EU citizens begging and sleeping rough in Swedish Urban Areas: social work perspectives on problems and target groups

Ekendahl, Mats,1971-Stockholms universitet,Institutionen för socialt arbete - Socialhögskolan (author)

EU citizens begging and sleeping rough in Swedish Urban Areas : social work perspectives on problems and target groups

EU citizens from Central and Eastern Europe travelling to cities in other countries to make a better living have become an issue of major political concern across Europe. This study explores how professionals from Swedish municipal social service organizations in urban areas construct the phenomenon of poor visiting EU citizens. The impact of social constructions on the practice and design of policies makes it important to analyse how target groups, such as poor visiting EU citizens, are characterized and what normative assumptions are made about them. The study is theoretically based on Schneider and Ingram’s work on ‘Social Constructions of Target Populations’. Interviews with social workers in the three largest cities in Sweden were conducted. The results suggest a clear ambivalence among interviewees regarding how to conceptualize EU citizens. They were careful not to highlight any subgroups, instead defining the group as consisting of different individuals with varying needs. While the interviewees constructed members of the target group in a way similar to what Schneider and Ingram describe as dependents, they also attributed them with some agency. We conclude that this may be a reflection of the political and organizational setting in which social work with poor visiting EU citizens is conducted in Sweden.

Karlsson, Patrik,1977-Stockholms universitet,Institutionen för socialt arbete - Socialhögskolan(Swepub:su)pakar (author)
Minas, RenateStockholms universitet,Institutionen för socialt arbete - Socialhögskolan(Swepub:su)remi3785 (author)
Stockholms universitetInstitutionen för socialt arbete - Socialhögskolan (creator_code:org_t)

By the author/editor: Ekendahl, Mats, ...; Karlsson, Patrik ...; Minas, Renate

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