In July 2021 the Swedish legal system introduced a new penal provision called barnfridsbrott which can be found in Chapter 4 of the Swedish Penal Code. The new provision stipulates that a family member or any other close relative exposing children to acts of violence, shall be held responsible in the court of law. The aim of this study was to examine how the new provision had affected the professional work with children who has experienced violence between family members or other close relatives. The study included interviews with different professionals such as social workers, children’s investigators from the police and a coordinator from the Swedish welfare agency barnahus. The results showed that the new provision only had resulted in minor changes which also varied between the professionals. Furthermore, the professionals discussed a number of obstacles that hindered effective co–ordination between them. This essay intended to study these results. 

This study aims to explore the working methods used by service providers in Germany when working with women affected by sex trafficking, as well as connected challenges and how these can be tackled. The authors used a qualitative research approach, semi-structured interviews were used as a data collection tool. The participants of the study consisted of four service providers working with women affected by sex trafficking in Germany. The collected empirical data was analysed with the ecological systems theory. The collected data was divided into three themes: methods and interventions, challenges, and tackling challenges and desired changes. These themes represented the most important information collected within this study.  These findings illustrate trust-building as the most important method to effectively work with women affected by sex trafficking. Besides that, one of the key challenges identified was lack of awareness and misconceptions on the issue of sex trafficking.

In this article, I will discuss the integration of the Sufi ideas into the Iranian ways of thinking. I will put forward some factors, which explain the reason why Sufi ideas could impact the Iranian ways of thinking and become an integrated part of it. This issue is important since one of the reasons for several social problems from which the Iranian society suffers can be found in the Iranian group-oriented ways of thinking and the lack of an individual-oriented perspective concerning every citizen’s not only rights but duties as well. The mystical dimension of Iranian ways of thinking is regarded as one of the factors, which counteracted the growth of concern for the individual self in the ways of thinking of Iranians.

This article examines the impact of the host society’s social characteristics on second-generation immigrants’ understanding of their national and ethnic identities. Specifically, we studied how second-generation Iranians in Sweden identify themselves with Iranian society, with the Iranian ethnic group in Sweden, and/or with Swedish society, and then we compared second-generation Iranians in Sweden with those in the USA concerning the issue in question. To gather the data in Sweden, we used semi-structured e-mail interviews with 15 young people of Iranian background. We used secondary data to compare our results with those obtained in the USA. When comparing the results of this study with those obtained in the USA, we did not find the identity tensions and crisis reported by research on second-generation Iranians in the USA in members of the same generation in Sweden. Some policy recommendations were suggested.

Sanctification is an important phenomenon and should be of keen interest to those studying religious and spiritually oriented coping. Oddly enough, this phenomenon has not received a great deal of attention. One reason may be that sanctification does not directly apply to institutional religious involvement. Moreover, the sacred cannot easily be discerned in people’s coping experience. On important issue is also the lack of attention to the role of culture in coping. One of the researchers who has paid considerable attention to the concept of sanctification and has developed it from different perspectives is Kenneth Pargament. The aim of this article is give rise to a vital discussion on the role of sanctification in coping from a cultural perspective. In doing this, we will first introduce Pargament’s approach to religion and spirituality and then his view on sanctification and then we will put forward our own critique of some discussions on this subject, concluding with our own view. 

