Pengarna eller livet? : En kvalitativ och longitudinell studie om långtidsarbetslösa unga i ett aktörsperspektiv

Your money or your life? A qualitative follow-up study of the young unemployed from an actor perspective is a qualitative and longitudinal study following 36 unemployed young people in Helsinki over a span of ten years. The purpose of the study is to shed light on how a few young people view employment/unemployment and their lives and future, how they as unemployed perceive their encounters with society, and how society supports them. Four so-called key informants were followed at a finer level of empirical detail. They were chosen for the thematic interviews because of their different personalities, starting points and preferences. Although some differences were expected, what the results show is quite striking. The individual stories raise a number of questions about differences between young people, about society s view of the young unemployed, and about the principles behind the so-called activation policy and how society s support is distributed. The key informants descriptions underline that the group young unemployed does not consist of individuals who are alike but that life is complex, that paid work and unemployment can be perceived very differently, and that background and unofficial support can have consequences for self-perception and for ways of looking at the future, vocational choices, paid work and activation policy. Margaret S. Archer s theory of Morphogenesis and Barbara Cruikshank s theory of constructing democracies compose the study s theoretical framework. The key informants stories give a picture of a formal support system that, even though it puts part of the responsibility for unemployment on the individuals themselves, in the name of fairness and equality, treats them in an impersonal way, not giving their personal situation and wishes much weight. As a consequence, those who share the dominant values of society do well, while others who do not are faced with difficulties. The bigger the gap between society s and the individual s values, the bigger the risk to be met by little understanding and by penalties. And vice versa: Those who initially have the right values and know how to deal with authorities get heard and their opinions get accepted. The informants ask for a more personal encounter, which could improve both the atmosphere and the clients experiences of being heard. Still the risk of having a more individualistic system should be addressed, as a new system might generate new winners, but just as well give new losers. Finally, we have to ask if the so-called activation policy is looking for answers primarily to a macro-level problem on the micro-level. If it does not produce more jobs, its support for the unemployed will be insignificant. It is not enough to think about what to do at the grassroots level to make the system more functional and support job-seeking. If the current rate of unemployment endures, the quality of life of the unemployed should be addressed. A first step could be taken by placing less guilt on the unemployed. Instead of talking about activating the unemployed, discussion should be targeted at removing structural impediments to employment. If we want to have less polarisation between the those with paid work and those without, who often struggle with low incomes, we need to include the macro-level in the discussion. What does high unemployment mean in a work-based society, where the individual s self-perception and important social forms of support are linked to labour income? And what can be done at the macro-level to change this undesirable condition at the micro-level? Keywords: Unemployment, Youth, Public interventions, Activation policy, Individual actors, Qualitative, Longitudinal, Holistic, Helsinki, Finland

Lähellä, mutta niin kaukana : Tutkimus naisten muuttoliikkeestä Suomen ja uudelleen itsenäistyneen Viron välillä

