Under the delusive wings of the welfare state: engagement in the policy process among social work faculty members in Sweden

Abstract

ABSTRACT Sweden is known for its well-developed welfare state and a large public sector, yet the role of social work academics in formulating and reforming social policy is still fairly unknown. This study aimed to investigate Swedish social work faculty members’ engagement in social policy processes. To what extent and in what activities of social policy engagement had they been involved? How did they perceive their impact on policy makers and their role in the social policy process? An online survey was administered to all social work faculty members in the 17 social work schools in Sweden (n = 283, response rate 44%). The results show that the overall engagement in policy-related issues was low. In a previous comparison between 12 countries, faculty members in Sweden and China reported the lowest engagement. For 18 out of 20 activities listed, only between 1 and 8 percent had frequently been involved. Between 44 and 92 percent answered that they never had participated in these activities. The background to this low engagement and the implications for students’ knowledge, interest and future engagement in policy processes as means to address social justice and human rights as part of their professional social work practice are discussed.