Objectives: The present study, one of the first to look at COVID-19 and coping in Iran, aimed at mapping, describing and understanding the coping methods academics employ as protective resources to deal with the psychological challenges and social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. We specifically aimed at identifying the meaning-making coping methods used and understanding the influence of culture. The guiding research questions has been: Are there differences in meaning-making coping methods by gender, age group, work/student status, and place of residence? Design: The study, which used convenience sampling, was a quantitative inquiry. It employed a modified version of the RCOPE scale among faculty/staff members and students in Iran (n=196, 75% women). Results: The most frequently used coping method among all subgroups of the study sample was thinking that life is part of a greater whole, followed by praying to Allah/God. The least used coping methods were the negative religious ones. Gender differences were found for being alone and contemplating, stronger for men. Thinking that life is part of a greater whole was found mainly among on-campus students. Praying to Allah/God was most common among the youngest staff and students, as well as among women. Two segments of respondents were discovered – the Theists and Non-theists – where the former used more religious coping methods, were more likely to be women, older staff and students, on-campus students, married, have children, and lived in capital. Conclusions: Our conclusion is that the RCOPE methods, which include religious and spiritual meaning-making methods, are of great importance to the studied Iranian informants. However, they use some secular existential meaning-making coping strategies too. This is explained by the role of religion in the larger orientation system and frame of reference in parallel with a secular worldview. Further, a sharp distinction between religious and secular worldviews was not found, which is explained by the fact that secular norms are hardly internalized in ways of thinking in Iran.

In this study, we map and describe the coping methods used by members of the university community in Sweden to deal with the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. This study, which used simple random sampling, was quantitative. It employed a modified version of the RCOPE instrument as well as items from earlier studies of meaning-making coping in Sweden. Among participants (n = 277, 64% women), the most frequently used coping method was nature as a resource in dealing with stress and sadness, followed by listening to the sounds of surrounding nature and thinking of life as part of a greater whole; these coping methods were the most common in all subgroups studied. We used a cultural perspective to better understand the application of certain meaning-making coping methods.

Aims: This study aimed to describe and understand the individual and social dimensions of resiliency among Iranian academics as professionals during the early wave of the ongoing pandemic. Furthermore, we aimed to emphasize the cultural context in our analysis. Method: A cross-sectional survey design was adopted. We used convenient sampling, administered through an online survey, among academics at Iranian universities (n = 196, 75% women). We employed the CD-RISC 2 instrument, items on life meaning, and a modified version of Pargament’s RCOPE instrument (Meaning, Control, Comfort/Spirituality, Intimacy/Spirituality, and Life Transformation). Results: The results revealed a strong level of resilience among men (M = 5.78) and women (M = 5.52). Self-rated health was rated as excellent, very good, or good among a majority (92%) of the participants, more so among men. Family was one of the factors that most strongly gave life meaning, followed by friends, work/school, and religion/spirituality. There was a strong correlation between self-rated health and life as part of a greater whole, being alone, and listening to the sounds of the surrounding nature. Conclusions: Both personal and social levels of resilience and meaning-making are seen in the results, with an ability to balance between obstacles and resources. Cultural practices are interdependent, which also include the individual and social dimensions of resiliency and meaning-making.

To understand the role of culture on the use of the meaning-making coping among people who have been struck by cancer, qualitative and quantitative studies have been conducted in several countries like Sweden, China, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, and Turkey. This article reports on a quantitative study carried out in Turkey. The aim of the study has been to answer the following question: “Which meaning-making coping method (even nonreligious or spiritual coping methods) is used by informants?” The sample consists of 95 persons, 18+ who had been struck by cancer. The questionnaire was distributed to former/current cancer patients via a web address as an electronic survey through the media page of Cancer Survivors Association. The results of the study show that the most important coping methods used by cancer patients in Turkey are the religious coping (RCOPE) methods, particularly spiritual connection, active religious surrender, passive religious deferral, and pleading for direct intercession. Several RCOPE methods such as spiritual discontent, seeking support from clergy or members, punishing God reappraisal, and demonic reappraisal or self-directing religious coping are not used by the Turkish informants. Nor are non-RCOPE methods highly prevalent among informants.