Immigration is one of the most topical international issues of our time. Worldwide, the number of immigrants has doubled over the last twenty years, and migration patterns have become so diversified that they now constitute a kind of “chaos”. The number and significance of women as migrants has also increased, which is earning women growing attention among scholars. This study looks at the migration of women, in particular mothers of small children, in both directions between Finland and Estonia, following the latter’s re- independence. The data consists of in-depth interviews conducted in 2005 with 24 Finnish and 24 Estonian immigrant women. The focus was on the women’s expectations and experiences of their new country of residence, acculturation – i.e. adjusting to a new environment, social networks in the country of origin and the new country, and models of motherhood following immigration. The primary research question was formulated as follows: Which factors have influenced the formation of female immigrants’ social ties, thus contributing to the formation of motherhood strategies and afecting internal family dynamics in the new country? The research consists of four previously published independent articles as well as a summary chapter. The study’s findings indicate that Finnish and Estonian women migrated for diferent reasons and at diferent times, and that their migration patterns also difered. Estonian migration occurred mainly in the 1990s, and most immigrants intended to return later to their country of origin. Regardless of the reason for migrating that they gave to immigration officials, other key reasons often included the desire for a more stable living environment and better income. Only four of the Estonian women had immigrated together with an Estonian husband, while two- thirds came because of marriage to a Finnish man. Most of the Finnish women, on the other hand, migrated after 2000 and either came with their family as a result of a spouse’s job transfer, or came by themselves to further their studies. In most cases, the migration was a temporary solution intended to promote one’s own or one’s spouse’s career advancement. Because the reasons for migrating were diferent between Finnish and Estonian women, their expectations of the new country and their status in it were also diferent. In terms of both social and economic standing, the position of Finnish immigrants was categorically better. The reason for migrating had an impact on one’s orientation toward the receiving society. Estonian women and Finns who migrated for marriage or edu cational reasons became immediately active in forming institutional and social ties in the new society. Conversely, the women had migrated because of work had little contact with Estonian society, and their social networks consisted of other Finnish immigrants. Furthermore, they maintained strong institutional and social ties to Finland and therefore felt no need to anchor themselves to Estonian society. The Finnish and Estonian women who were better integrated into the receiving country also maintained strong social ties to their country of origin. Women who became integrated into the receiving country as a result of giving birth to children utilized various services directed at families with children. In part, such services conveyed to the women the conceptions that were prevalent in the surrounding society concerning the treatment of children and the expectations on mothers, both of which difer to some extent in Finland and Estonia. had an impact on strategies of motherhood, internal family dynamics, and gender Regardless of the reason for migrating, or the country of origin, immigration equality. Most Estonian women had to do without the child-care help provided by relatives; before immigrating, some women had even had daily child-care assistance from family members. However, Estonian women who were married to Finns did receive help from the spouse and sometimes also the spouse’s relatives. Conversely, Finnish women who had immigrated because of a spouse’s job transfer were faced with the opposite situation, in which they bore the main responsibility for domestic work and child care. They were, however, in a position to pay for domestic help. Hence, the women who had integrated into a new society had to construct their own perceptions of motherhood by reconciling the motherhood models of both the cause of a spouse’s job transfer found that being a stay-at-home mother challenged previously self-evident behaviors. Receiving country and the country of origin, whereas women who had migrated because of a spouse’s job transfer found that being a stay-at-home mother challenged previously self-evident behaviors.

Ikääntyminen maalaiskylässä

Aging in a country village This dissertation examines what kind of environment of aging a small country village is, who elderly villagers are and what kind of everyday life they have. The qualitative material gathered through ethnographic field work at a village situated in Southern Finland consists of a field work diary and 34 interviews of elderly villagers. The dissertation is based on social gerontology and village research. The key concepts are: the environment of aging; locality and local identity; and way of life. The village is examined as a social and physical environment of aging. Difficulties regarding mobility are the biggest challenges for elderly villagers in their everyday life. The social environment of aging is constructed by historical, cultural and local factors. The village community is formed by many small sub-communities. An elderly villager s status in a village community and her/his social competence affect the formation of her/his social network and the quality of her/his environment of aging. The dissertation examines the local identities of older villagers and their relationships to the village. The local identities can be based on the village, memories or on many places, or a place and places may not be of great importance for a person s identity. The local identity of an older villager affects her/his experiences of living in the village and her/his future plans to move away from the village. The everyday life of an older villager is constructed by rhythms, routines and repetitions. However, there are differences between how everyday lives are arranged among elderly villagers, which are explained by the concept of a way of life. Four ways of life were found. Nature and its importance are a background to all four ways of life. A traditional way of life is based on continuity and hard work, a family-oriented way of life on family members and relatives. A mobile way of life is characterized by symbolic and concrete mobility. An original way of life is marked by independent loneliness . In practice, a person s way of life is always constructed by two or many ways of life.

Kahdestaan kotona : Tutkimus vanhoista pariskunnista

In this study, which pertains to the field of social gerontology and family research, I analyse the meaning of everyday life as perceived by elderly couples living at home. I use the ethnographic approach, with the aim of interpreting meanings from the elderly people s personal point of view and to increase understanding of their way of life. The study deepens our conception of what gives purpose to the everyday life of elderly people. The number of elderly couples is growing and, to an increasing extent, a couple will live and cope together to a ripe old age. Such coping can also be viewed as an important resource for society. Ethnography tries to get close to people's life practices. I examine the day-to-day life of elderly couples based on textual data, which I obtained by visiting the homes of 16 couples in a total of five small municipalities in Southern Finland. The couples had married soon after the war or in the early 1950s. I found that the aspiration towards continuity, which unites the concepts of place and home, housework and a long marriage, is the most important notion connecting the discussion themes. The results show that in the opinion of the elderly, the concept of a good life is intertwined with a long marriage spent at home, as well as its values. Old people find that they lead an independent life if they feel that they can hold on to the key features of their way of life. Elderly couples ability to cope with everyday life involves taking care of housework and other tasks around the home together. This means that they support one another and have common goals and aspirations. Daily tasks provide substance in the lives of elderly couples. Each day has its rhythm, and the pace of this rhythm is set by routine and habits. Satisfaction stems from the fact that you can do something you are good at. The couples have also revised the division of housework. Men have learned to perform new tasks around the house when their wives can no longer manage them by themselves. Some tasks are given up. Day-to-day life at home and around the house provides room for men s participation. Mutual support and care between husband and wife can also protect them from having to resort to outside or official help. Old couples integrate their life experiences and memories, as well as present and future risks and opportunities. They wish to carry on their lives as before, and still think that their present life corresponds with their idea of a good life. Key words: elderly couples, continuity theory of aging, everyday life, social gerontology, family research

