The aim of this study was to examine and analyze the experiences which social workers have of working with relatives of substance Abusers. This included examining how they work with relatives who are in need of care and support and how the social workers identify their needs. We have also investigated how well informed the social workers are when it comes to approaches to helping relatives of substance Abusers. A qualitative method has been used in this study in order to analyze the experiences of the social workers from a phenomenological point of view. This study was based on six semi-structured interviews.

The Swedish and the Finnish compulsory care legislation that regards Abusers differ in several ways. The arguments for compulsory care and for the time which one will receive compulsory care are dissimilar. The aim of this thesis is to describe and analyse which arguments for compulsory care and the length of the care time that has been expressed in the Swedish and the Finnish laws and in the statutes. The tools were an argumentation analysis, which is a form of qualitative text analysis method, combined with a hermeneutic scientific position. We have investigated the arguments that try to justify compulsory care and the care time that has been expressed in the laws and the statutes.

The law (1988:870) concerning care of substance Abusers is constructed in a way that gives the social workers room to interpret and apply the law individually. This may contribute to differences in treatment between female and male substance Abusers. The purpose of the essay was to investigate whether the client's gender had any significance to how the social worker interpret and apply the law (LVM).The specific questions we worked around were:- What significance does the client's gender have in the decision-making?- Does the social worker's opinion about the law have any significance?- What factors can effect the social worker's interpretation and application of the law?- What importance do the social workers attach to prevailing norms about men and women when they interpret and apply the law?We chose to use a qualitative method to answer the above questions. Six social workers were interviewed and 39 LVM sentences were analysed.

Background: A group severely affected by health issues, the experiences of homeless alcohol and drug Abusers in the coverage of their medical care needs is not satisfactory. Aim: The aim of the study is to explore which factors experienced by homeless alcohol and drug Abusers in Uppsala in regards to their living situation affected their health, their perception of access to healthcare, the character of treatment received and coping strategies used outside of the healthcare system. Method: Nine people who had experienced both homelessness and substance abuse problem were recruited for the study during their visit to Stadsmissionens facilities for the homeless. Data was collected through qualitative, semi-structured interviews including two women and seven men. Data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis according to Giorgi modified by Malterud.Results: Among homeless substance Abusers interviewed experiences of unwelcoming and prejudiced healthcare were described.

This study is based on an observation of one of the biggest webcommunitys in Sweden today, called Lunarstorm. My main purpose was to research how young people use this media for talking about drug and alcohol-related subjects. The questions I posed were the following:- In which way do young people talk about drugs and alcohol on Lunarstorm?- What possibilities does Lunarstorm create for these questions?- How do the users relate to each other, regarding support for relatives to drug or alcohol-Abusers or own substance use?My method of collecting empirical data consisted of observation of the forum, and my method for analyzing the data was based on a discourse- analysis. Trough this I found that the media creates a way for young people to meet others with similar problems, both grown-ups and people of the same age.

This study uses qualitative research consisting of six semi-structural interviews of treatment workers who, in various capacities, have worked with men who use violence against their female partners. The purpose has been to show what the treatment counselor understand to be the reasons behind the men?s violence, what kind of backgrounds and problems they believe these Abusers have and, lastly, how they view the male Abusers as clients. The empirical data was analyzed through four perspectives and explanatory models derived from the past thirty years of Scandinavian research on the reasons behind men?s violence against women.

The aim of the study was to see how men and women taken into custody care byLVM were described in the sentences through a gender perspective. The aim wasalso to lay more focus on young substance Abusers and see in which extent youngsubstance Abusers are judged to institutional care through custody care by LVM.Through a documentary study of 77 LVM sentences in Småland in Sweden, theintention of the study was to see whether women and men are judged and treatedequally or if gender makes a difference and in which way the judgement is different?The questions are in witch extent men and women are judged to institutional carethrough custody care by LVM and how the social indication LVM 4 § 3 b) are usedin the sentences when it is younger men and women that are substance Abusers. Thestudy also covered a survey about how women and men are described in the sentencethrough a gender perspective and more focus is laid on younger substance Abusersunder 30 years old. The methodological approaches that were used in the study areboth qualitative and quantitative with focus on the qualitative method.

