UiS Open Journals (Univ. of Stavanger)
Not a member yet
457 research outputs found
Sort by
Making sense, discovering what works…: Cross-agency collaboration in Child Welfare and Protection in Norway and Quebec
Get PDFThis paper addresses the enabling and constraining factors that underpin inter-organizational collaboration in Child Welfare and Protection services in Norway and Quebec. Characterized by different regulatory systems, but with a common drive to hierarchically promote cross-agency collaboration, these jurisdictions provide the basis for two instructive and contrasting case studies on the subject. The paper builds on meta-ethnography as a means to synthesize and translate results from separate qualitative research undertakings carried out in each place. It argues that although a core set of properties may be identified as necessary for collaboratives to operate in a successful, sustainable manner; greater attention should be paid to how these properties interact with one another on the ground, given schemes’ particular scope and scale of objectives. Moreover, regulatory provisions aimed at stimulating or mandating cross-agency networks may align with collaborative capacity in various ways, occasionally in a mutually reinforcing, but sometimes antagonistic manner. The conclusions drawn have implications for both research and policy
Klimaets plass i norsk historie : En forskningshistorisk oversikt
Get PDFBased on the threatening climatic situation confronting the world and the fact that Norway’s geographical position makes the country vulnerable to climate change, this article addresses the paradox that climate has only interested Norwegian istorians to a negligible extent. In a historiographical analysis, a review is made of Norwegian historical research over the last 100 years to establish what place climatic effect and climate change has had on Norwegian historical development. The seeming lack of interest for the subject is contrasted with the opposite international situation and the situation in other relevant subject areas. Characteristically, the degree to which Norwegian historians have been engaged in interdisciplinary cooperation has been small. The starting point has been the firm belief that more knowledge about climate and climate change can contribute significantly to a better understanding of historical development in Norway. It is also argued that, because of this, historians have lost an opportunity to extend the possibilities of coping with the climatic challenges facing society. 
Haugen som gravfelt
Get PDFPreconceptions about the construction and function of burial mounds can heavily influence the degree of complexity one is apt to see in the field. Rather than seeing a burial mound as the result of a single moment in time, a single burial in prehistory, the mound should be considered as an entire grave field in use over a long period. The excavation of a burial mound at Hålandsmarka, in Time municipality, southwestern Norway, revealed that the monumental structure actually consisted of many different structures and was developed over the course of 2,000 years. By setting aside the standard model of a single burial centrally placed in a homogenous mound, and focusing on the processes of construction and activities that may have left recoverable traces in and around the mound, the excavation allowed for the development of new insights into the longterm use of the site before, during, and after the burials. It is argued that the situation at Hålandsmarka is not unique, and that the ability to accurately document such complexities in grave mounds is heavily dependent upon excavation strategy. It is further argued that the responsibility to document these processes must be taken into consideration in the planning of future excavations
Special rights within universal welfare: Assistance to trafficking victims in Norway
Get PDFOver the past two decades, several measures have been developed to provide assistance to persons defined as victims of trafficking. This article describes and discusses the organization of barriers and access to assistance (such as housing, medical assistance and subsistence support) for this group in Norway, taking as its starting point the daily practice of social workers and using an institutional ethnographic approach. Of great significance to access to assistance are the different administrative statuses that trafficking victims are assigned and move between, thus having rights granted or taken away. The negotiation of these administrative categories and navigation of conflicting legislation become a central aspect of social workers’ daily practice. Persons defined as ‘trafficking victims’ are eligible for a special residence permit, while assistance in Norway in practice is provided through the universal welfare system. ‘Human trafficking’ and ‘trafficking victim’ are operational categories in criminal law and immigration legislation, but they are not administrative categories for welfare provision. Instead, being defined as a trafficking victim functions as an inroad to assignation of other administrative categories (also dependent on residence and registration statuses) that determine what assistance is or is not available. Gaps and inconsistencies between institutional and legal complexes arise when one small group of people are awarded special measure rights within a universal system, creating a bureaucratically complicated and ‘messy’ path to assistance. This ‘messiness’ does not mean that it does not always work. However, it appears to work best for those who fit well with the modern Norwegian bureaucracy, e.g. in terms of being able to document identity and stay within one administrative status, and worst for those who do not. Hence, the system for victim assistance appears to be the least accessible for some of the least privileged members of the group it is intended for
In-between discourses: Early intervention and diversity in the Norwegian kindergarten sector
Get PDFDuring the last decades, early intervention has become a major concern across political parties in Norway. In line with the discourse of early intervention, kindergartens are perceived as important arenas for identifying children at risk and initiating intervention. Equally important in the kindergarten sector is the discourse of diversity, in which a tolerance for behaviours that deviate from the majority norm is assumed. Drawing on an institutional ethnography in Norwegian kindergartens, and in particular the concept of ruling relations, I compare these two discourses in this article and discuss how kindergarten staff have to negotiate between different, and sometimes conflicting, institutional discourses that can justify different interventions. As a consequence, and despite good intentions, kindergarten staff can end up treating children with different backgrounds unequally
Investigating the social relations of human service provision: Institutional ethnography and activism
Get PDFIn this article, I reflect on my experiences using institutional ethnography to support socially just policy, practice and organizational change. I focus specifically on three inter-related institutional ethnographic research projects that have informed my approach to working with social workers, shelter workers, lawyers, policy analysts, community organizers, teachers, probation officers and youth to create change. Although strategic collaborations to change institutional practices and knowledge are rife with tensions, I show how institutional ethnography can be used reflexively throughout the collaborative process to create conditions for critical consciousness-raising among participants; inspire reflection and action on the part of human service professionals and inform collective efforts to create systemic change, as well as to guide the research process itself. I conclude by suggesting that institutional ethnographers seeking to influence socially just change need to find ways to balance the demands of academic writing, while being true to the activist origins of this sociological approach
Plantemateriale frå jordprøver: uviss alder og ubrukt potensial?