The aim of this article is to elucidate and discuss the results of the 2016 Diversity Barometer (Mångfaldsbarometern) and compare these results with those obtained from ten years of the longitudinal Diversity Barometers for 2005?2014. An additional aim is to demonstrate whether and how Swedish people?s experiences of and attitudes toward people with a foreign background and ethnic diversity have changed.A random sample of the Swedish population took part in the annual study, which was carried out in the form of a nationwide postal survey. The results show that negative attitudes toward ethnic and cultural diversity in general, and migrant population in particular, have increased to some extent and with respect to certain issues. Views on diversity in relation to culture and religion ? especially Islam ? were more negative than views on diversity in relation to work. Those who have larger experience of contact with foreigners show a more positive attitude toward diversity compared with those with limited experience and contact. Individuals who have higher education, those who identify themselves as female, younger persons and those living in large cities are more positive than other groups. In our analysis of the empirical data, we proceeded from a social work perspective and applied contact theory and group conflict theories relating attitudes to group position.

This article aims to discuss changes in attitudes towards immigrants in Sweden from 2015 onwards, based on the results of the longitudinal Diversity Barometer studies from 2005-2014, 2016 and 2018. The Diversity Barometer studies are based on a national, representative, and randomly selected sample from the Swedish population, with a new sample selected each time. We have analyzed the changes from a sociological perspective, using theories such as contact theory and group conflict theory. The results show an increase in negative attitudes towards ethic and cultural diversity generally, and towards immigrants specifically. Diversity in culture and religion – especially towards Islam – is more negatively perceived as compared to diversity in the work domain. Societal groups with extensive experience from contact with foreigners, those who identify themselves as women, those who are more educated, younger people and city dwellers, have all a more positive attitude towards diversity than others.

The purpose of the present project has been to carry out international studies on meaning-making coping among people who have been affected by cancer in a number of societies and, thereby, to try to understand the influence of culture on use of these coping methods. Five countries—Sweden, South Korea, China, Japan, and Turkey—are included in the project. Qualitative semistructured interviews have been conducted with persons with a cancer diagnosis. The research group in each country has used, as a foundation, the interview questions developed for the Swedish study. These questions were, however, modified to better suite the sociocultural context of each participating country. The results presented here concern only Turkey and are restricted to religious coping methods. The study consists of 25 cancer patients (18 females and 7 males) between 20 and 71 years of age. The results of the study in Turkey indicated that the RCOPE (Religious Coping) methods are highly relevant for the interviewees. A sociological analysis of the study made from a cultural perspective showed clearly the importance of the idea of being tolerant (Sabr) for patients when coping with the psychological problems brought about by cancer. The study made it clear that culture plays an essential role in the choice of coping methods.

This article is written on the basis of a study on meaning-making coping in Iran. The study is a part of an international project in 10 countries with different religious and cultural backgrounds. This article aims to discuss the secular existential meaning-making coping methods employed by Iranian cancer patients. Interviews were conducted with 27 participants with various kinds of cancer. Nine secular existential meaning-making coping strategies emerged from the analyses of the qualitative interviews. These coping methods are as follows: Ignoring the illness, Distraction, Altruism, Encounter with others, Nature, Discourse of the self, Visualization, Positive solitude, and Positive thinking and transformational orientation. It seems that, using these strategies, our sample of Iranian cancer patients/survivors have been denying/ignoring their illness, and/or empowering themselves. We discuss the results, considering the potential influence of cultural elements, including Iranian Islam, Persian mysticism, and Persian literature, on the selection of the coping strategies. The study contributes to our understanding of coping via elucidating how seriously ill individuals in Iran try to manage the challenges caused by a health crisis. 

Dreaming has been associated with human activity, including the activity of individuals with chronic illness. To date, there is a body of literature that has associated dreaming with certain chronic illnesses such as breast cancer, asthma, hypertension, and colitis. However, little research has been done on dreaming activity among cancer patients and their beliefs. This study aims to investigate dreaming activity among cancer patients and explore their meaning making in relation to their dreams. This qualitative study involved 35 cancer patients. A thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The themes that emerged were dreams as an alarm, sadness and anxiety, denial, hope and motivation, nightmares are the work of evil, and searching for confirmation. It is hoped that this study will promote our understanding of cancer patients’ journey.

