Stress i socialt arbete
- en risk för utbrändhet?
The purpose of this study was to investigate how social workers who worked with financial assistance perceived their work situation and the impact work-related stress had on their health and quality of work. Further, the study intended to find out if they felt that they received support from their employer that could prevent stress-related sick leave. The following two research questions were to be answered: In what way does work-related stress affect social workers? health and job quality according to their own experience? What kind of support and help experienced social workers were available within their organization? To receive answers to the questions semi-structured interviews with five social workers were conducted, analyzed and interpreted. The results showed that when social workers have a heavy case burden, high stress and a risk of deteriorated job quality occurred. Furthermore, support from managers and the organization was essential in order to continue working without getting burned out. The private life was of great importance for being able to relax from work and to collect one?s thoughts. The work required a strong mind, big organizational ability and flexibility as the work is quite autonomous with a freedom of action. A conclusion was that those working with financial assistance have increased risk of becoming burned out. Keywords: Work-related stress, financial assistance, physical and mental stress, Empowerment.