Kynnyskysymyksiä : Huono-osaisimmat huumeiden käyttäjät ja matala kynnys

The study examines the term "low threshold" from the point of view of the most marginalized drug users. While using illicit drugs is criminalised and morally judged in Finland, users have special barriers to seek for care. Low threshold services aim at reaching drug users who themselves don t seek for help. "Low threshold" is a metaphor describing easy access to services. The theoretical frame of reference of the study consists of processing the term analytically and critically. The research work sets out to test the rhetoric of low threshold by making use of a qualitative multi-case study to find out, if the threshold of so called low threshold services always appears low for the most marginalized drug users. The cases are: the mobile unite offering health counselling, the day service centre for marginalized substance abusers and the low threshold project of the outpatient clinic for drug users in Helsinki and the health counselling service trial in Vyborg, Russia. The case study answer following questions: 1) How do the method of low threshold work out in the studied cases from the point of view of the most marginalized drug users? 2) How do potential thresholds appear and how did they develop? 3) How do the most marginalized drug users get into the care system through low threshold? The data consists of interviews of drug users, workers and other specialists having been accomplished in the years 2001 - 2006, patient documents and customer registers. The dissertation includes four articles published in the years 2006 - 2008 and the summary article. The study manifests that even low threshold is not always low enough for the most marginalized drug users. That expresses a highly multiproblematised and underpriviledged group of drug users, whose life and utilization of services are framed by deep marginalisation, homelessness, multi-substance use, mental and somatic illnesses and being repeatedly imprisoned. Using services is rendered difficult by many factors arising from the care system, drug users themselves and the action environment. In Finland thresholds are generally due to the execution of practical services and procedures not considering the fear of control and labelling as a drug user. When striving for further rehabilitating substance abuse care by means of low threshold services the marginalized drug users meet the biggest difficulties. They are due to inelastic structures, procedures and division of labour in the established care system and also to poor chances of drug users to be in action in the way expected by the care system. Multiproblematic multisubstance users become "wrong" customers by high expectations of care motivation and specializing in the care system. In Russia the thresholds are primarily caused by rigid control politics directed to drug users by the society and by the scantiness of care system. The ideology of reducing drug related harm is not approved and the care system is unwilling to commit to it. Low threshold turnes out to be relative as a term. The rhetoric of the care system is not enough to unilaterally define lowness of the threshold. The experiences of drug users and the actual activity to search for care determine the threshold. It does not appear the same for everybody either. Access of certain customer group to a service unit may even raise the threshold for some other group. The low threshold system also is surprisingly realized: you could not always tell in advance, what kind of customers and how many of them could be reached. Keywords: low threshold, marginalized drug users, harm reduction, barriers to services, outreach

Kuntoutusosallisuuden diagnoosi : Tutkimus entisten rappiokäyttäjien kuntoutumisen muodoista, mekanismeista ja mahdollisuuksista

