Facilitating Participation for Youths in Child Welfare Services in Transition to Adulthood: Practice between Formalities and Empowerment

Abstract

This article examines social workers’ perceptions of youths’ participation and how their perceptions influence their practice towards youths in aftercare. The article is based on qualitative interviews with 38 social workers in child welfare services (CWS) and collaborative welfare services. The interviews were analysed using a hermeneutic approach. We identified two practices with different objectives: practice that accommodates formal requirements for participation and practice that supports empowerment. When social workers prepared and established aftercare, they focused on fulfilling legal and system-oriented requirements. This practice challenged youths’ ability to participate because the social workers focused on the formal conditions for aftercare and youths’ consent to aftercare. While youths received aftercare, the practice, which included self-determination, contributed to empowerment. In this practice, the social workers were available and flexible, mobilising their knowledge and resources to establish trust and relationships with youths, thus helping them to experience support and mastery. We conclude that the accommodation of formalities was a foundation for involving youths in aftercare. However, the formalities were barriers to youths’ participation and empowerment in aftercare if youths’ consent appeared as a threshold to help from CWS.