Socialarbetares genusmedvetenhet i bedömningar av behov och insatser : En kvalitativ vinjettstudie

The aim of this essay was to study if social workers have a gender awareness in the social work they perform and if it appears in the assessment of needs and intervention. A qualitative vignette study with four social workers who handle adult- and addictive clients have been performed. Gender theory is used to interpret the empirical results. The results of the study show that social workers doesn´t see any differences in the clients situation, or make any different assessment of needs depending on if the client is a man or a woman. Social workers also propose the same interventions to men and women. The interviews was done in two parts, before and after the primary design of the study was unveiled. In the first part the social workers didn´t reflect about gender at all, when they assessed the introduced vignette. In the second part of the interviews, a certain attention appeared concerning gender when the social workers reflected about social interventions that is given to men and women with an addiction. Based on the definition of gender awareness, the empirical material, the analysis of the result, prior research and gender theory the conclusion is drawn that social workers have some gender awareness in the social work they perform.Keywords: Gender, sex, gender awareness, social worker, assessment, equality

Äldre och ensamhet : En kartläggning av sociala insatser för äldre personer i Dalarnas kommuner

Det finns begränsat med forskning kring hur biståndshandläggare inom äldreomsorgen arbetar med ensamhet hos äldre personer. Med anledning av detta är studiens huvudsakliga syfte att undersöka hur biståndshandläggare i Dalarnas kommuner arbetar med att utreda sociala behov till följd av ensamhet hos äldre personer samt att ta reda på vilka kommunala sociala insatser som erbjuds för dessa individer och på vilka grunder. Studien är genomförd utifrån en kvantitativ ansats, där vi har använt oss av en enkät, som innehåller frågor som avser att besvara syftet. Tolkningsramen för analysen av det empiriska materialet utgörs av Lipskys teori om gräsrotsbyråkrati. Studiens resultat visar att det finns behov av att både utöka och utveckla kommunernas utbud av sociala insatser för äldre personer samt att utveckla rutiner för hur man ska arbeta med ensamhet hos äldre personer. Studien påvisar ett behov av mer forskning, både internationell och nationell, kring hur biståndshandläggare arbetar med att identifiera ensamhet hos äldre personer.

Making Energy Interventions more Effective : Situation, Interaction, and Precondition

A main purpose of this paper is to propose to policy makers, building professionals, and other non-social scientists a way to make energy interventions more culturally informed and, thereby, more effective. The case study on house purchasers gives an ample illustration of the richer results that can be achieved by paying attention to three aspects of energy efficiency initiatives: the contexts and situations of choice in each particular case, the interaction among relevant social actors, and the culture-specific preconditions for choice. Research on how purchasers of new pre-fabricated houses in Sweden choose their heating system show how such decisions tend to fall between two stools. Furthermore, the organizational structure of housing companies frames house purchasers' decision making. An important result is that energy saving or conversion measures must be promoted at an early stage amongst those who plan and construct buildings (rather than later amongst dwellers and energy end users).