The main theme of the research centres on the idea that social inclusion can be analysed as inclusions and exclusions. The research is focused on the phenomenon of inclusion that is defined as widely understood social relationships and social binds emerging in a rehabilitation process. Information was gathered from 13 ex substance abusers, who had a background of heavy substance abuse for appr. 15 years and who have been sober for about 7 years. Also 34 persons who helped them to rehabilitate by the helped persons’ perspectives, were interviewed. The speciality of the research is that 5 of the ex abusers were also physically or mentally disabled. A Simmelian interaction process analysis was applied for the narrative analysis of the collected data. The aim of the analysis was to define different kinds of configurations of social relations and social binds. According to the research 3 different forms of inclusion are emerged in rehabilitation. At the early stage rehabilitation leans towards controlling the new sober life style (inclusion of life control). When people begin to rely on their temperance, they begin to make decisions about an own way of living (life political inclusion) and can also dissociate from the institutional thought patterns. People must also find a way into the circles of social relationships to develop own esteemed individual settings of codes for their action (inclusion of life orientation). The main result of the research represents the ‘mechanism of the social’ of rehabilitation. It is composed of the forms of inclusion mentioned above, their contents and the specific reflection mechanism of inclusion. It consists of the heavy structure of the disciplines of the rehabilitation system and the light structure of social worlds. Finally rehabilitation in the long run seems to lean on aesthetic of social relationships – how the person is connected to the circle of social relationships in this reflection. The conclusions are the following. The role of institutional disciplines is an important social resource for controlling life. Other institutions, i.e. the institutions of adult education offer opportunities to organize the abuser’s life. Unfortunately, the institutional rehabilitation seems to offer feeble help, especially to those who are actualising a kind of life orientation that does not comply with legitimated institutional thought patterns. If the helpers cannot define the need for aid in this situation, the helped easily becomes perversely socially excluded. In a discreet way the institutional rehabilitation is shaping subjectivities of the ex abusers by transferring responsibilities for them. This incident already increases the uncertainty of life of ex abuser, who is disposed towards feeling shame and inferiority. It is more secure to strengthen social binds with the institutional rehabilitation and its membership. Thus, getting individually responsible increases addictive behaviours.

Sinusta kiinni : Tutkimus puolisohoivan arjen toimijuuksista

Depending on you – A study of spousal care, everyday life and agency The present aim of the aging policy is to promote old peoples´ possibilities to live at their own home. It is also many elderly couples´ own wish. At home a persons spouse is the most natural care giver, if she or he is able to give care. Spousal care means living together, giving and receiving care and interdependency between the spouses. The aim of the policy is to support spousal care by paying financial support to a carer and arrang-ing formal home care services. The purpose of this research is to study the agency of care giving and receiving spouses as care givers and receivers and also as home care service users. The data of the study consist of the interviews of 21 elderly couples. Both spouses were interviewed seper-ately, with the exception of five couples who were interviewed together. In these inter-views a care receiver had difficulties in communicating by speaking and a spouse was her or his interpreter. The study is based on a social constructionistic and a discourse analytical view of con-struction of meanings in human communication. Talking is a social action: people achieve identities, realities, social order and social relationship through talking. In inter-pretating the spouses agency I have used of Harvey Sack´s method of Membership Categorization Device (MCD). The spouses construct social categories which made the meaning of their agency visible. Care changes the routines and actions of everyday life. The couples have to negotiate their duties and rights between each other. Care giving and receiving are both physical and emotional actions. In the end it becomes a part of the couples´ normal life. The pur-pose of couples´ action is to live together as long as possible. They want to strengthen both their own agency and their spouses´ agency. The living together depends on both of them. The spouses decided together what home care services they would like to use and on which conditions they have to use services. Spouses have different kind of agencies as service users which describe their relationship and confidency on formal home care support and services. Services must support the elderly couples´ shared life at home. They cannot be against the conditions on the spousal care. When you want to arrange services to elderly care giving and receiving couples, you have to consider their own wishes and the meanings of their own relationship and shared life.

Näkökulmia eurooppalaiseen sosiaalipolitiikkaan : malli, väestö, resurssit ja kommunikaatio