The present study aimed to explore the use of meaning-making coping mechanisms (existential, spiritual and religious coping) among ethnic Malay cancer patients in Malaysia and to investigate the impact of culture on their choice of coping methods. Twenty-nine participants with various kinds of cancer were interviewed. Four kinds of coping resources emerged from analyses of the interview transcripts: (1) relying on transcendent power, (2) supernatural or mystical beliefs, (3) finding oneself in relationships with others and (4) nature. In this article, the two first resources are in focus. The present findings suggest that Malay culture, which is imbued with Islamic belief, strongly influences cancer patients’ coping methods and ways of looking at their experience of being cancer patients. 

The present article aimed to compare the use of religious coping methods among cancer patients in three Islamic countries from a sociocultural perspective.  The article is based on an international study on meaning-making coping in ten countries, among others Malaysia, Iran and Turkey. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted among cancer patients in Malaysia (29), Iran (27) and Turkey (25). The results of the comparison show certain differences in use of religious coping methods between informants in these three countries despite Islam being the dominant religion in all contexts.  The findings of this comparative study show the important role culture plays in coping.

The present article is written on the basis of a sociological international project on meaning-making coping. The aim of the project has been to understand the role of culture in meaning-making coping. The project embarrasses studies among cancer patients in 10 countries. The present article is confined to the results obtained in the study in japan. The main aim was to investigate the impact of culture from a sociological perspective on the choice of coping methods. Twelve participants with various kinds of cancer were interviewed. Several meaning-making coping methods are found in the present study. This study underlines the importance of investigating cultural and social context when investigating into the use of the meaning-making coping methods in different countries.

The article discusses children’s thoughts about death. Research was carried out in two elementary schools in Sweden among 40 children between 6 and 9 years of age, data were collected through text reading, movie viewing and dialogues with children. The main results reveal child-specific thoughts about the end of life, i.e., ideas children construe on their own. The findings also show society- and time-specific thoughts that children take from their societal and cultural context. The article proposes an integrative approach between these two: it is only when the categories of child-specific and society- and time-specific thoughts are combined that we get a fair picture of children’s perceptions of death. The main finding is that children form ideas of their own; they are not completely under the influence of their societal and cultural context. Children take over ideas from their surrounding society but they also express ideas produced by themselves.

For understanding the role of culture in coping in different cultural settings, we have conducted studies among cancer patients in 10 countries, within the framework of an international study on meaning-making coping. This article reports on part of the results we obtained from a study in Portugal; specifically, the reported findings are restricted to nonreligious/spiritual coping methods, methods we call secular existential meaning-making coping. The main aim is to identify the diversity of coping methods using a cultural lens. Thirty-one participants with various kinds of cancer were interviewed. Six different kinds of coping methods related to secular existential coping emerged from thematic analyses of the interviews: discourse of the self, positive solitude, nature, positive transformational orientation, body–mind relationship, and working. Findings revealed that these six methods facilitated patients’ psychological adaptation to the oncological disease. The findings suggest the importance of considering cultural and social context when exploring coping strategies among cancer patients. 

The death of a child may result in traumatizing forms of grief, and meaning-making coping with loss seems to be important in prevention of intense psychosocial problems among bereaved parents. The aim of this quantitative pilot study was to discover the divergent meaning-making coping methods used by bereaved parents in Sweden. In doing so, 162 respondents were selected using a convenience sampling method, and they responded to the modified version of RCOPE. The study revealed that the strategies talking to others about their feelings, pondering the meaning of life alone, and being in nature for greater emotional affiliation, i.e., what we call secular existential coping methods, have been the most used meaning-making coping methods among Swedish mourning parents. While explaining the results, we considered the respondents’ cultural background and speculated about the potential influence of cultural teachings and elements in the selection of ways of coping with bereavement. Further, we compared the results obtained with those of the two other Swedish studies conducted among people coping with cancer and COVID-19 to further discuss the impact of culture on coping with illness, loss, grief, and crisis. The study supports the idea that culture plays an essential role in the choice of coping methods

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic changed the academic world in various ways, and most universities are still closed and continue operating via teleworking.

