Socialtjänstens stödgrupper för barn : En lätt tillgänglig insats?
(2025) In Research Reports In Social Work 2025:1.- Abstract
- In Sweden, preventive support groups for children exposed to domestic violence, substance abuse or mental illness in the home are provided by child welfare services (CWS). Support groups for children are often accessible without assessment, available for families to access at their own request, without formal referral or opening a case file which is assumed to lower the threshold. A current approach in a number of countries to bridge the gap between statutory social welfare agencies and families is the orientation towards prevention with a growing range of early interventions. Yet, the basis upon which services engage with families at a point prior to substantial problems become evident is far from straightforward. Parents’ gatekeeping... (More)
- In Sweden, preventive support groups for children exposed to domestic violence, substance abuse or mental illness in the home are provided by child welfare services (CWS). Support groups for children are often accessible without assessment, available for families to access at their own request, without formal referral or opening a case file which is assumed to lower the threshold. A current approach in a number of countries to bridge the gap between statutory social welfare agencies and families is the orientation towards prevention with a growing range of early interventions. Yet, the basis upon which services engage with families at a point prior to substantial problems become evident is far from straightforward. Parents’ gatekeeping role is a particular source of tension when recruiting children to support groups. Stigma related to parental problems and parents’ fear of being judged are barriers. Problems at home are often concealed leading to difficulties in identifying vulnerable children. Barriers are even greater when support is offered by CWS, inherently associated with negative attributes and stigma. Increasing the knowledge about how and on what basis children access early interventions is essential. The aim of this study is to gain an in-depth knowledge of the conditions and considerations that influence children's routes to CWS’s support groups.
This licentiate thesis consists of two scientific articles. Article I comprises individual interviews with 18 children (aged 9–18) who recently attended support groups and 18 parents. Drawing on concepts from the Health Belief Model and Help-Seeking Model, analysis shows that children’s routes into CWS’s support groups depend on their parent’s motives and help-seeking actions. Support groups are an unknown intervention but linked to the broader support system where professionals such as school counselors and health care staff are facilitators in guiding families toward support groups. Perceived barriers to participation include shame associated with the parental problem and the unwanted involvement from CWS. There are also perceived benefits to be gained from talking to others and sharing experiences. However, seeing their lives as ordinary some children initially dismiss the need for support and only see the benefit of peer support after participating in a few trial sessions.
Article II is based on five group interviews with 16 support group leaders and examines how barriers to participation are experienced and handled by professionals. It is found that professionals experience stigma as a barrier to recruiting children, mainly the parents’ shame but also their fear of CWS involvement. Professionals describe parents’ problems on a ‘scale of shamefulness’, ranging from divorce to domestic violence, and the barriers vary in strength relative to the shamefulness of the problem. Parents are gatekeepers for their children’s participation, so destigmatizing and shame-reducing strategies, whether on the interpersonal, organizational or structural level, are called for to increase children’s access. However, strategies targeting parental shame are not without their challenges and risks.
Overall, the study demonstrates that children’s participation in support groups is shaped by a complex interplay of parental influence, professional guidance, and structural conditions. Support groups cannot be considered a stand-alone service but are linked to broader support systems, such as school health teams and health services. Context specific conditions of CWS, where voluntary interventions coexist with coercive interventions, need to be balanced by professionals. A shame-aware approach is crucial for reducing barriers and improving recruitment strategies in social work practice. The study highlights the need to reframe our understanding of people’s engagement in preventive interventions in the context of child and family social work. (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- Stödgrupper för barn som växer upp i familjer med psykisk ohälsa, skadligt bruk/beroende eller våld är en insats som erbjuds av socialtjänsten i många kommuner. Trots att stödgrupper ges på frivilliga grunder utan biståndsprövning, dvs ”lätt tillgängligt” (Prop.2024/25:89), är rekryteringen av barn en utmaning. Denna licentiatuppsats fördjupar kunskapen om de förhållanden och överväganden som påverkar barns vägar till deltagande i socialtjänstens stödgrupper. Empiriskt material har samlats in genom enskilda intervjuer med 18 barn/ungdomar, 18 föräldrar och gruppintervjuer med 16 stödgruppsledare. I analysen kombineras olika teoretiska begrepp för att förstå vilka drivkrafter som bidragit till deltagandet och vad som försvårat deltagandet.... (More)
- Stödgrupper för barn som växer upp i familjer med psykisk ohälsa, skadligt bruk/beroende eller våld är en insats som erbjuds av socialtjänsten i många kommuner. Trots att stödgrupper ges på frivilliga grunder utan biståndsprövning, dvs ”lätt tillgängligt” (Prop.2024/25:89), är rekryteringen av barn en utmaning. Denna licentiatuppsats fördjupar kunskapen om de förhållanden och överväganden som påverkar barns vägar till deltagande i socialtjänstens stödgrupper. Empiriskt material har samlats in genom enskilda intervjuer med 18 barn/ungdomar, 18 föräldrar och gruppintervjuer med 16 stödgruppsledare. I analysen kombineras olika teoretiska begrepp för att förstå vilka drivkrafter som bidragit till deltagandet och vad som försvårat deltagandet. Hinder som identifieras är att stödgrupper ofta är okända, men också stigma och skam som är kopplad till förälderns problem och till kontakten med socialtjänsten. Stödgruppsledares avstigmatiserande och skamreducerande strategier identifieras som väsentliga för att öka tillgängligheten.
