“It shouldn’t be a knot in the stomach for anyone to come there”. A Case Study of Migrant Clients' Interactions with Social Services in Borås

Abstract

According to The Swedish Psychological Defense Agency (MPF), there are challenges of mistrust among Swedish citizens arising from the disinformation campaign affecting the image of the Care of Young Persons (Special Provisions) Act (LVU) aimed to protect children who are at risk of harm. Integrating various theoretical approaches, including trust, uncertainty, anxiety, cultural competence, cultural intelligence, and knowledge sharing, the purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the perceptions of communication and encountered challenges from the perspective of both Borås Stad’s social workers and clients with migrant backgrounds. The empirical data was collected through 20 semi-structured interviews that underwent a thematic analysis, revealing three main themes: pre-interaction, interaction, and post-interaction, explaining the individual’s process prior to, during, and after interactions. The findings showed that the prevalent experiences of uncertainty and anxiety, as well as the lack of cultural competence among social workers and clients, hamper communication and knowledge sharing across the three distinct stages of communication. Clients underscored the imperative of transparent and clear communication while advocating for adaption in communication styles to validate their emotions during interactions. Self-awareness to build long-lasting trust and overcome cultural barriers was highlighted as a key to effective intercultural communication. Ultimately, this study aims to provide practical recommendations for Borås Stads' Social Services to rebuild trust. Despite the government and researchers accentuating the external LVU disinformation campaigns, the findings revealed that clients' distrust is rooted in the word-of-mouth of their social circles.