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The use of home care as relational work : outlines for a research programme

Harnett, Tove LU orcid ; Möllergren, Glenn LU and Jönson, Håkan LU orcid (2024) In International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being 19(1).
Abstract
Purpose
Care has been theorized as a relational practice, but the research has focused on providers rather than users. Older care users have been cast in a passive role, and their relational activities to help with the provision of their care or to support those who provide it are underexplored. The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge about home care use as a form of relational ‘work’.
Methods
The data for the study consists of 34 qualitative interviews with home care users in Sweden and 15 observations of care provision. The data has been coded using thematic analysis.
Results
The analysis identifies two overlapping forms of relational work done by care users in the home care context: care-centred work, where... (More)
Purpose
Care has been theorized as a relational practice, but the research has focused on providers rather than users. Older care users have been cast in a passive role, and their relational activities to help with the provision of their care or to support those who provide it are underexplored. The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge about home care use as a form of relational ‘work’.
Methods
The data for the study consists of 34 qualitative interviews with home care users in Sweden and 15 observations of care provision. The data has been coded using thematic analysis.
Results
The analysis identifies two overlapping forms of relational work done by care users in the home care context: care-centred work, where care users work to facilitate care situations that were positive for staff and for the provision of care; and person-centred work, where care users work to foster personal relations by focusing on care staff as unique individuals.
Conclusions
The article proposes a research programme on relational work by care users, prompted by the finding that such efforts seem central for the understanding of eldercare in a variety of contexts. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being
volume
19
issue
1
pages
11 pages
publisher
Taylor & Francis
external identifiers
  • pmid:38913083
  • scopus:85197003549
ISSN
1748-2631
DOI
10.1080/17482631.2024.2371538
language
Swedish
LU publication?
yes
id
ebb7b85b-e7ae-40b5-84cd-c2a05b35b7d6
date added to LUP
2024-06-25 15:59:11
date last changed
2025-04-26 01:50:35
@article{ebb7b85b-e7ae-40b5-84cd-c2a05b35b7d6,
  abstract     = {{Purpose<br/>Care has been theorized as a relational practice, but the research has focused on providers rather than users. Older care users have been cast in a passive role, and their relational activities to help with the provision of their care or to support those who provide it are underexplored. The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge about home care use as a form of relational ‘work’.<br/>Methods<br/>The data for the study consists of 34 qualitative interviews with home care users in Sweden and 15 observations of care provision. The data has been coded using thematic analysis.<br/>Results<br/>The analysis identifies two overlapping forms of relational work done by care users in the home care context: care-centred work, where care users work to facilitate care situations that were positive for staff and for the provision of care; and person-centred work, where care users work to foster personal relations by focusing on care staff as unique individuals.<br/>Conclusions<br/>The article proposes a research programme on relational work by care users, prompted by the finding that such efforts seem central for the understanding of eldercare in a variety of contexts.}},
  author       = {{Harnett, Tove and Möllergren, Glenn and Jönson, Håkan}},
  issn         = {{1748-2631}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{Taylor & Francis}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being}},
  title        = {{The use of home care as relational work : outlines for a research programme}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2024.2371538}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/17482631.2024.2371538}},
  volume       = {{19}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}