Svenska politikers resonemang om äldres bästa. En kvalitativ analys av en politisk debatt beträffande äldrefrågor.

Sammanfattning: The issues concerning the health and social care for the elderly is a subject which needs to be dedicated more time. Increased life expectancy in Sweden places demands on an increased attention on issues concerning elderly care. The purpose of this study is to shed light on different perspectives on the best way to create dignified aging, according to politicians in the Swedish parliament. This to be able to assess the current discourse among Swedish politicians, since they essentially are the starting point for a course of action regarding the issues on health and social care for the elderly. The study is based on a qualitative discourse analysis of text materials, consisting of a parliamentary debate protocol. The protocol focuses on the latest debate regarding elderly issues which are brought up by the representatives of all the political parties in the Swedish parliament. Theoretically, the study departs from a constructivist approach based on Michael Foucault's theory of discourses and power. The study found that the right to self-determination features the utmost importance in politicians’ rhetoric concerning good elderly care and that the elderly are not a homogeneous group. With the politicians expressing the right to self-determination primarily on the basis of a positive aspect, a part of the group of elderly is made invisible. Therefore, a discussion about who is categorized as an elderly is essential in this context. The results of our study showed different types of power emerging in the debate. The politicians touched on economic power, the right to choose for oneself and organizational issues. The way the Swedish politicians chose to speak about the topics is what revealed power. That in itself, the way the politicians spoke about the elderly, led to the maintenance of the political discourse regarding the elderly.