The study analyses European social policy as a political project that proceeds under the guidance of the European Commission. In the name of modernisation, the project aims to build a new idea for the welfare state. To understand the project, it is necessary to distance oneself from both the juridical competence of the European Union and the traditional national welfare state models. The question is about sharing problems, as well as solutions to them: it is the creation and sharing of common views, concepts and images that play a key role in European integration. Drawing on texts and speeches produced by the European Commission, the study throws light on the development of European social policy during the first years of the 2000s. The study "freeze-frames" the welfare debate having its starting points in the nation states in the name of the entity of Europe. The first article approaches the European social model as a story in itself, a preparatory, persuasive narrative that concerns the management of change. The article shows how the audience can be motivated to work towards a set target by using discursive elements in a persuasive manner: the function of a persuasive story is to convince the target audience of the appropriateness of the chosen direction and to shape their identity so that they are favourably disposed to the desired political targets. This is a kind of "intermediate state" where the story, despite its inner contradictions and inaccuracies, succeeds in appearing as an almost self-evident path towards a modern social policy that Europe is currently seen to be in need of. The second article outlines the European social model as a question of governance. Health as a sector of social policy is detached from the old political order, which was based on the welfare state, and is closely linked to economy. At the same time the population is primarily seen as an economic resource. The Commission is working towards a "Europe of Health" that grapples with the problem of governance with the help of the "healthisation" of society, healthy citizenship and health economics. The way the Commission speaks is guided by the Union's powerful interest to act as "Europe" in the field of welfare policy. At the same time, the traditional separateness of health policy is effaced in order to be able to make health policy reforms a part of the Union's wider modernisation targets. The third article then shows the European social policy as its own area of governance. The article uses an approach based on critical discourse analysis in examining the classification systems and presentation styles adopted by Commission communications, as well as the identities that they help build. In analysing the "new start" of the Lisbon strategy from the perspective of social policy, the article shows how the emphasis has shifted from the persuasive arguments for change with necessary common European targets in the early stages of the strategy towards the implementation of reforms: from a narrative to a vision and from a diagnosis to healing. The phase of global competition represents "the modern" with which European society with its culture and ways of life now has to be matched. The Lisbon strategy is a way to direct this societal change, thus building a modern European social policy. The fourth article describes how the Commission uses its communications policy to build practices and techniques of governance and how it persuades citizens to participate in the creation of a European project of change. This also requires a new kind of agency: agents for whom accountability and responsibilities mean integration into and commitment to European society. Accountability is shaped into a decisive factor in implementing the European Union's strategy of change. As such it will displace hierarchical confrontations and emphasise common action with a view to modernising Europe. However, the Union's discourse cannot be described as being a political language that would genuinely rouse and convince the audience at the level of everyday life. Keywords: European social policy, EU policy, European social model, European Commission, modernisation of welfare, welfare state, communications, discoursiveness.

Vapaaehtoiset vuodeosastolla : Etnografinen tutkimus vanhusten ja vapaaehtoisten kohtaamisesta

This ethnographic study investigates encounters between volunteers and older people at the Kerava Municipal Health Centre inpatient ward for chronic care. Volunteer activities have been under development, in cooperation with the Voluntary Work Center (Talkoorengas), since the start of the 1990s. When my research began in 2003, nine of the volunteers came to the ward on set days per week or visited the ward according to their own timetables. The volunteers ranged in age from 54 to 78 years. With one exception, all of them were on pension. Nearly all of them had been volunteers for more than ten years. My study is research on ageing, the focal point being older people, whether volunteers or those receiving assistance. The research questions are: How is volunteer work implemented in daily routines at the ward? How is interaction created in encounters between the older people and the volunteers? What meanings does volunteer work create for the older people and the volunteers? The core material of my research is observation material, which is supplemented by interviews, documentation and photographs. The materials have been analysed by using theme analysis and ethnomethodological discussion analysis. In the presentation of the research findings, I have structured the materials into three main chapters: space and time; hands and touch; and words and tones. The chapter on space and time examines time and space paths, privacy and publicness, and celebrations as part of daily life. The volunteers open and create social arenas for the older people through chatting and singing together, celebrations in the dayroom or poetry readings at the bedside. The supporting theme of the chapter on hands and touch is bodily closeness in care and the associated concrete physical presence. The chapter highlights the importance of everyday routines, such as meals and rituals, as elements that bring security. Stimuli in daily life, such as handicrafts in groups, pass time but also give older people the experience of meaningful activity and bring back positive memories of their own life. The chapter on words and tones focuses on the social interaction and identity. The volunteers’ identity is built up into the identity of a helper and caregiver. The older people’s identity is built up into a care recipient’s identity, which in different situations is shaped into, among others, the identity of one who listens, remembers, does not remember, defends, composes poetry or is dying. The cornerstones of voluntary social care are participation, activity, trust and presence. Successful volunteer work calls for mutual trust between the older people, volunteers and the health care personnel, and for clear agreements on questions of responsibility, the status of volunteers and their role alongside professional personnel. This study indicates that volunteer work is a meaningful resource in work with older people.

