Artiklen bygger på et kvalitativt studie af babysimulatorforløb i Danmark og belyser, hvordan de fagprofessionelle forsøger at balancere mellem idealet om borgerens frie vilje og den magt, som uvilkårligt ligger i skulle prøve at påvirke marginaliserede borgere til at træffe bestemte valg om forældreskab. Artiklen tydeliggør også, hvordan de fagprofessionelle i deres ageren ikke blot er styret af det socialpædagogiske felts idéer om det rigtige forældreskab, men også forholder sig kritisk og refleksiv til egen praksis. I dette komplekse arbejde bliver babysimulatoren et kraftfuldt styringsredskab, der gennem simuleret rollespil og »objektive« vidensdata leder deltagerne til (frivilligt) at træffe ansvarsfulde valg om et fremtidigt forældreskab, hvorfor en mere brutal og direkte magtanvendelse kan undgås. ENGELSK ABSTRACT Vivi Friis Søgaard: The baby simulator as a pedagogical guidance technique. On power and free will in social programs with marginalized youth Social robots such as the baby simulator are used by professionals to guide, monitor and regulate marginalized people in becoming competent parents. This article is based on a qualitative study of baby simulator programs in Denmark, and illustrates how professionals try to balance the ideal of the citizen’s free will with the power necessary to influence marginalized citizens in making »the right« decision. The article shows how control techniques like role-play, the use of electronic data, narratives and dream scenarios become new ways of guiding the participants to (voluntarily) make responsible choices about their future parenthood. In addition, the article focuses on how professionals reflect about their use of the baby simulator as a tool of power, and if it is ethically appropriate to let pregnant women participate in the program, since participation might lead these women to choose abortion. Keyword: Parenthood, baby simulator program, power, the free choice, leaning tolls, ethical dilemma

When longing for motherhood causes concernThis article provides insights into how marginalized women’s motherhood, both historically and today, is a key concern for welfare interventions. More specifically, the article explores how notions of ‘appropriate motherhood’ shape welfare professionals’ use of baby simulators as an educational tool to train and guide the practices of marginalized women eager to become mothers. The article is based on material collected through a qualitative study of baby simulator interventions in Denmark. This includes interviews with welfare professionals as well as ethnographic observations of intervention practices. The findings demonstrate how notions of appropriate motherhood, informing welfare interventions, have shifted historically from moral toward more riskoriented understandings. Furthermore, the findings show that welfare professionals use the baby simulators to promote an ideal of appropriate motherhood, which is based on middle-class notions of care, self-control, independence, and labor market success.

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