Reports of concern to the Norwegian Child Welfare Service (CWS) – seen from young people’s standpoint

Siv Kristine Schrøder of the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Agder has submitted her thesis entitled «Youths´ entrance to and initial contact with the child welfare service» and will defend the thesis for the PhD-degree 25 October 2021 2021. 

She  has followed the PhD-programme at the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Agder, with specialisation in Sociology and Social Work.

Summary of the thesis by Siv Kristine Schrøder:

Reports of concern to the Norwegian Child Welfare Service (CWS) – seen from young people’s standpoint

For the Child Welfare Services (CWS) to be able to help children and families in a correct manner and at the right time, they need to be made aware of children at risk. Siv Schrøder has written a doctoral thesis about reports of concern to the CWS.

When youth takes contact -

In the thesis, young people’s own experiences from getting in contact with the CWS are made visible. Through interviews with young people, the study gives an important and new insight into young people’s experiences regarding receiving help when they face abuse and neglect from their parents.

In addition to interviews with young people, Schrøder has interviewed caseworkers employed in the municipal CWS and analyzed political documents.

In this way it has been possible to investigate how the young people’s experiences can be understood in relation to institutional frames.

- they met little acknowledgement

The main finding is that young people’s effort to get in contact with the CWS, only to a small degree was acknowledged by the caseworkers employed in the municipal CWS or visible in the political documents.

Schrøder´s methodological approach makes it possible for young people to be a part of the knowledge production about the CWS.

Their knowledge is an important contribution when it comes to making the CWS available for young people at risk and in need of help.

Opponent ex auditorio:

The chair invites members of the public to pose questions ex auditorio in the introduction to the public defense, with deadlines. It is a prerequisite that the opponent has read the thesis..