Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

”Förskolan har en unik möjlighet att arbeta för att utjämna barns uppväxtvillkor”: En innehållsanalys av politiska målsättningar i fyra statliga utredningar om svensk förskola

Classon, Petra LU (2025) STVK04 20252
Department of Political Science
Abstract
The premise of this bachelor’s thesis is that Swedish Early Childhood Education is underrepresented in social science research, despite being governed by political objectives and constituting one of the most central welfare institutions in Swedish society. The empirical material consists of four Swedish Government Official Reports published between 1972 and 2020. Using a qualitative content analysis informed by Bacchi’s (2009) WPR approach the study examines the texts to address the following research questions: How are the political objectives that ECE, as a societal institution, constructed in the four Swedish Government Official Reports? How does the construction of the problems change over the period?
The results indicate that Swedish... (More)
The premise of this bachelor’s thesis is that Swedish Early Childhood Education is underrepresented in social science research, despite being governed by political objectives and constituting one of the most central welfare institutions in Swedish society. The empirical material consists of four Swedish Government Official Reports published between 1972 and 2020. Using a qualitative content analysis informed by Bacchi’s (2009) WPR approach the study examines the texts to address the following research questions: How are the political objectives that ECE, as a societal institution, constructed in the four Swedish Government Official Reports? How does the construction of the problems change over the period?
The results indicate that Swedish ECE has had similar set of political and welfare objectives over the 48-year period studied for example as a tool for promoting social equity. It is constructed as compensating for children’s home environments, low socioeconomic conditions, and parents’ migrant backgrounds, with universal access presented as the primary solution.
However, questions remain regarding how broader societal problems such as segregation, inequality, and unemployment can be addressed by an institution with internal inequalities and deficient quality. Consequently, the main financial responsibility for ECE lies with individual municipalities, making the conditions unequal from the beginning. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Classon, Petra LU
supervisor
organization
course
STVK04 20252
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Bacchi, content analysis, Early Childhood Education, political objectives, Swedish Government Official reports (SOU)
language
Swedish
id
9216984
date added to LUP
2026-01-26 11:46:56
date last changed
2026-01-26 11:46:56
@misc{9216984,
  abstract     = {{The premise of this bachelor’s thesis is that Swedish Early Childhood Education is underrepresented in social science research, despite being governed by political objectives and constituting one of the most central welfare institutions in Swedish society. The empirical material consists of four Swedish Government Official Reports published between 1972 and 2020. Using a qualitative content analysis informed by Bacchi’s (2009) WPR approach the study examines the texts to address the following research questions: How are the political objectives that ECE, as a societal institution, constructed in the four Swedish Government Official Reports? How does the construction of the problems change over the period?
The results indicate that Swedish ECE has had similar set of political and welfare objectives over the 48-year period studied for example as a tool for promoting social equity. It is constructed as compensating for children’s home environments, low socioeconomic conditions, and parents’ migrant backgrounds, with universal access presented as the primary solution.
However, questions remain regarding how broader societal problems such as segregation, inequality, and unemployment can be addressed by an institution with internal inequalities and deficient quality. Consequently, the main financial responsibility for ECE lies with individual municipalities, making the conditions unequal from the beginning.}},
  author       = {{Classon, Petra}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{”Förskolan har en unik möjlighet att arbeta för att utjämna barns uppväxtvillkor”: En innehållsanalys av politiska målsättningar i fyra statliga utredningar om svensk förskola}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}