The purpose of this study was to explore the connection between substance abuse and completed/attempted suicide. Central questions were who the substance Abusers who commit suicidal actions were. The study also tries to find out which factors that contributes to this behaviour and why it is so common amongst substance Abusers. All from the point of view of three scientist and three persons working with treatment of addicts who were interviewed. The results of these interviews were analysed on an individual level with a psychological theory.

The purpose of this essay was to investigate affecting factors concerning social workers in social services assessments with cases of abuse. We wanted to see if social workers in social services tend to make different assessments of the need of substance Abusers care. Our survey was carried out as a vignettesurvey with complementary interviews as means to deepen the outcome results.Our survey showed that the included social workers in social services in some senses make different assessments when it comes to choice of effort put in for the client. We shed light on different factors and circumstances, which could bear meaning for the social workers in social services assessments. Examples of factors were the social workers in social services age, gender, working experience and attitude towards substance Abusers..

During the last few years the alcohol consumption has increased and is now the highest in 100 years, one usually count that 10 % of the grown up population abuse alcohol and/or drugs and most of them are hidden Abusers with families and work. This leads to great costs for the companies. But the much greater cost for the companies are the much larger group of risk Abusers. According to the Swedish law the employer has a responsibility for the work milieu and also for the rehabilitate for the employed and drug/alcohol abuse applies to this.I have done qualitative interviews on four companies in the south of Sweden with one representa-tive for the management and one representative for the union. I have investigated their attitudes to alcohol and drugs and how they describe the alcohol culture at the company.The companies define alcohol problems when they are established and obvious and when it is dis-covered they put in resources and because of this they don't work preventive so much.

The purpose of this essay is to examine how gender rolls influences the culture of substance abuse among women and their social situation. To demonstrate this we have concentrated our research to relate how scientists and the media describe problems of abuse among women. The method we used in our research was qualitative and we gathered information through literature, reports and articles.Our main questions are:Do the social attitude toward women and men differ and how does it affect problems of abuse among women? Do women use alcohol in a different way than men? How do social reactions and restrictions influence women? We also want to examine what position women substance Abusers have in society. What similarities or differences are there between the image of women in general and women with substance abuse?The main result of the study is that we found discursive connections that show a rectification among scientists concerning substance abuse among women.

The aim of this essay was to look into and compare the experiences and opinions about the practice of 13 § LVM among persons that, through their profession, use the law.The questions we have been asking were; what experiences and opinions the individuals have about the paragraph in general, what they think about the cases when no application for LVM is made after a client has been taken in charge as directed by 13 § LVM, and of the fact that the majority of cases of LVM are initiated by the same paragraph. Another question was how the individuals think about the legal security in connection to 13 § LVM.The methods used are qualitative and we have interviewed individuals from different fields of social work that comes in contact with drug Abusers.The findings from these studies include that care made out of the clients' free will is the main reason why an application is not made. It is also the reason to why many LVM initiates as directed by 13 § LVM for the reason that the districts above all try to help the clients without force. The economical aspects are repeatedly mentioned as another reason to the problems appeared in connection with 13 § LVM..

By comparing the experience off interaction in a life world with a drug habit and a life world without a drug habit you might find how they differ. We asked four former drug Abusers in four semi structured interviews to describe their experiences off interaction under these two circumstances. The difference between the two life worlds when it comes to interaction is that in the drug abusing life world our informants describe that communicative action has to stand back for a more goal oriented action. In the drug free life world, communicative action on the other hand is experienced as the most important action. The difference is about wether interaction is goal oriented or oriented at understanding.

By comparing the experience off interaction in a life world with a drug habit and a life world without a drug habit you might find how they differ. We asked four former drug Abusers in four semi structured interviews to describe their experiences off interaction under these two circumstances. The difference between the two life worlds when it comes to interaction is that in the drug abusing life world our informants describe that communicative action has to stand back for a more goal oriented action. In the drug free life world, communicative action on the other hand is experienced as the most important action. The difference is about wether interaction is goal oriented or oriented at understanding.

The purpose of this essay was a follow-up of four female drug Abusers with several mental problems ten years after my initial meeting with them at Korsaröds Behandlingshem. Using a qualitative method and interviews with the women, knowledge was obtained regarding their current vital conditions and their subjective experiences of the treatment at Korsaröd. Their perspective on the ethical as well as their desired relationship with staff within social services was also accounted for. When contacted the women lived a content and drug free life in their own flats. The women stayed at Korsaröd approximately five years, and they said that without the treatment they would not be alive today.