OBJECTIVE: This study is intended to investigate how university faculty/staff and students in Sweden have coped with the lockdown and working/studying from home during the pandemic.

METHODS: A survey was conducted among 277 women and men working and studying at different universities in Sweden.

RESULTS: The results indicate that most (61%) respondents were very or somewhat satisfied with the current work-from-home arrangement. Additionally, they indicate that, overall, almost 30% were working more than usual due to the pandemic and teleworking. The coping methods having the highest impact on overall job satisfaction were: "thinking about what I can do rather than what I can't do"; "being able to access medical resources and medical services if I need to seek help"; and "having trust in state or health authorities in my country."

CONCLUSIONS: The study reveals that Sweden can serve as a good example of how university faculty/staff and students can address the occupational challenges caused by a health pandemic and possible subsequent quarantines.

The coronavirus pandemic changed the academic world in many ways, and most academic institutions continue operating through teleworking. The aim of the present study was to determine how satisfied the university community (faculty/staff members and students) in Iran has been with remote work, and the ways in which they have dealt with the lockdown and working from home during the coronavirus pandemic. A survey was conducted among 196 academics from different universities in Iran. The results show that a majority of our participants (54%) are very or somewhat satisfied with the current work-from-home arrangement. The most frequently used methods for managing the challenges of teleworking were social contacts with colleagues or classmates at a distance, solidarity and offering kindness and support to the people around them. The least used coping method was trusting state or local health authorities in Iran. The coping strategies that have the highest impact on overall teleworking satisfaction are “Make myself busy with my working day because it makes me feel useful,”“I care for my mental and physical health,” and “Think about what I can do rather than what I can’t do.” The findings were discussed in detail, taking into consideration the theoretical approaches, as well as bringing forth more dynamic aspects of the culture.

The purpose of the present project has been to carry out international studies on meaning-making coping among people who have been affected by cancer in a number of societies and, thereby, to try to understand the influence of culture on use of these coping methods. Five countries—Sweden, South Korea, China, Japan, and Turkey—are included in the project. Qualitative semistructured interviews have been conducted with persons with a cancer diagnosis. The research group in each country has used, as a foundation, the interview questions developed for the Swedish study. These questions were, however, modified to better suite the sociocultural context of each participating country. The results presented here concern only Turkey and are restricted to religious coping methods. The study consists of 25 cancer patients (18 females and 7 males) between 20 and 71 years of age. The results of the study in Turkey indicated that the RCOPE (Religious Coping) methods are highly relevant for the interviewees. A sociological analysis of the study made from a cultural perspective showed clearly the importance of the idea of being tolerant (Sabr) for patients when coping with the psychological problems brought about by cancer. The study made it clear that culture plays an essential role in the choice of coping methods.

This qualitative study aims to reach further understanding of how social workers at the Swedish Public Employment Service perceive structural racism in the Swedish labor market for second-generation afro-swedes. The study is conducted in Sweden. The first part of the research focused on the main reasons second-generation Afro-Swedes risk social exclusion from the Swedish labor market, while the second part focused on discriminatory employment and the third part covered strategies to tackle structural racism and to improve social inclusion of second-generation Afro-Swedes. The Theoretical framework of social exclusion was used to analyse the study findings. Through semi-structured interviews, four social workers expressed their views of various factors of structural racism second-generation afro-swedes experience in the Swedish labor market. The result shows that second-generation Afro-Swedes experiencing structural racism in the Swedish labor market are likely to experience social exclusion in the Swedish community. It was shown that factors such as cultural incompetency, discriminatory employment and education play significant roles in structural racism and social exclusion.

The aim of this qualitative study was to explore child healthcare workers’ experiences of how parents can enhance their child’s psychosocial health and thereby prohibit future risks. Four nurses were interviewed, utilizing a semi-structured interview method. From this, five themes that embrace how parents can enhance their child’s psychosocial health took form. The empirical data was analyzed using developmental ecological theory and resilience as a conceptual framework. The findings showed the importance of parents being physically and emotionally available and having a positive interaction with their child. Further on, the importance of a network was lifted along with the significance of a child having an innocent childhood, a clear set of structure and boundaries and experiencing love. Thereby, the results on a grassroot level confirm the material “BBIC” that focuses on children’s needs and that’s well known and used in social work in Sweden.

