Between self-determination and advice: Sense-making and justifications in Swedish budget and debt counselling

Abstract

Over-indebtedness has become an increasingly common issue in Europe and a growing concern for social work. In Sweden, budget and debt counsellors are the main actors guiding over-indebted individuals towards financial well-being. This study analyses how budget and debt counsellors rhetorically make sense of and justify their service provision. The research data consist of interviews with thirty-nine counsellors, supported by vignettes. The analysis shows that counsellors make sense of their service by constructing two guiding principles: to promote financial agency, centred on upholding the client’s autonomy and self-determination in solving the debt problems, respectively, to promote financial change, centred on providing the advice, guidance and practical support required to alleviate the client’s debt problems. These two guiding principles construct the client’s capability and responsibility to deal with their debt burden differently and motivate the counsellors to take different courses of action in relation to the client. Counsellors’ sense-making talk can thus be said to both reproduce and challenge predominant policy discourses emphasising citizens’ personal responsibility for creating welfare. The findings are discussed in relation to their implications for social work policy and practice.

Using text-based vignettes in qualitative social work research

“…Vignettes in expert interviews are usually constructed to mirror the research participants’ practice and to be recognised by the participants as a ‘typical’ scenario that they could encounter in their work (Callegari et al, 2022: 6). The aim is to construct a complex but not unusual scenario, otherwise there is a risk that the participants discuss how unusual or unrealistic the vignette is rather than focussing on their response to it (Nygren and Oltedal, 2015).…”

“…Other researchers have developed variations of one vignette to vary key characteristics. Callegari et al (2022) developed four versions of one vignette. In one version the character was working age and in the other an older client.…”

“…(Bain, 2008(Bain, : 99, 2020 This vignette is used here to illustrate the decisions that go into the construction of a vignette. Other examples of text-based vignettes can be found in Callegari et al (2022), Darlington et al (2010) Enroos et al (2017), Isham et al (2021), Nygren and Oltedal (2015), Schoenberg and Ravdal (2000), Stevens et al (2010). As a short, constructed scenario a vignette cannot include a full representation of reality.…”

“…Participants respond to a scenario whose characteristics are controlled by the researcher creating forced inference which is especially powerful if combined with reasoning and justification of the response to the vignette (Schnurr, 2003: 397). Text-based vignettes within semi-structured interviews and focus groups with social workers and related professionals have been successfully used in• Europe (Åkerlind et al, 2019; Callegari et al, 2022; Enroos et al, 2017; Falconer and Shardlow, 2018; Ghanem et al, 2018; Grootegoed and Smith, 2018; Hetherington, 1998; Isham et al, 2021; Käkelä, 2020; Kristensen, 2011; Liljegren, 2012; Nygren et al, 2021; Sanfelici, 2021; Walsh et al, 2019),• North America (Aujla, 2020; Schoenberg and Ravdal, 2000; Taylor et al, 2021),• Latin America (Nygren and Oltedal, 2015),• Africa (Nygren and Oltedal, 2015),• Asia (Taylor et al, 2021) and• Australia (Darlington et al, 2010; Drury-Hudson, 1999)…”

“…• Europe (Åkerlind et al, 2019; Callegari et al, 2022; Enroos et al, 2017; Falconer and Shardlow, 2018; Ghanem et al, 2018; Grootegoed and Smith, 2018; Hetherington, 1998; Isham et al, 2021; Käkelä, 2020; Kristensen, 2011; Liljegren, 2012; Nygren et al, 2021; Sanfelici, 2021; Walsh et al, 2019),…”