Get PDFThe aim of this paper is to assess the assumptions we make about the age of carbonized and uncarbonized plant materialsfrom soil samples. By questioning the age and origin of plant remains, we investigate an unexploited potential of possiblearchaeological interpretations. As a case study, carbonized and uncarbonized plant remains from a house that dates to thetransition between the Pre-Roman Iron Age and the Roman Iron Age at Hove-Sørbø in Southwestern Norway are investigated. As opposed to the original assumptions based on the preservation conditions at the locality, a total of 1 062 uncarbonized seeds of the arable weeds fat-hen (Chenopodium album) and corn spurrey (Spergula arvensis) are shown to be contemporary with the house. This is a unique find in Norway, and it is assumed that the seeds are a by-product of crop processing, most likely residues from fine sieving of cereal grains. The literature discussing macro analysis and interpretation relevant for Norwegian archaeological contexts is scarce. This is partly due to the fact that analysis of macro remains from such contexts is inherently interdisciplinary, and therefore dependent upon the involvement of archaeologists as well as palaeobotanists for further method development and knowledge production. 
Exploring production and use of soapstone in Norway: Towards an interdisciplinary approach?
Get PDFIn recent years, soapstone research has developed into a multidisciplinary field encompassing a broad range of topics and methodological approaches. Interdisciplinary research now attracts more interest and has contributed significantly to theidentification of quarries and understanding of the distribution and use of soapstone. Most collaborative projects have related to certain geographic or thematic areas. As the research on soapstone deposits in Northern Norway illustrates,interdisciplinary work can make important contributions also to other and little explored types of soapstone utilisation. In order to realise the full potential of interdisciplinary research, an expansion of the areas covered and a rethinking ofapproaches to collaboration and disciplinary compatibility are required. One problem is the use of modern scientific criteria and classification schemes to identify and interpret stone sources, as such methods do not necessarily capture all the aspects of the material that were crucial to past users and production. 
Adolescents’ Subjective Views about Interprofessional Team Participation: A Q-methodological Study
Get PDFBackground: One common arrangement in the Norwegian child welfare system is the interprofessional collaborating team, not unlike the English core group. This team is often referred to as the ‘responsible team’ (RT) and is arranged when a child has needs that call for several services. Few studies about interprofessional collaboration focus on views of service users and, in particular, those of child and adolescent service users.
Aims and objectives: The present study aims to explore adolescents’ subjective views about their participation in RTs. This study contributes further knowledge about the field of interprofessional collaboration, especially regarding the participation of adolescents.
Design: Non-experimental, exploratory research design.
Methods: Q-methodology was used to explore 26 adolescents’ subjective views about their collaboration within the responsible teams that were formed to support their welfare. Q-methodology is known as being particularly suitable for revealing vulnerable people’s nuanced subjective views and perspectives. The adolescents in this study were asked to rank order a set of 42 statements (Q-set). PQMethod was used to analyse the data.
Results: Four factors emerged and revealed patterns of shared views among the adolescents. Factor 1: Optimistic and engaged despite bad experiences, Factor 2: Strive to not be defeated by their helpers, Factor 3: Battle weary and resigned, and Factor 4: Content, positive and full of trust.
Implications: The present study may be relevant to researchers, health and social policy makers, in addition to professionals working in services that aim to improve children’s situations through interprofessional collaboration