Denna studie undersöker hur socialarbetare på Socialtjänsten upplever att samverkan mellan enheterna; Barn- och ungdomsenheten samt Enheten för funktionshinder fungerar i praktiken samt hur de ser på eventuella utmaningar med att utreda barn med komplexa behov. Studien byggde på kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer och resultatet har analyserats utifrån organisationsteori och systemteori. Studien visar att enheterna kan betraktas som separata subsystem med olika institutionella logiker. Socialarbetarna beskriver att barn med komplex problematik behöver att de skilda subsystemen kan verka över de organisatoriska fälten och att samverkan är ett värdesatt verktyg. Det uttrycks en klar vilja till att samarbeta men det saknas tydliga direktiv för hur det ska säkerställas i praktiken. I syfte att förbättra samverkansarbetet beskriver socialarbetarna att det behövs fler och regelbundna utbildningstillfällen samt väldefinierade riktlinjer. Denna studie är visserligen inte generaliserbar till hela samhället men indikerar ändå att svårigheterna i samverkansarbetet är möjliga att motverka. 

The aim of the study is to explore the experiences of international social work graduates when looking for employment in the field of social work in Sweden after graduation. Because the aim of the study is to study the experiences a graduate face when entering the labor market, we have deemed that a qualitative method with semi structured interviews to collect data would be best suited for our research. The selection will be chosen from international social work graduates who studied in Sweden. The intention is to focus on both graduates with 210 study points and graduates with 180 study points. 4 participants together. The empirical data was analyzed with the mind of using the theory of capital by Pierre Bourdieu. This theory; the theory of capital is seen as an empirically orientated concept, that has been one of the most widely used concepts in international sociology and on the intersection of sociology and educational studies. The authors have put the findings in three (3) categories: Background, labor market and further improvement. These themes were found to be a commonality with the graduates interviewed.  This study found that it can be hard to acquire employment nationally, with an international social work degree.

This study examines how older people in Sweden experience life during the restrictions following the Covid-19 pandemic. Six elderly people were interviewed and the transcriptions were analyzed using a qualitative research method. The study showed that the restrictions have not yet led to any deterioration in well-being, but the majority of the group felt that the restrictions had affected their life situation in a negative way. The group had to limit social contacts and minimize visits from loved ones during the pandemic. Active life was also set aside due to the restrictions, which was perceived negatively by the respondents. The results are in line with previous research which shows that elderly people experience dissatisfaction with social isolation that resulted from the Covid-19 restrictions, but it turned out that the respondents seemed to have a strong safety net and strong resilience as they adapted well to the social restrictions.

This study aimed to investigate professionals' experiences of young people's exposure to digital violence, what consequences they perceived and how it can be prevented. In this qualitative study, we have interviewed five professionals who through their work come into contact with young people. The results presented a unified view of the nature of digital violence and its extent, despite several perspectives from different professions.Digital violence was described as effective, as something that increases and which becomes more violent. The consequences of digital violence were perceived to be mainlymental illness and poorer school performance. Based on the interviews, there is a lack of knowledge among young people, adults as well as authorities. Development are as that were highlighted were knowledge-raising and preventive initiatives. Based on the results,the responsibility in dealing with digital violence among young people was discussed, where greater responsibility from adults and authorities is desired.

People with low incomes seek financial support via Facebook and other social media. For what is the assistance requested and which individuals seek help? 30 applications from Giving People showed that families with children seek help for basic needs such as food and clothing. This help is compared to help given from the charity organization Sveriges Stadsmissioner and to financial assistance from the social services. The help from Giving People is fast and the organization deliberately circumvents the social services’ requirements for reporting income. The help-seeking individual receives a small supplement but with a risk that poverty in society will not receive enough attention. Sveriges Stadsmissioner and the social services offer professional personal meetings, unlike Giving People. This can be important because financial difficulties are often a marker for other social problems.

