Migrant welfare recipients managing their own scarce resources and those of others : a case of food uncertainty
Söderberg, Maria LU
and Linde, Stig
LU
(2025)
Social Policy Conference, University of Helsinki
p.115-116
- Abstract (Swedish)
- Considering increasing living costs and lagging compensation levels in the welfare system, people on social welfare have difficulties accessing food to the extent needed. This presentation is based on a Swedish study aimed to reveal how migrant welfare recipients act, react, and reason in their management of their own scarce resources and those of others. Striving for ‘dignity’ took a prominent place in the analysis process in this study, along with the theoretical application of everyday ‘rituals’. Eleven individual open semi-structured interviews were carried out together with observations during a baking activity. This activity was run by the municipality in collaboration with a local voluntary organization and it was included in a... (More)
- Considering increasing living costs and lagging compensation levels in the welfare system, people on social welfare have difficulties accessing food to the extent needed. This presentation is based on a Swedish study aimed to reveal how migrant welfare recipients act, react, and reason in their management of their own scarce resources and those of others. Striving for ‘dignity’ took a prominent place in the analysis process in this study, along with the theoretical application of everyday ‘rituals’. Eleven individual open semi-structured interviews were carried out together with observations during a baking activity. This activity was run by the municipality in collaboration with a local voluntary organization and it was included in a mandatory program to qualify for social welfare.
In this study four partly overlapping approaches emerged; these were labelled: 1) Recognizing one’s own need for social interaction, 2) Sacrificing one’s own need for food, 3) Negotiating the household’s need for food, and 4) Engaging in other’s need for food. The findings showed that, for better or worse, these approaches created a kind of existential structure in a time of uncertainty regarding what to expect from a welfare state in rapid transformation. This means that when words were not enough, rituals took shape as a measure to cope with the burden of uncertainty. In this way, the existential structure helped the migrant welfare recipients to relate ethically to themselves and to others in an unethical life situation.
The very organizational structure of the baking activity also deserves attention. The organizational structure included partners at national level (social policy), municipal level (the activation program) and local levels (the local NGO), as well as internationally in terms of being considered for receiving aid (international NGOs). This in turn raises questions about whether there is a connection between this organizational structure and the approaches that emerge in the findings. Could it be that the theoretical application of rituals and dignity has contributed to making visible the participants’ shifting self-presentation and how, in a time of uncertainty, they relate to higher powers, to other people, and to the legitimacy of the welfare state? If this is the case, social workers need more knowledge about how to handle different dimensions of the activation policy, and how to relate to the participants’ rituals in the pursuit of dignity
The study's design gradually revealed several challenges. Language barriers, where relatives or translation apps were needed during interviews, proved difficult. It became clear that having a female interviewer was a prerequisite. In this study, the organizers supported our interest, but in another context, we were rejected. The gatekeeper refused to facilitate contacts between us as researchers and potential participants, citing their dependency on the gatekeeper and its organization. We are happy to share experiences regarding difficulties and solutions in gaining access to people living in precarious living conditions.
(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/e8bd5c85-6230-4497-ac77-4c2bd0f8f382
- author
- Söderberg, Maria
LU
and Linde, Stig
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-10-23
- type
- Contribution to conference
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Food Insecurity, Matfattigdom, socialpolitik, Food Poverty
- pages
- 115 - 116
- conference name
- Social Policy Conference, University of Helsinki
- conference location
- Helsingfors, Finland
- conference dates
- 2025-10-23 - 2025-10-24
- project
- The indignity of being hungry and the indignity of having to receive food: How do professionals create dignity in the encounter with help-seekers?
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- e8bd5c85-6230-4497-ac77-4c2bd0f8f382
- date added to LUP
- 2025-10-23 16:43:20
- date last changed
- 2025-10-25 03:30:35
@misc{e8bd5c85-6230-4497-ac77-4c2bd0f8f382,
abstract = {{Considering increasing living costs and lagging compensation levels in the welfare system, people on social welfare have difficulties accessing food to the extent needed. This presentation is based on a Swedish study aimed to reveal how migrant welfare recipients act, react, and reason in their management of their own scarce resources and those of others. Striving for ‘dignity’ took a prominent place in the analysis process in this study, along with the theoretical application of everyday ‘rituals’. Eleven individual open semi-structured interviews were carried out together with observations during a baking activity. This activity was run by the municipality in collaboration with a local voluntary organization and it was included in a mandatory program to qualify for social welfare.<br/><br/>In this study four partly overlapping approaches emerged; these were labelled: 1) Recognizing one’s own need for social interaction, 2) Sacrificing one’s own need for food, 3) Negotiating the household’s need for food, and 4) Engaging in other’s need for food. The findings showed that, for better or worse, these approaches created a kind of existential structure in a time of uncertainty regarding what to expect from a welfare state in rapid transformation. This means that when words were not enough, rituals took shape as a measure to cope with the burden of uncertainty. In this way, the existential structure helped the migrant welfare recipients to relate ethically to themselves and to others in an unethical life situation.<br/><br/>The very organizational structure of the baking activity also deserves attention. The organizational structure included partners at national level (social policy), municipal level (the activation program) and local levels (the local NGO), as well as internationally in terms of being considered for receiving aid (international NGOs). This in turn raises questions about whether there is a connection between this organizational structure and the approaches that emerge in the findings. Could it be that the theoretical application of rituals and dignity has contributed to making visible the participants’ shifting self-presentation and how, in a time of uncertainty, they relate to higher powers, to other people, and to the legitimacy of the welfare state? If this is the case, social workers need more knowledge about how to handle different dimensions of the activation policy, and how to relate to the participants’ rituals in the pursuit of dignity<br/>The study's design gradually revealed several challenges. Language barriers, where relatives or translation apps were needed during interviews, proved difficult. It became clear that having a female interviewer was a prerequisite. In this study, the organizers supported our interest, but in another context, we were rejected. The gatekeeper refused to facilitate contacts between us as researchers and potential participants, citing their dependency on the gatekeeper and its organization. We are happy to share experiences regarding difficulties and solutions in gaining access to people living in precarious living conditions.<br/>}},
author = {{Söderberg, Maria and Linde, Stig}},
keywords = {{Food Insecurity; Matfattigdom; socialpolitik; Food Poverty}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{10}},
pages = {{115--116}},
title = {{Migrant welfare recipients managing their own scarce resources and those of others : a case of food uncertainty}},
year = {{2025}},
}