Kvalitet som en paradoxal praktik: Systematisk kvalitetsutveckling inom den sociala barnavården
2024 (Svenska)Licentiatavhandling, monografi (Övrigt vetenskapligt)
Abstract [en]
This study has examined systematic quality improvement within child welfare services, a key area for supporting vulnerable children. Despite legal requirements and guidelines concerning quality, challenges persist in applying these in practice. The study has explored how quality and systematic quality improvement are understood and implemented, focusing on the tension between standardization and adaptation to the individual needs of children and families.
A qualitative, practice-oriented, and interactive approach was employed in collaboration with the social services department of Jönköping municipality, Sweden. The study included interviews with professionals at both strategic and operational levels, observations of two child welfare units, and document analysis. A content analysis was conducted, with participants involved through several analysis seminars.
The study reveals that quality and systematic quality improvement are understood in two different ways within child welfare services. Quality is perceived either as an objective, standardised concept or as something flexible and responsive to individual needs. These differing understandings align with two contrasting approaches to quality improvement: a hierarchical model emphasising a problem-solving approach to improvement, fixed structures, top-down goal management, and evaluation as control; and a decentralised strategy focused on an intuitive and experience-driven improvement approach, flexible structures, locally driven goals, and evaluation for reflection. The hierarchical strategy sees quality as consistency, while the decentralised model views quality as responsiveness to unique circumstances. This creates paradoxes, with professionals endorsing both strategies. However, tensions arise when these strategies clash, contributing to a gap between guidelines and practical application.
Balancing hierarchical and decentralised strategies is crucial for managing the paradoxes inherent in systematic quality improvement. To address these tensions, the study develops a paradox-informed model, integrating both approaches to create a more meaningful and sustainable quality improvement process. The model provides a practical framework for balancing uniformity and adaptability, making quality improvement more relevant to professionals' daily work, ultimately enhancing outcomes for those receiving support from child welfare services.
Ort, förlag, år, upplaga, sidor
Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2024. , s. 166
Serie
Lnu Licentiate ; 48
Nyckelord [sv]
kvalitet, kvalitetsutveckling
Nationell ämneskategori
Socialt arbete
Forskningsämne
Samhällsvetenskap, Socialt arbete
Identifikatorer
URN: urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-133234DOI: 10.15626/LnuLic.48.2023ISBN: 9789180822268 (tryckt)ISBN: 9789180822275 (digital)OAI: oai:DiVA.org:lnu-133234DiVA, id: diva2:1910690
Presentation
2024-11-22, N1017, Linnéuniversitetet Campus Växjö, Växjö, 10:15 (Svenska)
Opponent
Handledare
2024-11-052024-11-052024-11-07Bibliografiskt granskad