1.
Tham, Pia, 1960-
(författare)
Arbetsvillkor i den sociala barnavården : förutsättningar för ett kvalificerat arbete
2008
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt) abstract
This thesis describes and analyzes the working conditions of child welfare social workers who responded to a comprehensive questionnaire (n=309, dropout rate 3 per cent).In Study 1, the working conditions of social workers new to the profession (0-2 years) were compared with those of social workers with longer experience. The study shows that less experienced workers were more often found working in areas characterized by worse socioeconomic conditions and in workgroups where many others were also new and inexperienced. Although they described some aspects of their working conditions more positively they tended to report more health problems.In Study 2, working conditions of the child welfare social workers were compared with those of other professional human service workers. The study shows that although social workers in general and child welfare social workers in particular made positive assessments of their working lives, social work was unusually demanding among human service professions on several measures of workload, complexity of tasks and quality of management.In Study 3, the associations between the child welfare social workers’ working conditions and their health and well-being were investigated, controlling for background variables. The negative consequences of high job demands, especially for psychological health and well being emerge.In Study 4, factors associated with the social workers’ intention to leave the job were investigated. The study showed that lack of human resource orientation within the organization was of greatest importance. The results are analyzed from two different perspectives; the effort/reward model and new institutional theory. The main conclusions are that improvement is needed of the introduction to the profession at the workplace, that the status of child protective work needs to be raised and that social workers need help to limit their responsibility load, more time and space for reflection, and greater valuation of their work.
2.
Sjöberg, Stefan, 1967-
(författare)
Löntagarfondsfrågan - en hegemonisk vändpunkt : En marxistisk analys
2003
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt) abstract
The aim of the dissertation is twofold. The primary aim is to explain how the wage-earner funds could change the way they did, from the original proposal 1975 to the carried through 1983. The second is to show the relevans of Marxist analysis today, through the application of Marxist theory on the wage-earner funds issue. A discourse analyses is carried through to show the arguments and positions taken by key actors during the wage-earner funds struggle.One important finding is that the wage-earner funds struggle was what I designate a hegemonic turning-point in the Swedish post war history. Until and including the raising of the fund issue the Swedish labour movement had for decades gradually moved their positions forwards vis-a-vis the bourgeois in wide meaning. The bourgeois won the fund struggle and has ever since step by step forced the labour movement on the defense. The wage-earner funds struggle then meant a very important change of the balance between the organized class forces.Previous works on the wage-earner funds have a strong emphasis on the political level in trying to explain the issue. The dissertation shows that although this is an important factor, it has to be related to others. In accordande with a structuralist influenced Marxist perspective the interrelation of economical, political, cultural and ideological factors has to be evaluated in the analysis of the issue. The agenda on the political level needs to be related to processes in the economy. In other words changes in the economic base strongly influenced what was taking place in the political/cultural/ideological domains.Marxism has for a long period been the objective for deconstruction and dissolution. Through the concrete analysis of the fund struggle the dissertation shows that Marxist theory is still relevant. The dissertation stresses that a relevant Marxism today is not the same as the classical marxism that culminated during the 1970’s. But there is fundamental parts, core, centrality, that can be built upon for a modern Marxism that is not ending up at the Post-marxism that dissolves and gives up still relevant foundations.
3.
Öberg, Peter, 1960-
(författare)
Livet som berättelse : Om biografi och åldrande
1997. - 3
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt) abstract
This dissertation’s objective is twofold: (1) to show how the life lived is reflected in old age (the articles), and (2) to analyze how life-stories are presented and interpreted from the social constructivist perspective (the comprehensive summary). Article I is a critical discussion of two biographical methods of data collection: the “freely-told” life-story and the semistructured biographical interview. Article II addresses the thesis’ first aim. This article presents the data gathered through the qualitative biographical interviews conducted with elderly Finns, which resulted in a typology of six ways of life: The bitter life and Life as a trapping pit, which end up in a problematic old age; Life as a hurdle race, The devoted silenced life, Life as a job career and The sweet life, which describe different strategies for successful ageing. Article III is a study of Life as a hurdle race, where successful ageing is reached, despite previous difficulties in life. Article IV explains the paradox of the absent body in social gerontology, in light of the dualism of the Platonic-Christian tradition between body and soul. The comprehensive summary consists of critical methodological reflections on the conducted research. This summary acknowledges how the conclusions, reached at through analytic induction, where influenced by gerontology’s two myths (misery vs. success). The summary also treats the Renaissance of biographical social research, and the conducted research in relation to the theoretical debate on “the realist perspective” vs. “the story-focused, constructivist perspective.” From the latter perspective it is shown how emplotment shapes the life-story. Finally the summary addresses the generalizability and credibility of my results; results which by virtue of the life history perspective open up for a new qualitative understanding of ageing.