This article aims to explore and analyse how good and dignified care is perceived and expressed at night-time within elder home care services, in which night-time care represents a knowledge gap. Dignity has become a legislated value in Swedish eldercare, aiming to increase the quality of care and to clarify the ethical values of everyday care practice. The data presented here come from a qualitative case study with in-depth interviews with six care unit managers and 14 care workers in four municipalities. The analysis of the interviewees? perceptions and expressions of good care were informed by Nodding?s concepts: responsiveness, receptivity, and relatedness. The results showed that there was a relative unawareness of the new goals of the dignity policy and there was no specific guidance regarding dignity during night-time care. The care unit managers? perspective was mainly administrative and related to the policy level and the staff?s ability to care. The care workers? view of good and dignified care included aspects of ideal characteristics and user-centredness with a focus on older people?s individual needs. However, good care was conditioned by time. The dignity policy, as described in national documents, was perceived by the interviewees as vague and with unreachable goals constructed on the structural level. In social care practice, however, expressions of good and dignified care were already found in care ethics, regardless of the dignity policy. By bringing relationality to the dignity discourse on the structural policy level, recognition of care may be emphasized.

The aim was to examine how social workers perceive their prerequisites to work according to the social services act regarding gambling addiction. Seven social workers from six municipalities were interviewed in a qualitative study. The result showed that most feel that they have good prerequisites due to both individual and contextual factors. The results also showed that the informants work differently and that few use recommended methods. The informants stated that they primarily consider whether the client's needs can be met through outpatient care. A majority stated that they have sufficient knowledge of gambling problems, the revised social services act and the social services' expanded area of ​​responsibility. Collaboration with health care was described as challenging. The main benefit of the legislative changes was stated to be the opportunity to help more people. The study's most important conclusions were that preventive work and collaboration between authorities should be prioritized.

The aim of the study was to investigate how women's shelters work with women who are victims of substance abuse and violence (double vulnerable) and how they carry out improvement work. The results of the study showed that the work with the double vulnerable women is a complex area where the double vulnerable women are exposed to double exclusion and stamping. Five women's shelters have been interviewed where one professional from each shelter has represented the shelter. Lack of resources, knowledge and limited economy are factors that affect the possibility of helping the double vulnerable. A strong will was revealed in the shelters to improve and develop the work for the double vulnerable women. The analysis is based on the theory of social exclusion and the stamping theory. The theoretical analysis confirmed the situation of double stigmatization and social exclusion of the double vulnerable women. In terms of social work, there is an urgent need to pay attention to the doubly vulnerable women and improve their life situation from a gender perspective.

I augusti 2021 infördes ett lagförtydligande i socialtjänstlagen kring nämndens ansvar förutövare av våld i nära relationer. Denna studie syftade till att undersöka socialarbetareserfarenheter av förtydligandet kring socialnämndens ansvar för våldsutövare, utifrån deraspraktiska arbete med våld i nära relationer. Föreliggande kvalitativa studies empiriskamaterial samlades in genom en webbenkät som besvarades av 15 socialarbetare. Resultatetvisade svårigheter i implementeringen av lagen i de verksamheter där respondenterna arbetaroch att de inte upplevde att lagförtydligandet hittills lett till några förändringar i det praktiskaarbetet. Socialarbetarna efterfrågade centrala riktlinjer, vägledning och andra beskrivningarav hur arbetet bör bedrivas. 

The study aims at finding reasons for teenagers’ involvement in crime in Sätra in Gävle, Sweden. Using a semi-structured interview method via Zoom of four participants who are involved with teenager who are into crime, the study sets out to answer the question about factors in the environment and community that leads teenagers into crime in Sätra. The findings were in line with the theoretical framework which was the Social Bonds theory, which has four components namely: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. UsingATLAS.ti as a tool for analysis. Themes were created from the interview responses and the themes were analyzed based on previous research and chosen theory. In conclusion, these four components of the Social Bonds theory help explain the reasons for teenagers’ involvement in crime.