Vaikeavammaisen nuoren aikuistuminen : Yksilöllinen ja erilainen elämänkulku

Transition to adulthood of severely disabled adolescents. Diversity in individual life courses. The focus of this study is to examine the transition to adulthood of severely disabled adolescents as part of their life course. The data for this study were gathered through interviews with nine severely disabled adolescents, who were interviewed several times over a period of eight years. At the beginning of the study the adolescents were between 18 and 24 years old. The informants had severe disabilities manifesting themselves as physical incapacity, cerebral palsy, vision or hearing impairment, neurological disease, or developmental disability. One of the adolescents communicated with symbols. All except one used a wheelchair. As severely disabled adolescents, they received benefits from Kela for persons with severe disabilities, such as the higher-rate or special disability allowance or disability pension, the higher-rate or special pensioners' care allowance, or medical rehabilitation services. The interviews focused on a number of selected themes such as relationships, family, education, work, leisure-time activities, dating, decision-making, independence, happiness, and one s self-image and identity. Data were also derived from interviews with five experts. Two of the experts interviewed were severely disabled themselves. The theoritical foundation of the study lies in perviuos research on the severly disabled, the transition to adulthood and the life course. The method of analysis and interpretation is qualitative and based on interviews with the adolescents. In terms of the analytical process, the focus is on recognizing individual events in the transition process to adulthood and identifying the meanings assigned to them by the adolescents. The narratives also provide a method to shed light on the individuality of the transition. The individual situations of severely disabled adolescents vary, and their disability impacts the range of options available to them as they plan their life course. The medical and social models of disability also have an effect on life courses. Although severely disabled adolescents are able to attain some goals, they remain outsiders in many respects. Key words: Disabled person, severely disabled person, adolescent, transition to adulthood, identity, life course.

Cultural Trauma and Life Stories

The purpose of this work is to use the concepts of human time and cultural trauma in a biographical study of the turning points in the recent history of Estonia. This research is primarily based on 148 in-depth biographical interviews conducted in Estonia and Sweden in 1995-2005, supplemented by excerpts from 5 collections and 10 individually published autobiographies. The main body of the thesis consists of six published and of two forthcoming separate refereed articles, summarised in the theoretical introduction, and Appendix of the full texts of three particular life stories. The topic of the first article is the generational composition and the collective action frames of anti-Soviet social mobilisation in Estonia in 1940-1990. The second article details the differentiation of the rites of passage and the calendar traditions as a strategy to adapt to the rapidly changed political realities, comparatively in Soviet Estonia and among the boat-refugees in Sweden. The third article investigates the life stories of the double-minded strategic generation of the Estonian-inclined Communists, who attempted to work within the Soviet system while professing to uphold the ideals of pre-war Estonia. The fourth article is concentrated on the problems of double mental standards as a coping strategy in a contradictory social reality. The fifth article implements the theory of cultural trauma for the social practice of singing nationalism in Estonia. The sixth article bridges the ideas of Russian theoreticians concerning cultural dialogue and the Western paradigm of cultural trauma, with examples from Estonian Russian life stories. The seventh article takes a biographical look at the logic of the unraveling of cultural trauma through four Soviet decades. The eighth article explores the re-shaping of citizen activities as a strategy of coping with the loss of the independent nation state, comparatively in Soviet Estonia and among Swedish Estonians. Cultural trauma is interpreted as the re-ordering of the society s value-normative constellation due to sharp, violent, usually political events. The first one under consideration was caused by the occupations of the Republic of Estonia by the Soviet army in 1940-45. After half a century of suppression the memories of these events resurfaced as different stories describing the long-term, often inter-generational strategies of coping with the value collapse. The second cultural trauma is revealed together with the collapse of the Soviet power and ideology in Estonia in 1991. According to empirical data, the following three trauma discourses have been reconstructed: - the forced adaptation to Soviet order of the homeland Estonians; - the difficulty of preserving Estonian identity in exile (Sweden); - the identity crisis of the Russian population of Estonia. Comparative analyses of these discourses have shown that opposing experiences and worldviews cause conflicting interpretations of the past. Different social and ethnic groups consider coping with cultural trauma as a matter of self-defence and create appropriate usable pasts to identify with. Keywords: human time, cultural trauma, frame analysis, discourse, life stories

Vaikuttavuusyhteiskunta : Sosiaalisten olojen arvostelusta vaikutusten todentamiseen

