Research project In this project, we will analyse how gender-based violence is identified and responded to within the Swedish social services and propose how the needs of women exposed to violence can be better met.
Women clients in social services have experience of violence to a greater extent than those who do not have contact with social services. However, research shows that in Sweden gender-based violence is not routinely identified and addressed within social services. There are also large variations between municipalities and individual social workers in their use of question-centred responses. Despite this, there is a lack of empirical research analysing question-centred responses within social services.
Aim of the project
Is to analyse how gender-based violence is identified and responded to within the Swedish social services, and propose how the needs of women exposed to violence can be better met. In particular, we will examine how social services work to identify violence through a question-centred approach – "daring to ask".
Description of the project
The Swedish Gender Equality Policy aims to end men’s violence against women by 2030. Swedish social services hold responsibility for ensuring that this aim is achieved. This responsibility is embedded in the Guidelines ‘To want to know, to want to see and to dare to ask’, that stress the role of social (and healthcare) services in identifying gender-based violence through ‘daring to ask’. In this project, we will analyse how gender-based violence is identified and responded to within the framework of the Swedish social services, and propose how the needs of women exposed to violence can be better met.
