Social workers’ perceptions of the causes of poverty in the Nordic countries

2013 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helena Blomberg ◽  
Christian Kroll ◽  
Johanna Kallio ◽  
Jani Erola
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Nordic Countries ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Street Level ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Municipal Level ◽  
Causes Of Poverty

Street-level bureaucrats have been given an increasing role in the implementation of policies aimed at the poor. The article analyses: (1) how social workers in the Nordic countries explain the causes of poverty and whether there are variations between countries in social workers’ perceptions; and (2) the nature of the impact, if any, of various individual- and municipal-level factors on social workers’ perceptions of the causes of poverty. Survey data gathered from social workers in four countries are analysed and combined with data from the municipalities in which the respondents work. The results illustrate that social workers display a surprisingly large variation in perceptions: there are differences between countries and also differences related to individual-level factors, while municipality-level factors do not appear to influence the perceptions of social workers in an obvious way.

scholarly journals The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the performance of street level bureaucrats in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Spanghero Lotta ◽  
Giordano Morangueira Magri ◽  
Ana Carolina Nunes ◽  
Beatriz Soares Benedito ◽  
Claudio Aliberti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Justice System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Care Access ◽  
Structural Problems ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Government Level

Abstract: Dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic requires that the State make hard decisions that involve the action of bureaucrats who interact with the population through the implementation of public policy, the street-level bureaucracy (SLB). In this paper, based on a mixed- method exploratory study, we analyze how the daily performance of street-level bureaucrats in different policy areas- health and social care, access to the justice system, public security and education - has changed during the pandemic. We also explore the repercussions of those changes. Based on the analysis of the perceptions of bureaucrats, changes in their work and in their relationship with the public, we identify three categories that illustrate the dynamics of SLB work during the pandemic: the SLB who faces the crisis on the front lines; the SLB who suffers the effects of the pandemic, but whose work does not require her to face it directly; and the SLB who began to work remotely. We conclude that, during the pandemic, SLB suffered in varying degrees an aggravation of structural problems, such as their removal from decision-making processes - now restricted to the highest government level - and the exacerbation of already existing conflicts and ambiguities.

Political attitudes and trade union membership in the Nordic countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carsten Strøby Jensen
Keyword(s):  
Survey Data ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Political Attitudes ◽  
European Social Survey ◽  
Nordic Countries ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Social Survey ◽  
The Impact

Do political attitudes influence the likelihood of employees being members of a trade union, and to what extent is this the case in the Nordic countries with their high aggregate levels of membership? In this article, I address these questions using European Social Survey data from 2012. The results show that left-wing political attitudes have the most impact on the likelihood of trade union membership in Sweden and to a lesser extent in Denmark. In Norway and Finland, there is no statistically significant impact. I argue that the impact of left-wing political attitudes on unionization in Sweden and Denmark reflects a conception among employees that trade unions are normative organizations.

scholarly journals Environmental Stressors: The Mental Health Impacts of Living Near Industrial Activity

2005 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liam Downey ◽  
Marieke Van Willigen
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Toxic Release Inventory ◽  
Neighborhood Disorder ◽  
Industrial Activity ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Impact

A growing literature examines whether the poor, the working class, and people of color are disproportionately likely to live in environmentally hazardous neighborhoods. This literature assumes that environmental characteristics such as industrial pollution and hazardous waste are detrimental to human health, an assumption that has not been well tested. Drawing upon the sociology of mental health and environmental inequality studies, we ask whether industrial activity has an impact on psychological well-being. We link individual-level survey data with data from the U.S. Census and the Toxic Release Inventory and find that residential proximity to industrial activity has a negative impact on mental health. This impact is both direct and mediated by individuals' perceptions of neighborhood disorder and personal powerlessness, and the impact is greater for minorities and the poor than it is for whites and wealthier individuals. These results suggest that public health officials need to take seriously the mental health impacts of living near industrial facilities.

Still the Poor Relations?: Perspectives on Valuing and Listening to Foster Carers

2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 6-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Kirton ◽  
Jennifer Beecham ◽  
Kate Ogilvie
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Quantitative Survey ◽  
The Poor ◽  
The Status ◽  
Service Managers ◽  
Research Studies

There has long been debate regarding the treatment and status of foster carers, but this has gained added significance in the context of moves towards professionalisation and recognition of carers as part of the children's workforce. While research studies have often touched upon the extent to which foster carers feel valued, appreciated or members of a team, less attention has been given to the perspectives of social workers and managers. Drawing on quantitative survey data and qualitative material from focus groups and interviews, Derek Kirton, Jennifer Beecham and Kate Ogilvie explore from the different perspectives of supervising social workers, service managers and foster carers, the extent to which the latter are valued, listened to or regarded as ‘colleagues' by social work professionals and agencies. Key findings include that carers’ sense of being valued may be linked to factors such as age, experience, health and number of placements provided. Discussion of the status of foster carers revealed not only wide variation in practice but also a complex set of sentiments and significant divisions among social work professionals on the question of whether carers should be regarded as ‘colleagues’.

scholarly journals Social Workers in a Modernising Welfare State: Professionals or Street-Level Bureaucrats?

