Helping or Controlling? Choice of Coping Methods When Dealing with Violent Clients in Statutory Social Work
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5932988 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jimmy Stephen Munobwa (0000-0003-2975-7675, University of Gävle, corresponding author), Peter Öberg (0000-0002-0295-898X, University of Gävle), Fereshteh Ahmadi (0000-0002-8823-6434, University of Gävle) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 12 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 58 |
| Publication date | 2023-01-19 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2076-0760 • E-ISSN: 2076-0760 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/socsci12020058 |
| OpenAlex | W4317433972 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
| References cited | 53 |
Client violence in social work is a workplace problem in Sweden and internationally. Frontline workers in public agencies have the discretion to decide how they deal with clients to cope with challenges like violence and threats. The coping methods may favour some clients while disadvantaging others. Ultimately, the coping practices may become de facto policy, which may not match official organisational policy. This article explores coping methods statutory social workers use to manage violence and threats in their day-to-day dyadic interactions with clients. The article is based on qualitative interviews with social workers (n = 19) who, according to their perception, were victims of client violence. Theory on street-level bureaucracy and frontline workers' discretion is used. Based on thematic analysis, the results show that social workers draw from four groups of coping methods depending on their moral and normative dispositions. These include (1) the forced helper, (2) the compassionate helper, (3) the distanced helper, and (4) the authoritarian helper. Social workers oscillate between different dispositions depending on situational needs, striving to find the appropriate balance between helping and controlling clients. Studying social workers' day-to-day dyadic interactions with clients highlights how coping methods could shape social work policy and practice
Coping (psychology · Discretion · Normative · Political science · Public relations · Qualitative research · Situational ethics · Sociology · Statutory law · Thematic analysis · Homelessness and Social Issues · Law · Psychology · Social Psychology · Social Work Education and Practice · Workplace Violence and Bullying · Social Work
The knowledge and skills needed for forensic social work in Australia
Religion and spirituality in social work education and practice
Street-level bureaucrats’ cognitive coping during public service delivery
Child Welfare Workers Located in the Urban Periphery
Revisiting coping mechanisms on the street-level
Move toward citizens
Violence at Work
Anti-Oppressive Social Work Theory and Practice
Transactional theory and research on emotions and coping
Street-Level Bureaucracy
Thematic analysis
The psychology of interpersonal relations.
When the State Meets the Street
The tension between managerial and critical professional discourses in social work
Hostile relationships in social work practice
Secondary Traumatic Stress Among Social Workers
One size fits all? What counts as quality practice in (reflexive) thematic analysis
Dilemmas and conflicting pressures in social work practice
Coping During Public Service Delivery
Investigating the cyclical hypothesis of client aggression as a ‘loss spiral’
Integrating workplace aggression research
Frontline social service as a battlefield
Engaging with Involuntary Service Users in Social Work
A Preliminary Study of Burnout in Residential Social Workers Experiencing Workplace Aggression
Professional Discretion and Adult Social Work
Workplace Violence towards Social Workers
Organisational Rules and Discretion in Adult Social Work
Working in Human Services
Street-Level Bureaucracy, Social Work and the (Exaggerated) Death of Discretion
Client Violence and Mental Health Status among Iranian Social Workers
Why Are They Leaving? Factors Affecting Intention to Leave among Social Workers in Child Welfare
Statutory Social Workers
Violence in the social work workplace
The processes of causal attribution
Appraising The Inclusive Definition Of Workplace 'Violence
Using thematic analysis in psychology
The Effects of Violence and Aggression From Parents on Child Protection Workers' Personal, Family, and Professional Lives
| Citations per year | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Highly cited | No |