Den vetenskapande socialtjänsten

- hur en social medieplattform kan göra vardagens verkstad till vetenskap.

Abstract

The scientific social service – how a social media platform can turn the everyday work into science.

Here the aim is to describe and reflect on how the value-creating science method and its digital tool Loop Me (social media platform) have been implemented in a research project. The research project aimed to explore collaboration processes and working methods that social services designed for internal and external collaboration in relation to labour market integration and reduced income support. A further aim within the research project was to understand how collegial learning unfolded. Common to both researchers and practitioners was a desire to try an interactive research method that gave the opportunity to understand how the collaboration- and development process developed over time through employee reflection in relation to given assignments/situations. The article thus does not focus on the research questions in the project, but on the usability of the method and the type of data that was the basis for various qualitative analyses within an organisational working life context. The researchers and practitioners have chosen to adapt the method somewhat to work for the specific context in which the research study was carried out. We reflect on what we adapted, why and how, and conclude that the method leaves room for context-specific adaptations, which previous studies on interactive research methods have shown to be significant for implementation.