Evaluation practices have pervaded the Finnish society and welfare state. At the same time the term effectiveness has become a powerful organising concept in welfare state activities. The aim of the study is to analyse how the outcome-oriented society came into being through historical processes, to answer the question of how social policy and welfare state practices were brought under the governance of the concept of effectiveness . Discussions about social imagination, Michel Foucault s conceptions of the history of the present and of governmentality, genealogy and archaeology, along with Ian Hacking s notions of dynamic nominalism and styles of reasoning, are used as the conceptual and methodological starting points for the study. In addition, Luc Boltanski s and Laurent Thévenot s ideas of orders of worth , regimes of evaluation in everyday life, are employed. Usually, evaluation is conceptualised as an autonomous epistemic culture and practice (evaluation as epistemic practice), but evaluation is here understood as knowledge-creation processes elementary to different epistemic practices (evaluation in epistemic practices). The emergence of epistemic cultures and styles of reasoning about the effectiveness or impacts of welfare state activities are analysed through Finnish social policy and social work research. The study uses case studies which represent debates and empirical research dealing with the effectiveness and quality of social services and social work. While uncertainty and doubts over the effects and consequences of welfare policies have always been present in discourses about social policy, the theme has not been acknowledged much in social policy research. To resolve these uncertainties, eight styles of reasoning about such effects have emerged over time. These are the statistical, goal-based, needs-based, experimental, interaction-based, performance measurement, auditing and evidence-based styles of reasoning. Social policy research has contributed in various ways to the creation of these epistemic practices. The transformation of the welfare state, starting at the end of 1980s, increased market-orientation and trimmed public welfare responsibilities, and led to the adoption of the New Public Management (NPM) style of leadership. Due to these developments the concept of effectiveness made a breakthrough, and new accountabilities with their knowledge tools for performance measurement and auditing and evidence-based styles of reasoning became more dominant in the ruling of the welfare state. Social sciences and evaluation have developed a heteronomous relation with each other, although there still remain divergent tendencies between them. Key words: evaluation, effectiveness, social policy, welfare state, public services, sociology of knowledge

Matkalla marginaalista valtavirtaan? : Huumeiden käytön lopettaneiden elämäntapa ja toipuminen

On a journey from marginal to mainstream? The lifestyle and recovery of former drug users This thesis studies the lifestyle and recovery of former users of illicit drugs through their experiences. The study describes the life of people with drug problems both during the time they used drugs regularly and after they stopped the use entirely. The focus is on the development of the lifestyle of 32 persons who no longer use drugs. They may have stopped using drugs independently or with the help of a treatment. In this study, persons who have given up drug use with the help of a psychosocially oriented treatment are called non-medicinally treated former users (n=19) whereas opioid addicts who have stopped using drugs through substitution treatment are referred to as substitution treatment patients (n=13). The research material was gathered from theme interviews. The criteria for the focus group of the study included the following: a) the interviewees had had a serious drug problem in their past; b) they had not used drugs for at least one year prior to the interview; c) they were not in an institutional care at the time of the study. This thesis is basically a lifestyle study in which the aspects of lifestyle are used to describe the everyday life of former drug users. The study reviews the whole spectrum of everyday routines, especially the social interaction and subjective experiences of people. The second concept used in this study is recovery, which is described as a process that starts from the abstinence from substances and adoption of the recovery culture and continues as a comprehensive change of the lifestyle, identity and values of an individual. Disengaging from a drug-oriented lifestyle and connected social network as well as finding an individual frame of reference is a demanding process. Years of drug use have often caused complex health and social disadvantages as well as problems with work, education, livelihood, accommodation and human relationships. The effect of the past on the present arises at all levels. The interviews revealed a recovery culture maintaining the lifestyle as well as an adaptive and optimistic approach to the future among those participating in the study. The study shows that an adequate distance from acute substance use is a precondition for the beginning of the recovery process, yet abstinence in itself tells nothing about the actual recovery. The study describes how some recovering users find a meaning in life easily whereas others have to work actively for their recovery. Detaching oneself from the feeling of adopted abnormality connected with substance addiction forms an important basis for satisfying abstinence. Peer groups support the development of counter-cultures and abstinence or the support is received from the community formed in the substitution treatment clinic.

Tuntemattomista vertaistuttaviksi : Esikoisäitien ja -isien perhevalmennusprosessi Espoon uudentyyppisessä perhevalmennuskokeilussa