Studien bidrar till att utveckla teoretisk förståelse för de komplexa villkor som karakteriserar vägarna och till att ge konkreta strategier samt rekommendationer som är tillämpbara i det sociala arbetets praktik för att nå fler barn med tidigt stöd.
(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/f37d9596-c032-4a0e-8d16-75c1b9bf1b90
- author
- Svensson, Maria LU
- supervisor
- organization
- alternative title
- Child Welfare Services' Support Groups for Children : Easy to access?
- publishing date
- 2025-03
- type
- Thesis
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Stödgrupper för barn, Förebyggande insatser, Skam, Stigma, Barn och unga, Health Belief-modellen (HBM), Hjälpsökande, Vägar och trösklar, Våld, Psykisk ohälsa, Skadligt bruk, Beroende, Childrens' support groups, Child welfare service, Preventive intervention, Stigma, Shame, Health belief model, Help-seeking model, Children & Adolescents, Parental problems, Substance Abuse, Mental illness, Domestic violence
- in
- Research Reports In Social Work
- volume
- 2025:1
- edition
- 1
- pages
- 112 pages
- publisher
- Lunds universitet, Socialhögskolan
- ISBN
- 978-91-989360-2-5
- 978-91-989360-3-2
- project
- Child welfare services' support groups for children
- language
- Swedish
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- Licentiate seminar details Date: 2025-04-04 Time: 13:15 Place: Edens hörsal, Allhelgona kyrkogata 14, Lund External reviewer(s) Name: Ekström, Veronica Title: Docent Affiliation: Marie Cederschiöld högskola
- id
- f37d9596-c032-4a0e-8d16-75c1b9bf1b90
- date added to LUP
- 2025-03-10 10:43:50
- date last changed
- 2025-04-04 15:27:29
@misc{f37d9596-c032-4a0e-8d16-75c1b9bf1b90,
abstract = {{In Sweden, preventive support groups for children exposed to domestic violence, substance abuse or mental illness in the home are provided by child welfare services (CWS). Support groups for children are often accessible without assessment, available for families to access at their own request, without formal referral or opening a case file which is assumed to lower the threshold. A current approach in a number of countries to bridge the gap between statutory social welfare agencies and families is the orientation towards prevention with a growing range of early interventions. Yet, the basis upon which services engage with families at a point prior to substantial problems become evident is far from straightforward. Parents’ gatekeeping role is a particular source of tension when recruiting children to support groups. Stigma related to parental problems and parents’ fear of being judged are barriers. Problems at home are often concealed leading to difficulties in identifying vulnerable children. Barriers are even greater when support is offered by CWS, inherently associated with negative attributes and stigma. Increasing the knowledge about how and on what basis children access early interventions is essential. The aim of this study is to gain an in-depth knowledge of the conditions and considerations that influence children's routes to CWS’s support groups. <br/>This licentiate thesis consists of two scientific articles. Article I comprises individual interviews with 18 children (aged 9–18) who recently attended support groups and 18 parents. Drawing on concepts from the Health Belief Model and Help-Seeking Model, analysis shows that children’s routes into CWS’s support groups depend on their parent’s motives and help-seeking actions. Support groups are an unknown intervention but linked to the broader support system where professionals such as school counselors and health care staff are facilitators in guiding families toward support groups. Perceived barriers to participation include shame associated with the parental problem and the unwanted involvement from CWS. There are also perceived benefits to be gained from talking to others and sharing experiences. However, seeing their lives as ordinary some children initially dismiss the need for support and only see the benefit of peer support after participating in a few trial sessions. <br/>Article II is based on five group interviews with 16 support group leaders and examines how barriers to participation are experienced and handled by professionals. It is found that professionals experience stigma as a barrier to recruiting children, mainly the parents’ shame but also their fear of CWS involvement. Professionals describe parents’ problems on a ‘scale of shamefulness’, ranging from divorce to domestic violence, and the barriers vary in strength relative to the shamefulness of the problem. Parents are gatekeepers for their children’s participation, so destigmatizing and shame-reducing strategies, whether on the interpersonal, organizational or structural level, are called for to increase children’s access. However, strategies targeting parental shame are not without their challenges and risks.<br/>Overall, the study demonstrates that children’s participation in support groups is shaped by a complex interplay of parental influence, professional guidance, and structural conditions. Support groups cannot be considered a stand-alone service but are linked to broader support systems, such as school health teams and health services. Context specific conditions of CWS, where voluntary interventions coexist with coercive interventions, need to be balanced by professionals. A shame-aware approach is crucial for reducing barriers and improving recruitment strategies in social work practice. The study highlights the need to reframe our understanding of people’s engagement in preventive interventions in the context of child and family social work.}},
author = {{Svensson, Maria}},
isbn = {{978-91-989360-2-5}},
keywords = {{Stödgrupper för barn; Förebyggande insatser; Skam; Stigma; Barn och unga; Health Belief-modellen (HBM); Hjälpsökande; Vägar och trösklar; Våld; Psykisk ohälsa; Skadligt bruk; Beroende; Childrens' support groups; Child welfare service; Preventive intervention; Stigma; Shame; Health belief model; Help-seeking model; Children & Adolescents; Parental problems; Substance Abuse; Mental illness; Domestic violence}},
language = {{swe}},
note = {{Licentiate Thesis}},
publisher = {{Lunds universitet, Socialhögskolan}},
series = {{Research Reports In Social Work}},
title = {{Socialtjänstens stödgrupper för barn : En lätt tillgänglig insats?}},
url = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/210089446/Avhandling_Maria_Svensson_LUCRIS.pdf}},
volume = {{2025:1}},
year = {{2025}},
}