JUSST: The Use of Data-Driven Technologies in Welfare Services
About the project
In this project we investigate the use of data-driven technologies in welfare services. We compare people who receive unemployment benefits with offenders under electronic monitoring in Norway and the Netherlands and focus on the way data-driven technologies are used and what sociotechnical imaginaries drive the introduction and implementation of data-driven technologies in welfare services.
We complement this with mobile ethnography where welfare recipients themselves collect and analyze data about their experiences with data-driven technologies (and surveillance) and to understand what a good use of data-driven technologies would mean for them. The project is a postdoctoral project.
You can read more about the project here: Can we strive for justice within surveillance systems? Introducing the JUSST Project – Nordic Research Council for Criminology
We would like to collaborate with master students interested in writing about this theme
Methods
Methods can be both qualitative and quantitative. My own project adheres to the principles of collaborative action research and is qualitative in nature, but I have sufficient knowledge of quantitative methods to supervise students who prefer this.
Possible research questions
Welfare conditionality: a comparison between Norway and the Netherlands
- How do Norway and the Netherlands implement welfare conditionality, and what are the key similarities and differences in their approaches?
- What are the social and economic impacts of welfare conditionality on vulnerable populations in Norway and the Netherlands?
- How do cultural attitudes towards welfare and work influence the design and acceptance of welfare conditionality in these two countries?
- To what extent does welfare conditionality affect long-term social mobility in Norway and the Netherlands?
- How do political ideologies shape the framing and execution of welfare conditionality in Norway and the Netherlands?
Risk predictions and social sorting in Norwegian welfare services
- How do predictive algorithms influence decision-making processes in Norwegian welfare services?
- What are the ethical implications of risk predictions for social sorting in the Norwegian welfare system?
- To what extent do risk prediction tools contribute to biases or inequalities in welfare service delivery in Norway?
- How are beneficiaries’ perceptions of fairness impacted by the use of risk predictions in Norwegian welfare services?
- What safeguards can be implemented to ensure transparency and accountability in the use of risk prediction tools within Norwegian welfare services?
Electronic monitoring of offenders in Norway
- What are the psychological and social effects of electronic monitoring on offenders and their families in Norway?
- What are the legal and ethical challenges associated with the implementation of electronic monitoring in Norway?
Relevant for
Social Work and Nordic Social Policy, Global Sustainable Development and MIS.
Number of students: 3
Contact person
Marijke Roosen, maroo2167@oslomet.no