University of Gothenburg
University of Gothenburg
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Rakel Berman

SENIOR LECTURER

Department of Social
Work
Mail
rakel.berman@socwork.gu.se
Visiting address
Sprängkullsgatan 25
41123 Göteborg
Postal address
Box 720
40530 Göteborg

About Rakel Berman

Professional background Previous to my doctoral studies I have been working as a social worker. My professional focus has been mainly on social work practice with adolescents and their families.

Research interests

  • Dual residence / shared residence / joint physical custody
  • Post-divorce childhood and the post-separation care of children
  • Family practices
  • Children and childhood
  • Families and relationships
  • Changing family forms

PhD project Children’s Experiences of Dual Residence in Sweden

Dual-residence arrangements, where children split their time equally between their divorced or separated parents, have increased in many western countries in recent times. This study explores Swedish co-parented children’s narratives about their residential arrangements and dual-residence practices. The aim is to explore these children’s day-to-day experiences of sharing their time between two households. It focuses on how the children actively participate in the process of shaping family life and their own childhoods in the context of family change. How do they frame their family life, their leisure and their friendships while belonging to two families and moving between two households? How do they take part in decision making related to their living arrangement?

The study is based on qualitative in-depth interviews with about 20 co-parented children aged nine to eighteen. The starting point is a perspective where children are seen as social actors, involved in interactions, negotiations and the construction of their social worlds. The theoretical framework is based on childhood sociology, as well as the theoretical concepts of participation, family practices and doing family.