People’s encounters with social work are often marked by the experience of being turned into an object. Poverty, addiction, crime, and homelessness are framed as individual problems, as if people lived their lives in isolation from broader social and political structures. The authors of this book share a conviction that social work is worth fighting for, since it has the potential to contribute to creating a more just society in which people can truly develop their lives. Based on case studies and observations from Sweden, the book examines challenges and developments relevant to social work internationally.



Foreword (Walter Lorenz)

Preface - A dramatic transformation of the Swedish welfare state and the conditions of social work (Philip Lalander and Marcus Herz)

Introduction - Critical practice for solidarity, resistance and change (Magnus Dahlstedt, Sabine Gruber, Marcus Herz and Philip Lalander)

Part 1: “Resistance”

How can I cope? (Sophia Laveborn)

Political social work (Marcus Herz)

Challenging the academic knowledge monopoly: Experiences of Service User participation in a social work course (Lotta Bergström, Lasse Fryk, Katarina Hollertz, Anna Ryan Bengtsson and Michael Wallengren-Lynch)

Research for critique, action and social change (Sabine Gruber)

Ecosocial work: Welfare and sustainable development (Carin Björngren Cuadra and Pernilla Ouis)

A vision for social change: strategies for a critical and radical social work education (Jessica Jönsson and Marcus Lauri)

Part 2: Solidarity - “Beyond the Tyranny of the Market”

Market orientation and the legitimacy of welfare systems (Staffan Bengtsson and Torbjörn Kalin)

Residential care facilities for older people as a multi-ethnic workplace in the era of marketisation - challenges and opportunities (Palle Storm)

The role of trade unions and the marketisation of social services – new perspectives (Magnus Dahlstedt and Karon Jansson)

Part 3: Change - What Social Work Is and Can Be

In defence of the parallel society: the rise and direction of Helamalmö (Nicolas Lunabba)

Social work and young people who fled Sweden (Torun Elsrud and Philip Lalander)

Coloniality, decolonial thinking and social work (Maimuna Abdullahi, Adrián Groglopo, Lena Sawyer and Hanna Wikström)

Culturalisation and homogenisation of disabilities – Challenges for participation (Monica Larsson and Ingrid Runesson)

Habitual social work practice - tyranny of automatism or subversive tool? (Magnus Weber)



Magnus Dahlstedt, Professor of Social Work, Department of Culture and Society, Linköping University, Norrköping, Sweden



Sabine Gruber, Professor of Social Work, Department of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Mid Sweden University, Sweden



Marcus Herz, Professor of Social Work, Department of Social Work, Gothenburg University, Sweden



Philip Lalander, Professor of Social Work, Department of Social Work, Linnaeus University, Kalmar and Växjö, Sweden