social workers employed by child- and family services have in enabling and accommodating children’s participation during investigative social work. The study has two research questions: what forms do child participation take, according to social workers, during investigations conducted by social services and how do social workers enable child participation in their work methods? The study was conducted through the use of qualitative method. The empirical data was collected by interviewing five social workers and the data was analysed through the use of a thematic analysis, prior research and the theoretical framework of Roger A. Hart’s Ladder of Participation. The result showed that child participation was considered important to all informants and that it was essential to make sure the child had the opportunity to express their opinions and receive information about their case. Participation was also accommodated through meetings away from the social office, to aid the child’s sense of security. The result also showed that some factors can become obstacles for child participation. There is resistance towards participation when social workers suspect that the children might be harmed through taking part in an investigation, which makes the use of alternative sources to garner the child’s view seem appropriate. Furthermore, the practice of involving children in decision making was not a certainty. A conclusion is thus that social work practices need to evolve to promote child participation within areas where social workers feel resistance towards participation, such as in protective work and in decision making.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:mau-68371 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Bülow, Clara, Tasevska, Gabriella |
| Publisher | Malmö universitet, Fakulteten för hälsa och samhälle (HS) |
| 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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