The SIG aims to connect and gather scholars interested in, the intersection between social work, activation, and work inclusion.
To provide an infrastructure that enhances social work scholarship devoted to activation and work inclusion by deliver activities at the annal ESWRA conferences as well as additional in-person and digital events. Furthermore, the SIG intends to promote and disseminate research findings through newsletters and public digital seminars.
The SIG engages with the growing body of scholarly literature at the intersection of social work, activation, and work inclusion. While poverty has always been central to social work research, the reform of active labour market policies (ALMPs) in many OECD countries since the 1990s has further stimulated this field. This development is largely due to the central role social workers play within ALMPs, particularly in so-called activation policies.
Activation refers to measures intended to encourage recipients of income protection - especially social assistance - to become more active in seeking employment. Social workers are key actors in this policy area, involved in assessing eligibility for social assistance, determining appropriate labour market programmes, and in some cases, delivering these programmes. Early scholarly contributions often took a critical stance toward this development, focusing on the role of social workers in conditioning access to basic income protection. However, more recent research has also highlighted the proactive and empowering role social workers can play as facilitators of work inclusion (see Dall & Brauer, 2024, for a review). The SIG encourages broad scholarly discussion on these issues, engaging both conventional and critical social work perspectives.
The core members of the SIG have an extensive network of social work scholars involved in this research orientation. They have also contributed to the consolidation of the field through recent special issues. In 2024, Tanja Dall and John Brauer (together with Rik van Berkel) co-edited a special issue on activation in Nordic Social Work Research (Volume 14, No. 2). Also in 2024, Dorte Caswell (with Heidi Moen Gjersøe, Sara Hultqvist, and Siv Oltedal) edited a special issue on work inclusion in the Journal of Comparative Social Work.
John Brauer, Örebro University, Sweden
John Brauer, Örebro University, Sweden
Dorte Caswell, Aalborg University, Denmark
Tanja Dall, Aalborg University, Denmark
Paul Van der Aa, Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands
Katarina Hollertz, Göteborg University, Sweden
Lisa Wallander, Lund University, Sweden
Urban Northdufter, Free University of Bozen/Bolzano, Italy
Katerina Mikulcova, Ostrava University, Czech Republic
Ji?í Mertl, Ostrava University, Czech Republic
Chair
SIG note taker/Secretary
SIG Communications Lead
SIG Events lead
SIG oversight
The SIG will initiate and host thematic streams, as well as hold a SIG meeting, at the annual ESWRA conferences. Between conferences, additional activities - such as workshops, seminars, and public lectures will be organized both online and in person. Finally, the SIG will establish a mailing list and a LinkedIn group to promote and disseminate research within its focus area.
