Tonårsrevolt eller hedersproblematik? En kvalitativ studie om socialsekreterares definitioner och interventioner i ärenden med hedersproblematik

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this essay was to study what knowledge and understanding social workers think they have when it comes to honor-related problems and how they handle cases with these issues. We made a qualitative study and interviewed six social workers who work with young people and honor issues. We also did an interview with Maria Hagberg, who is a main figure and author in the field. To analyze the collected material, we used the theories of social constructures and ethnocentrism, since traditions are created and shape our values in different cultures and change over time and space. Honor-related problems are a relatively new phenomenon that didn´t receive their generic term until after the murder of Fadime Sahindal 2002. In the initial meetings with the girl, the social worker must determine whether the issue is a rebellion teenager protesting against rules or if it is a matter of honor-related issues. The social workers mentioned important terms like control, social restrictions and virginity. We found that one strong reason for the girls to seek help from social services was that they are threatened by forced marriage and that the family and relatives want to punish her if she refuses. The punishment is sanctioned by the relatives and must be accomplished to restore the honor. The most important matter to the social workers was to protect the girl and only then contact the family. The social workers pointed out that these are difficult cases that require knowledge and life experience, but also a lot of support from colleagues and other participants in society. Keywords: honor, virginity, forced marriage, social constructions, ethnocentrism, social worker