Signs and early identification among young children: Professionals' perceptions of the GIRFEC model in Swedish municipalities

Abstract

There is an ongoing introduction of models inspired by the Scottish model Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) in several places in Sweden that includes all organisations that cater to children and young people. It is a national approach to improve the wellbeing based on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and is based on ideas regarding children's welfare and social rights. It emphasizes early intervention, prevention practices, and fostering partnership working among services and families. This study aims to elucidate how professionals working with infants and pre-schoolers in municipalities where the GIRFEC model has been implemented perceive the concept of early identification, which children should be identified and offered support or intervention, how this is motivated/why this should be done, and what kind of support or intervention identified children should be offered. The research addresses three primary questions: (1) What signs form the basis for the identification of children, and more specifically, what signs in terms of the children’s own behaviours and/or life situation form the basis for early identification. (2) How do professionals understand the signals that have been picked up? (3) What are the perceptions of professionals of positive and/or negative consequences of early detection?

The study employs a qualitative approach, collecting data through individual face-to-face interviews with 13 informants from different organizations using a semi-structured interview guide. Data was collected from three municipalities, primarily consisting of small towns (up to 30,000 citizens) and rural areas. Preliminary analyses and results are presented.