Stigmatisering, skam og social eksklusion: Et liv som enlig forsørger på kontanthjælp: Et liv som enlig forsørger på kontanthjælp

Abstract

Specialets omdrejningspunkt er, at belyse hvordan enlige forsørgere på kontanthjælp oplever at indgå i sociale relationer, i forbindelse med deres børns sociale liv. Undersøgelsen går ud på at, opnå indsigt og forståelse i hvordan forældrene oplever dem selv, når de indtræder i en sociale interaktioner med afsæt i deres økonomiske situation. Ud fra en hermeneutisk position søges det, at forstå og opnå indsigt i hvordan enlig forsørger på kontanthjælp, oplever at indgå i sociale relationer i forbindelse med deres børns sociale liv. Til at opnå en besvarelse af den udformede problemformulering, er der udarbejdet fire kvalitative-semistruktureret, individuelle interviews, med udgangspunkt i en interviewguide. Ligeledes er der udarbejdet et litteraturstudie undervejs i speciale processen. Af specialets resultater fremgår det at enlig forsørgere på kontanthjælp føler sig skamfulde og flove over deres situation. Skammen vakte forundring under forskningsprocessen og var et overraskende fund. Informanterne er emotionelt udfordret i sociale interaktioner og frygter at passere ind i et fællesskab. De enlige forsørgere bliver begrænset i deres sociale liv på baggrund af deres økonomiske situation, men opnår social kontakt og interaktioner med andre i forbindelse med deres børns sociale liv. Det kan ud fra specialets analyse konkluderes at, enlige forsørgere indirekte påvirkes af kontanthjælpen og dens konsekvenser, i de sociale interaktioner de indgår i, i forbindelse med deres børns sociale liv.

The focus of this Master thesis is single parents living on government benefits in Denmark, and their experiences with social interactions – especially in connection with their children’s social life. Based on the financial situation of the single parents on benefits, the study aims to gain an understanding of how the single parents’ self-image is affected by their experiences of interacting socially. The study applies a hermeneutic approach in the research process, alternating between known theories and new information and knowledge gained through the empirical data, in an effort to obtain insights in the social experiences of single parents living on benefits. Four qualitative semi-structured individual interviews have been carried out based on an interview guide. These interviews constitute the empirical data of the study and were constructed with the purpose of answering the study’s overall research questions. Furthermore, a literature review has also been prepared during the thesis. The results of the study show, that single parents living on benefits feel shame and embarrassment when entering into social situations. This came as a surprise during the research process. The single parents are emotionally challenged when interacting socially resulting in fear of being part of a community. They are therefore limited in their social lives because of their financial situation. Their main source of social interactions come via their children’s social lives. From the study’s analysis it can be deducted, that single parents are indirectly affected by the fact, that they are finically limited and socially stigmatised from living on government benefits. They experience this as apparent in every day life in general, but especially when interacting with other parents in their children’s lives e.g. the parents of their children’s class mates.

A master thesis from Aalborg University

Stigmatisering, skam og social eksklusion: Et liv som enlig forsørger på kontanthjælp: Et liv som enlig forsørger på kontanthjælp

[Stigmatized, ashamed and socially excluded: Life as a single parent living on benefits: Life as a single parent living on benefits]