In Norway, labour market politics and welfare politics are increasingly linked together. Accordingly, the municipality of Trondheim has been trying out new forms of social work for several years and this kind of work includes enhancing the occupational skills of clients and the personal resources they need in order to compete in the labour market. A parallel goal for this work has been to enhance clients' capacity for inclusion into society in general. In 2004, the Department of Social Work and Health Science at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) was invited by the management of the municipality of Trondheim to conduct a research project into one of these social work programmes with the aim of developing the capacities of the long-term unemployed and young people in receipt of income substitution. Research results established the relevance of the concept of recognition in terms of identifying the most effective elements in the social work programme. The subject of identity in late modernity was also found to be a highly relevant matter which, together with recognition, describes and explains the underlying processes and factors which make possible the enhancement of self-confidence as experienced and reported by programme participants.Arbeidsmarkedspolitikk og sosialpolitikk henger nøye sammen i et land som Norge, ikke minst ser vi dette i gjennomføringen av den pågående NAVreformen hvor arbeidslinja
This review explores the conceptualization of “child participation” in a child welfare context. The analyses are based on the theories, models and concepts researchers apply when framing their studies. Central to the authors’ conceptualizing is the understanding of why children should participate. Children’s rights are a common starting point for many authors, but they differ on whether children should participate out of consideration for children’s intrinsic value (e.g., concern for their well-being) or for the instrumental value of the participation itself (e.g., service outcome). The analysis also focuses on how authors measure participation level. The analysis showed that most authors presented a limited rights-focused goal for the collaboration with children, while a minority group problematized the concept. Although several researchers emphasize that participation requires a process, few authors see the meaning-making process as the main purpose of child participation.
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