From Strangers to Peer Acquaintances Mothers and Fathers with a First Born and their Experiences of the New Family Training Process in Espoo This research is composed of two interrelated case studies. The first case was a family training experiment conducted in the City of Espoo during 2003 2005. In the experiment, the content, duration and procedures were modified from the previous family training policy. The new family training system stressed peer group activities and the peer support formed between the participating mothers and fathers. The second case comprised the stories of 14 parents about the family training process. The aim of the research was to find out whether peer group activities and support was demonstrated between the participating parents during the family training process. The second case and its narrative material constituted the main research material. The narrative material was collected by interviews. Eight mothers and six fathers were interviewed twice within a year between their sessions. The parents also filled in questionnaires about their daily life and participated in a drawing exercise, in which they visualized how they experienced the family training during the antenatal period, labour and the postnatal period. A narrative approach was applied to the analysis of the narrative material. The analysis consisted of several stages. In the final stage, the fathers main story was combined with all the participating fathers personal stories. The mothers main story was also constructed from their personal stories. The study implicated that in some parts the mothers and fathers main stories were similar. During the family training, previously unacquainted parents became peer acquaintances. In particular, the first born as a focus created interaction and cooperation among the parents. Parents in similar circumstances became significant to each other. Different figurations formed during the family training. However, the main stories did not always entwine. The mothers were in contact with the other mothers almost daily using mobile phones, email and mother-child activities. The fathers employed outside home met each other only during the family training meetings, but felt being supported by the other fathers. Some families visited one another outside of the family training. This new type of family training had characteristics typical of the project society. The parents peer activities were based on trust, negotiation and contracts between partners. The parents evaluated the benefits of participation in the family training. If they appreciated the activities with peers and peer compassion, they were willing to participate in the family training during the postnatal period. Keywords: family training, parenthood, motherhood, fatherhood, peer, peer group, peer support, social support, social relationships, figurations, the project society, pastoral power, epistolary power

Depression in / by / for women : agency, feminism and self-help in groups

Depression in / by / for Women: Agency, Feminism and Self-Help in Groups on ensimmäinen väitöstasoinen tutkimus feministisestä terapiasta Suomessa sijoittuen psykologian, sosiaalitieteellisen mielenterveystutkimuksen sekä feministisen tutkimuksen alueille. Perinteisen näkemyksen mukaan feministisen tutkimuksen tulee olla ”naisista, naisten tekemää ja naisille kohdistettua”. Naiset ja masennus -projektitutkimus keskittyy naisten kokemaan masennukseen sisältäen mahdollisen miesten sekä patriarkaalisen hyvinvointivaltion osuuden masennukseen. Masennusta kokevat naiset ovat tutkimuksessa sekä tutkimuksen kohteena että aktiivisia osanottajia, mikä tuo heidän äänensä kuuluville. Tutkimus perustuu vuosien 1994-2000 välisenä aikana kerättyyn 11 ryhmän osallistujia koskevaan kvalitatiivisiin ja kvantitatiivisiin aineistoon. Irmeli Laitinen on ollut suunnittelemassa, keräämässä ja analysoimassa sitä yhdessä projektin muiden jäsenten kanssa. Tutkimuksessa mitattiin kuinka ryhmiin osallistuvien seka masennuksen tunteet että toiminnat muuttuivat yhden vuoden aikana. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli sekä masennuksesta kärsivien naisten osallistuminen feministiseen toimintatutkimukseen että ammatillisesti ohjatun oma-apuryhmämenetelmän kehittäminen suomalaiseen mielenterveyspalveluun. Projektin tutkimustulosten mukaan siihen osallistuneet naiset voimaantuivat ymmärtämään itseään sekä saivat luottamusta sosiaaliisiin taitoihinsa. Pidemmällä aikavälillä naisten tunteet muuttuivat myönteisiksi, heidän suhteensa itseensä positiivisemmaksi ja he aktivoituivat fyysisesti. Lisäksi tutkimustulokset viittaavat siihen, että masennus voi johtua näkymättömästä, sukupuolisesti virittyneestä jännitteestä naisystävällisessä hyvinvointivaltiossa paljastaen ”hyvinvointimasennusoireilun”. Suomalaisen sosiologi Erik Allardtin hyvinvointitypologian - having, loving, being – mukaisesti nämä ryhmään osallistuvat naiset eivät koe puutteita niinkään materiaalisessa hyvinvoinnissa (having) vaan pikeminkin suhteiden, sosiaalisen ja emotionaalisen hyvinvoinnin ulottuvuuksilla (loving ja being). Se, että masentuneet naiset pystyvät tuomaan esille pitkään vaiennettuja kokemuksiaan, voi merkitä paljon heidän paranemisessaan ja voimaantumisessaan. Ammatillisesti ohjatut oma-apuryhmät ja naisystävälliset hoitokäytännöt mahdollistivat tämänkaltaisen paranemisprosessin alkamisen tutkimukseen osallistuneissa ryhmissä.