Young people's opinions, attitudes and participation : A study concerning the voice of young people in court processes regarding compulsory care

In light of Sweden ratifying the United Nations Convention on the rights of the child, Swedish law supports the right for children to express their opinions and have their voice heard in situations concerning them. The aim of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of young people’s participation, by investigating how young people’s opinions and attitudes are taken into account in decision making concerning the lack of care shown in 2§ The Compulsory Care of Young Persons Act (1990:52). To explore this subject, this study was based on the textual analysis of 16 court cases from the administrative court from the year 2016, concerning young people aged between 15-18 years old. We found that young people’s opinions and attitudes are generally taken into account in the process of compulsory care. Our results indicate that young people’s opinions and attitudes are taken into account to a higher extent in the whole legal process when the decision of the administrative court corresponds with the young person’s opinion and attitude. In cases where the court’s decision did not correspond with the young person’s opinion and attitude, the opinions and attitudes of children were taken into account to a lesser degree. Our analysis has shown, according to the Ladder of Participation, that all young people can be seen as participators in the process of compulsory care. However, children’s participation is a complex phenomenon and additional research is needed to unpack this subject further