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 1669-1687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margo Trappenburg ◽  
Thomas Kampen ◽  
Evelien Tonkens
Keyword(s):  
Welfare State ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Clear Distinction ◽  
Ethical Code ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
New Policies

Abstract Social workers are often depicted as street-level bureaucrats (SLBs) or professionals interchangeably. However, to find out how social workers relate to new policy measures, a clear distinction between SLBs and professionals is helpful. Ideal–typical SLBs subscribe to new policies although they may diverge from them in practice, to accommodate clients. Ideal–typical professionals weigh new policies against their ethical code. If the new policy goes against their professional principles, they protest on behalf of their clients. In this article, we study Dutch social workers who have to implement a new policy that (i) obliges their clients to actively participate in society and (ii) obliges them to rely on family and friends when they need help. The data for this article are derived from two projects: interviews with twenty-nine experienced social workers and interviews with social workers in neighbourhood teams and observations of their interactions with clients in six municipalities. We found that Dutch social workers think as professionals: they weigh the new policy against their ethical code and have serious doubts about the second part of the new policy. Hence, they find ways to avoid implementation. However, they behave as SLBs, bending the rules in practice. They rarely confront policymakers or higher management.

Which Clients Inspire or Reduce the Trust of Street-Level Bureaucrats?

2021 ◽  
pp. 009539972110616
Author(s):  
Maayan Davidovitz ◽  
Nissim Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Service ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Service Providers ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats

Which types of clients increase or decrease the trust of street-level bureaucrats (SLBs)? Using interviews and focus groups with two groups of Israeli social service providers—teachers and social workers—and comparing them, —we develop a theoretical framework for determining the types of clients who evoke and reduce the trust of SLBs. Our findings indicate that there are seven types of clients who inspire or diminish this trust: —cooperative, honest, familiar, benevolent, aggressive, open, and manipulative. We discuss the significance of our findings for the implementation and outcome of public policy and suggest several avenues for future research.

scholarly journals Modification of Public Policies by Street-Level Organisations: An Institutional Work Perspective

2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 709-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
ERIC BREIT ◽  
TONE ALM ANDREASSEN ◽  
ROBERT H. SALOMON
Keyword(s):  
Pension Reform ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Managerial Control ◽  
Institutional Work ◽  
Retirement Pension ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
Heuristic Device ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThe literature on policy implementation is divided with regards to the impact of street-level bureaucrats on the implementation of public policies. In this paper, we aim to add to and nuance these debates by focusing on ‘institutional work’ – i.e. the creation, maintenance and disruption of institutions – undertaken by central authorities and street-level bureaucrats during public reform processes. On the basis of a case study of the organisational implementation of a retirement pension reform in the Norwegian Labor and Welfare Administration, we argue that institutional work is a useful heuristic device for conceptualising the variety of responses available to street-level bureaucrats during public reforms. We also argue that the responses demonstrate the impact of street-level bureaucrats in these reforms in the context of managerial control and regulation. Finally, we argue that the effectiveness of policy change is dependent on the institutional work of street-level bureaucrats and, in particular, on institutional work that supports the institutions created by politicians and public administrations.

Top-Down Policy Implementation and Social Workers as Institutional Entrepreneurs: The Case of an Electronic Information System in Belgium

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 1317-1332
Author(s):  
Joris De Corte ◽  
Jochen Devlieghere ◽  
Griet Roets ◽  
Rudi Roose
Keyword(s):  
Information System ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Electronic Information ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Institutional Entrepreneurs ◽  
Street Level ◽  
Gradual Process ◽  
Street Level Bureaucrats ◽  
Electronic Information System

Abstract In this article, we focus on how social workers use their agency when implementing top-down policy measures as street-level bureaucrats. We report on findings of a case study that was conducted in Flanders, the Dutch-speaking region of Belgium, about the top-down introduction of an electronic information system (IS) in the field of Child Welfare and Protection (CWP). Starting from insights derived from neo-institutional theory, we explore how social workers perform a role as so-called ‘institutional entrepreneurs’ by initiating critical reflections about policy rationales. In our contribution, we show that, despite social workers’ awareness of being embedded in their own field or service area, they use their field-level expertise and day-to-day experiences to disengage from this context as well. Besides unravelling the lack of coherence informing the IS’s initial ambitions of transparency and efficiency, they constantly (re)frame their views and explain their alternative ideas with the aim of convincing other social workers and managers. In this vein, we conclude by highlighting the importance of ‘distributed’ forms of agency that involve a gradual process, which is co-produced by social workers as street-level bureaucrats in close collaboration with service users, other professionals, other organisations and policy makers.

scholarly journals Effects of air pollution on poverty vulnerability

2020 ◽  
Vol 165 ◽  
pp. 02027
Author(s):  
Yinuo Liang ◽  
Jialing Li ◽  
Dingping Chai ◽  
Chen Zhuang
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Economic Vulnerability ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Poverty Relief ◽  
Vulnerability To Poverty ◽  
Reduction Effect ◽  
The Impact

In order to study the extent of the impact of air pollution on poverty vulnerability and provide a reference for governments to formulate and adjust policy approaches, in this paper, CNRDS and CHIPS micro-survey data were used to test the effects of air pollution on poverty vulnerability by using the Probit model, and the tendency value matching (PSM) method was adopted to correct the selective bias. The basic results show that air pollution is significantly negatively correlated with farmers’ vulnerability to poverty, that is, the higher the proportion of air pollution, the lower the economic vulnerability of farmers. And the effect of air pollution on farmers’ economic vulnerability is U-shaped. The main contribution of this paper refers to its assessment of the poverty reduction effect of air pollution from a forward-looking perspective, which can effectively maintain the results of poverty relief, improve the effectiveness of poverty-relief inputs and the continuity of poverty-relief effects, and achieve a stable poverty relief of the poor.

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