The distant, the capable and trustworthy, and the digitally skilled : The production of client roles in municipal activation and social assistance services using automated decision-making
(2025) In Journal of European Social Policy- Abstract (Swedish)
- While research on the ramifications of automated decision-making (ADM) for welfare organisations is growing rapidly, less attention has been paid to elucidating the role and experiences of clients in the ADM process. This paper draws attention to how the performance of ADM policy in social assistance organisations working from an activation perspective is not merely a passive way of processing clients within the constraints of a given institution but an active interaction between clients and the organisation’s employees that ultimately constructs and produces the individual client in line with the purposes of the organisation. This article aims to explore how the role of the client is produced in the interaction between employees and... (More)
- While research on the ramifications of automated decision-making (ADM) for welfare organisations is growing rapidly, less attention has been paid to elucidating the role and experiences of clients in the ADM process. This paper draws attention to how the performance of ADM policy in social assistance organisations working from an activation perspective is not merely a passive way of processing clients within the constraints of a given institution but an active interaction between clients and the organisation’s employees that ultimately constructs and produces the individual client in line with the purposes of the organisation. This article aims to explore how the role of the client is produced in the interaction between employees and clients when applying for social assistance in two Swedish social assistance organisations using ADM. The data consist of 28 qualitative interviews with managers, quality personnel, professionals, and clients. Findings depict the emergence of three client roles—the distant, the capable and trustworthy, and the digitally skilled client—the configurations of which are shaped by the interplay between employees and clients, serving to fulfil specific organisational imperatives. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/b44e06cc-faff-460b-8306-1c0710bac647
- author
- Nordesjö, Kettil and Scaramuzzino, Gabriella LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-06-16
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- keywords
- ADM, automated decision making, social assistance, welfare encounter, People production, social worker-client relationship, digitalisation, försörjningsstöd, automatisering, socialt arbete, brukarperspektiv
- in
- Journal of European Social Policy
- publisher
- SAGE Publications
- ISSN
- 0958-9287
- DOI
- 10.1177/09589287251351094
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- b44e06cc-faff-460b-8306-1c0710bac647
- date added to LUP
- 2025-06-18 16:24:53
- date last changed
- 2025-06-23 08:58:27
@article{b44e06cc-faff-460b-8306-1c0710bac647,
abstract = {{While research on the ramifications of automated decision-making (ADM) for welfare organisations is growing rapidly, less attention has been paid to elucidating the role and experiences of clients in the ADM process. This paper draws attention to how the performance of ADM policy in social assistance organisations working from an activation perspective is not merely a passive way of processing clients within the constraints of a given institution but an active interaction between clients and the organisation’s employees that ultimately constructs and produces the individual client in line with the purposes of the organisation. This article aims to explore how the role of the client is produced in the interaction between employees and clients when applying for social assistance in two Swedish social assistance organisations using ADM. The data consist of 28 qualitative interviews with managers, quality personnel, professionals, and clients. Findings depict the emergence of three client roles—the distant, the capable and trustworthy, and the digitally skilled client—the configurations of which are shaped by the interplay between employees and clients, serving to fulfil specific organisational imperatives.}},
author = {{Nordesjö, Kettil and Scaramuzzino, Gabriella}},
issn = {{0958-9287}},
keywords = {{ADM; automated decision making; social assistance; welfare encounter; People production; social worker-client relationship; digitalisation; försörjningsstöd; automatisering; socialt arbete; brukarperspektiv}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{06}},
publisher = {{SAGE Publications}},
series = {{Journal of European Social Policy}},
title = {{The distant, the capable and trustworthy, and the digitally skilled : The production of client roles in municipal activation and social assistance services using automated decision-making}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/09589287251351094}},
doi = {{10.1177/09589287251351094}},
year = {{2025}},
}