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Comparing the Effects of Governmental and Local Family Intervention Projects on Social Work Practices in Norway: A Cluster-Randomised Study

Year: 2020
Type: article
Abstract: Increased child poverty in Europe has urged the need for poverty alleviating measures, such as family intervention projects. In this project, family coordinators follow-up low-income families on multiple areas. The cluster-randomised evaluation compares effects of governmental and local family intervention projects on social work practices in Norway. Of the twenty-nine participating Labour and Welfare offices, fifteen were randomised to the experimental condition and received the governmental model for comprehensive follow-up (HOLF) model, including manuals, schemes for follow-up work and supervision structures. The fourteen offices randomised to the control group developed local models for the follow-up. The data comprise baseline (n = 58) and eighteen-month follow-up questionnaires to family coordinators. Effects on goal-focused meetings, relational skills, empowering and comprehensive follow-up processes and the coordination of services were measured. After adjusting for the nested structure of the data in a two-level model, the findings demonstrate that family coordinators from experimental group offices achieved more goal-focused meetings (p < 0.001) and demonstrated more relational skills (p = 0.011), compared to family coordinators from control group offices. Results demonstrate that the HOLF model increased the quality of the follow-up when compared to locally developed family intervention projects. The findings are discussed in the context of social work with families in poverty.
DOI: 10.1093/bjsw/bcaa003
Language: English
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,492
OpenAlex ID: W3034800320
FWCI: 3.558
Cites: 18
Cited by: 6
Related to: 10