This Master’s Thesis deals with the Funnel Model’s essence of meanings in accordance with the method; Integrated Children’s Systems (ICS), within the field of socially marginalised children and young people. In this Master’s Thesis the Funnel Model’s essence of meanings are clarified by means of the identification of discourses, objective naturalness, contradictions, and paradoxes in order to enable the construction of alternate meanings. Therefore, the crucial element consists of the possibility of creating new meanings. This Thesis is a discourse analysis, which takes its starting point in social constructivist and post structuralistic theory of science and analysis strategies on the basis of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffes’ discourse theory.
The Thesis begins with a discussion of the current societal and socio-political tendencies within the social work and public administration in relation to the field of marginalised children and young people. In relation to this, I have accounted for the current view on social work and its purpose in a wider socially educated context as these matters are constructed for the Funnel Model’s function and meanings in relation to actual practice. Referring to my methodical reflections of this thesis, I have explicated a series of research ethical reflections in which I have, among other things, related to my own role as a researcher in relation to the preparation of this Thesis. I have designed my analysis by carrying out two subanalyses of which the first is based on publicly accessible documents from the National Board of Social Services. These documents primarily represent a socio-political role and the purpose of the documents is to guide social workers to produce qualitative improved children’s specialist based investigations. The second subanalysis is based on a focus group interview, consisting of four social workers, which I designed to the explicit application for this Thesis. The interviewees all have practical experience with using the Funnel Model, therefore, this subanalysis represents the role of the professionals.
On the basis of the analysis I have concluded that the Funnel Model, in this existing Thesis, receives it essence of meanings from neo-liberal management discourses and various professional and academic discourses. From these spring a fundamental struggle about whether or not the quality of social work within the field of marginalised children and young people, should be gauged via the client as the effect of an effort in which the quality of the management becomes pivotal versus the quality of the welfare to the client. Thereby, I also conclude that the Funnel Model might cause social implications in relation to leading the clients to specifically limited options as well as influence the clients’ perception of one self. Furthermore, the Funnel Model might become important in relation to guiding the practitioners of social work towards offering the clients limited categorised efforts, which have to be in accordance with the effort that is the most cost-effective for the performance of the welfare state, which, in its consequence, may entail that the most marginalised could become excluded from the efforts of the welfare state.
As a recapitulation of my Thesis I have demonstrated my critical reflections regarding the process of the Master’s Thesis followed by a discussion concerning my findings in the analysis, which works as a discussion.