Claiming” equality and “doing” inequality – Individual action plans for applicants of social assistance
(2020) In Social Work & Society 18(2). p.1-14- Abstract
- This article publishes results from a study on how formal equality is “done” in 48 individual action plans for handling social assistance. We use a street-level perspective to understand how policy is ‘done’ to enhance equality for applicants of social assistance. The analysis is based on theory on street-level bureaucracy as well as concept of equality. Applicants‘ difficulties with an uncomprehensive structure as well as vague rights and duties, together with a lack of right to participate and argue for your cause and weak legal security, makes formal equality hard to grasp in the individual action plans. This is made even more difficult because of the individual means-test in the social assistance system. We argue that applicants of... (More)
- This article publishes results from a study on how formal equality is “done” in 48 individual action plans for handling social assistance. We use a street-level perspective to understand how policy is ‘done’ to enhance equality for applicants of social assistance. The analysis is based on theory on street-level bureaucracy as well as concept of equality. Applicants‘ difficulties with an uncomprehensive structure as well as vague rights and duties, together with a lack of right to participate and argue for your cause and weak legal security, makes formal equality hard to grasp in the individual action plans. This is made even more difficult because of the individual means-test in the social assistance system. We argue that applicants of social assistance may risk being placed in a position of inequality that is greater than before the individual action plans were implemented, despite goals of the opposite. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/5bdae0ea-510e-4750-a8a1-1c291d04d04a
- author
- Ulmestig, Rickard ; Denvall, Verner LU and Nordesjö, Kettil
- organization
- publishing date
- 2020-11-25
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Social assistance, Equality, Social contracts, Individual action plans, Street-level bureaucracy
- in
- Social Work & Society
- volume
- 18
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 14 pages
- publisher
- Di P P - N R W
- ISSN
- 1613-8953
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 5bdae0ea-510e-4750-a8a1-1c291d04d04a
- date added to LUP
- 2021-02-16 10:17:14
- date last changed
- 2021-12-15 13:09:33
@article{5bdae0ea-510e-4750-a8a1-1c291d04d04a,
abstract = {{This article publishes results from a study on how formal equality is “done” in 48 individual action plans for handling social assistance. We use a street-level perspective to understand how policy is ‘done’ to enhance equality for applicants of social assistance. The analysis is based on theory on street-level bureaucracy as well as concept of equality. Applicants‘ difficulties with an uncomprehensive structure as well as vague rights and duties, together with a lack of right to participate and argue for your cause and weak legal security, makes formal equality hard to grasp in the individual action plans. This is made even more difficult because of the individual means-test in the social assistance system. We argue that applicants of social assistance may risk being placed in a position of inequality that is greater than before the individual action plans were implemented, despite goals of the opposite.}},
author = {{Ulmestig, Rickard and Denvall, Verner and Nordesjö, Kettil}},
issn = {{1613-8953}},
keywords = {{Social assistance; Equality; Social contracts; Individual action plans; Street-level bureaucracy}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{11}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{1--14}},
publisher = {{Di P P - N R W}},
series = {{Social Work & Society}},
title = {{Claiming” equality and “doing” inequality – Individual action plans for applicants of social assistance}},
url = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/91453660/627_Article_Text_2171_1_10_20201110.pdf}},
volume = {{18}},
year = {{2020}},
}