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Abstract
This article considers competing conceptions of knowledge within Swedish social work education often presented as incompatibles. However, in this article we find commonalities and differences in these conceptions of knowledge. The analysis relies on written materials about Swedish social work education and concentrates on three developmental phases in time: the establishment of the first social worker programme, the establishment of social work as an academic discipline and the current situation. It shows how competing conceptions of knowledge try to respond to societal and academic demands in different ways.
Notes
[1] The Institute was established in 1920 and the first social work programme started in 1921.
[2] Their influence can in part be understood against the backdrop of Sweden being a highly centralised society, but also the fact that all higher education is supported by the state. In Sweden you do not find universities at different administrative levels or any private universities.
[3] Parallel to this institutionalised education, several important religious organisations established educational activities for their voluntary social workers (Fjällbäck Holmgren, Citation1925).
[4] The new Social Services Act (Socialtjänstlag 1980:602) was implemented on 1 January 1982 when it replaced the Act on Addiction Care (Lagen 1954:578 om nykterhetsvård), The Social Benefits Act (Lagen 1956:2 om socialhjälp), and The Child Care Act (Barnavårdslagen 1960:97). It was abolished on 31 December 2001.