Neoliberal Steering in Swedish Integration Policy: The Rise and Fall of Introduction Guides

Authors

  • Gustav Lidén Department of Social Science, Mid Sweden University, Sweden
  • Jon Nyhlén Department of Political Science, Stockholm University, Sweden
  • Sara Nyhlén Department of Social Science, Mid Sweden University, Sweden

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.v23i1.8677

Keywords:

quasi-markets, integration policy, private, public, governance

Abstract

In the past decades, many policy sectors within European countries have encountered political reforms of neoliberal character. One of the key shifts has been the reorientation of public employment services that has been enforced, for example, through the establishment of what have been denoted as quasi-markets. Simultaneously with the rise of quasi-markets, welfare policy as a whole, including integration policy, has beenincreasingly oriented toward “activation”, with its focus on the individual’s obligationsand duties in relation to welfare services. These circumstances pose particular challenges to those charged with the governance of welfare services due to increasingly complex requirements for collaboration and control involving a multitude of actors. The reform is an example of a hybrid system where for- and non-profit actors compete for the“customer”, in this case, the newly arrived immigrant. This article focuses on the changes in Swedish integration reform as an archetype of these changes and studies a clearly defined case study. Empirically, this study draws from both documents and interviews. The article illustrates an unregulated and ill-monitored policy containing a model that comprises mixed modes of steering. The governance of the reform bears traits from both centralist and cooperative forms of governance and, thereby, involves competing philosophies of steering.

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Author Biographies

Gustav Lidén, Department of Social Science, Mid Sweden University, Sweden

Gustav Lidén has a PhD in Political Science (2011) and is an Associate Professor at the Department of Social Sciences at Mid Sweden University. Lidén’s research focus is directed towards migration and integration issues that derive from the local level. Within this field he has previously been published in Policy Studies, Journal of Refugee Studies and Scandinavian Political Studies.

Jon Nyhlén, Department of Political Science, Stockholm University, Sweden

Jon Nyhlén has a PhD in Political Science (2011) and is Associate Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science at Stockholm University. Nyhlén’s research focus on local politics and involves migration and integration policy. Within this field he has previously been published in Policy Studies, Journal of Refugee Studies and Scandinavian Political Studies.

Sara Nyhlén, Department of Social Science, Mid Sweden University, Sweden

Sara Nyhlén has a PhD in Political Science (2013) and is Assistant Professor at the Department of Social Sciences at Mid Sweden University. Her research is carried out in the field of public administration and governance with a special interest for gender. She has recently been published in Policy & Politics and Policy Studies.

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Published

2019-03-15

How to Cite

Lidén, G., Nyhlén, J., & Nyhlén, S. (2019). Neoliberal Steering in Swedish Integration Policy: The Rise and Fall of Introduction Guides. Scandinavian Journal of Public Administration, 23(1), 23–40. https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.v23i1.8677

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Section

Original Articles

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