Ylva Krokfors,researcher,socialworker, Ph.D. student ,FSKC The Swedish Centre of Excellence on Social Welfareylva.krokfors (at) helsinki.fi

How is a socialworkers agency visible in a meeting with an elderly client in rehabilitation context?

Gerontological social work

• practical social work with the elderly and scientifical research with and about the elderly

• a special branch of social work

• requires a wide range of knowledge from socialworkers

Social work with the elderly in Finland

• a serious awakening to ”the elderly matter” in 1980s and in 1990s

• scientific research started• different models of how to implement gerontological

knowledge into social work training programs were created (Koskinen 2008, 438-439)

Social work with the elderly in Finland

The awakening to elderly matters started later in the Nordic countries than in other countries.

It was thought that the Nordic Welfare States pension- systems and services would provide enough help.

Academication of gerontological work in Finland

• 1999 University of Lapland the first professorship in social gerontology and gerontological social work

• soon after professors in social gerontology to Universities of Helsinki and Jyväskylä

Academication of gerontological work in Finland

• Gerontological social work is not yet academically established

• Working with the elderly is not concidered as an attractive alternative amongst social work students

Social work with the elderly nationally recognized

• The Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has in its operational program for social work (that goes on to year 2015) stated that gerontological social work is one of the main substance-areas

The reality of gerontological social work in Finland

• research and development-projects going on• the work in practise is still unstructured• not enough knowledge on aging• ongoing medicalization often puts aside social work

knowledge

Gerontological rehabilitation

• A national interest in elderly people managing at home for as long as possible

• Rehabilitation at home or as day or institutional rehabilitation courses support the functional ability of the elderly

Gerontological rehabilitation

• The Finnish Social Insurance Institution and The State Treasury order rehabilitation from rehabilitation institutions

• They have strict criterias on the content of the course, the training of the personnel, the facilities and most of all for who can apply for a rehabilitation course

Gerontological social work in rehabilitation

• social worker is often a sole representative of the profession

• other staff often being physiotherapists, nurses, a doctor, occupational therapist

• In bigger institutions the social worker is fully employed, in smaller paid by the hour

Gerontological social work in rehabilitation, a case-study

I observed and interviewed a social worker.

I observed when she interviewed 16 elderly rehabilitation participants on 2 rehabilitation courses.

The first participants were war-veterans and the second from a geriatric rehabilitation course.

Gerontological social work in rehabilitation, a case-study

In focus of my research:

the socialworkers agency in context of the 30 min. interview-session in the beginning of a rehabilitation course.

What is agency?

It is about peoples behaviour and action, their character and meaning (Jyrkämä 2008,191).

It is everyday meaningfull action where the active person affects the situation and its outcome (Wallin etc. 2008,156, Giddens 1994).

What is agency?

Agency is strongly contextual, situational and interactive.

It is affected for example by the people involved ´s personalities, values, cultural background, hierarchical position and where the action takes place (Biesta&Tedder 2006; Emirbayer&Mische 1998,963)

What is agency?

People create schemes, some kind of action-models for social situations. These schemes direct them to use an action-model that in the past has worked out well (Biesta&Tedder 2006,12;

Emirbayer& Mische 1998, 975).

What is agency?

Finally, agency is also ”reflexive intelligence”, an ability to critically form ones sensitivity to react in difficult situations and if necessary, abandon a certain shceme of action if another way to work seems more appropriate (Biesta & Tedder 2006,11).

Space of agency

• is a sum of routines, estimates and the responsibility of the decissions that one makes

• it is created in between the actor and the organization where she/he functions (Svensson etc. 2008, 24)

Space of agency

• a socialworker is always a representative of the organization

• the organization defines the tasks of the socialworker• the space of action gives the socialworker a choice to

choose how she/he acts in the tasks given by the organization

Space of agency

• it demands professional competence and attitude that affects the way that the socialworker estimates appropriate and meaningful and the way her/his agency is visible

• it is a necessary aspect of social work, where the socialworker confronts people with different needs and unexpected happenings (Svensson 2008,24)

How was the social workers´ agency visible?

• despite the timelimit of 30 min/person for the interviews she managed to create a pleasent, calm and trustworthy atmosphere

• most of the time she did not make notes,but listened to and had an eye-contact with the elderly client

How was the social workers´ agency visible?

• she used object-knowledge(knowledge of the contents of the matters discussed with the client)

• procedural knowledge (knowledge of her different alternatives of action)

How was the socialworkers´ agency visible?

• client-knowledge ( knowledge of the clients´s needs, assumptions and ways of action + the psychological meaning of that)

• meta-knowledge (knowledge of herself, her own abilities and limitations as a socialworker)

(Ellström1992, 51)

How was the socialworkers´ agency visible?

• she used different interviewing-styles:• narrative: ”tell me about your life”• mapping: ”how many times a week...”• based on a standardized form: ”answear the following

questions with yes or no”

What is the use of the agency concept for gerontological social work?

• a way of getting a deeper insight into what a social worker does in her/his work

• a way for critical self-reflexion• analyzing agency could be used as a learning

method in social work education

What is the use of the agency concept for gerontological social work?

• in Finland the focus on the agency-based research has been on the clients´agency

• looking at the social workers`s agency is a way of giving attention to the social work with the elderly and how it is performed

Bibliography

Biesta, G. & Tedder, M. (2007) Agency and learning in the lifecourse: towards an ecological perspective, Studies in the Education of Adults - Special Issue, 39(2), 132-149

Bibliography

Emirbayer, Mustafa, Mische, Ann (1998) What is Agency? American Journal of Sociology. Volume 103 Number 4. 962–1023.

Giddens, Anthony (1984) The constitution of society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration. Polity Press, Cambridge

Bibliography

Jyrkämä, Jyrki (2008) Toimijuus, ikääntyminen ja arkielämä - hahmottelua teoreettis-metodologiseksi viitekehykseksi. Gerontologia 4/2008, 190–203.

Koskinen, Simo(2008) Gerontologinen sosiaalityö.Teoksessa: Heikkinen, Rantanen (toim.) Gerontologia, Duodecim, Helsinki.

Bibliography

Svensson, Kerstin, Johansson, Eva, Laanemets, Leili (2008) Handlingsutrymme. Utmaningar i socialt arbete. Natur & Kultur: Stockholm.

Wallin, Marjo, Talvitie, Ulla,etc. (2008) Vanhuksen toimijuus ja kuntoutuksen vuorovaikutustilanteet. Gerontologia 3/2008, 156.