In this article, we examine family influences on occupational aspirations among employed descendants of Middle Eastern immigrants. Using a qualitative approach, we conducted 21 semi-structured interviews with native-born descendants of Middle Eastern immigrants. We present and analyse their interpretations of their parents’ experiences and living conditions before, during and after migration and demonstrate how these interpretations shaped their own occupational aspirations. We discuss parents’ high expectations of their children in relation to ethnic-community valuations of educational and occupational achievements. These high expectations may increase the chances of social mobility but can also become a negative pressure, especially if parents set high standards but cannot help their children to meet those expectations. In these cases, older siblings who possess valuable knowledge of the educational system and labour market can function as important transferrers of resources.

This article explores how descendants of immigrants in Sweden understand labor market conditions, and how such understandings influence their occupational strategies. We interviewed twenty-one Sweden-born individuals with non-Western immigrant parents, and identified three strategies based on our analysis of the data: ‘choosing’ the right job, adapting the habitus, and using cultural capital in flexible ways. The first strategy covers interviewees working in jobs with labor shortages and/or high demand for employees with immigrant background. The second covers interviewees who could learn through failing, with substantial resilience and persistence. The third deals with interviewees who searched for jobs in branches that valued their particular skill set, entailing the importance of being flexible on the labor market.

The aim of this study was to examine how employed descendants of immigrants in Sweden perceive that interactions with public officials have benefitted their occupational aspirations and attainments. We conducted qualitative semi-structured interviews with twelve female and nine male descendants of immigrants, followed by an abductive thematic analysis. Applying a theoretical framework of social capital, we found three main influences of public officials from respondents’ perspectives: 1) connectedness, 2) supporting personal goals and focusing on possibilities, and 3) mediation of knowledge and information. We discuss and analyse the symbolic resources deriving from these influences, e.g. increased motivation and self-belief, and conceptualize these resources as social capital contributing to the occupational aspirations and attainments of immigrants’ descendants.

This study used qualitative interviews to explore perceptions of labour market participation in relation to gender norms and parenting ideals among employed Swedish men and women of migrant descent. Using an abductive thematic approach, we demonstrate how the respondents viewed labour market participation from different perspectives. The females saw it as a source of emancipation, whereas the men primarily viewed it as a means of providing for a current/future family. While our respondents depicted themselves as dedicated to social norms of gender equality, they expressed gender-biased views on work and family. The respondents’ immigrant heritage also influenced their views on labour market participation, gender and family. Gender inequalities in the parental generation motivated them to arrange their work and family lives differently, and the Swedish social and political context offered them incentives and opportunities to be more gender-equal than their parents. We view and analyse these findings from a life course-perspective, showing how cultural and contextual influences affect respondents’ perspectives on work and family arrangements.

The aim of this study is to investigate how older adults were affected by the COVID-19 restrictions that were put in place by the Swedish Health Authority during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic to protect them and the roles played by social workers during the pandemic. A qualitative study was conducted whereby two older adults aged seventy and two practising professional workers were interviewed, and their responses analyzed using thematic analysis. The results showed that one of the older adults felt isolated, while the other did not have the same experience. The social workers on the other hand felt that they were responsible for the lives of their clients as well as that of their staff.

The aim of the study was to see how work groups in the Correctional Service perceived and expressed masculinity norms and how the work group experienced that the phenomenon affected their meetings with clients. To meet the aim two qualitative group interviews were conducted with two and three people respectively in each group. The participants belonged to working groups within the Correctional System Service from two different regions. The results were analysed through theories of hegemonic masculinity and queer theory. The study showed a perception that masculinity norms did affect the client work because of how the client’s expressed masculinity but that the work group lacked expressions of masculinity norms. In the discussion the results are being discussed through previous research and theory.