Interpreting a client satisfaction survey on shared agency in plan-based practice at the welfare office

Abstract

Client satisfaction surveys are criticized for their tendency to generate positive feedback. This is probably due to the prevailing practice of interpreting the results in a routine manner. In this article I compare distance-oriented and methodconscious interpretation. I favour method-conscious interpretation, which utilizes accrued knowledge of the systematic skewness of information collected through a client satisfaction survey. It also pays attention to the way in which the studied phenomenon's special features, situation, and context affect the results. The operationalization of this survey has been guided by the ideal of shared agency in plan-based practice. The concept of plan-based practice refers to goal-and change-oriented, structured, and phased practice. Shared agency emphasizes dialogical, collaborative, and joint agency between the client and the worker in a helping process. When combined, these ideals lead to joint and systematic action by the client and worker. The combination of plan-based practice and shared agency emphasizes the presence of the client's views and actions in the process of getting help. The ideal holds that the client and worker share the assessment, goalsetting, and choice of working methods associated with a change-oriented working mode. I demonstrate that even if client feedback seems to indicate satisfaction, a method-conscious interpretation provides a more viable way to apply the results to organizing services. The study's data includes client satisfaction feedback (3036 instances) received by welfare offices in Lapland. The client feedback is in the form of experiential self-evaluation of received services immediately after the service events.

Language as a cultural mediator in social work: Supporting Sámi culture with services in Sámi

“…Two-fifths (42%) of the Sámi surveyed assessed the availability of services as poor (nationally 16%). Only 1 in 10 considered availability as good if one applies the methodologically aware interpretation presented by Liisa Hokkanen (2012). She argues that the hesitation included in the option 'rather good' is not the same as 'very good', and, accordingly only an unreserved 'very good' can be accepted as meaning good availability:…”

Client participation in medical rehabilitation for adults with severe disabilities

“…The share of negative answers was low. Edwards, Staniszweska, and Crichton (2004) and Hokkanen (2012) have warned against making too positive interpretations out of satisfaction results. Reported satisfaction may in such situations reflect more the positive value attached to receiving services in general than genuine satisfaction with how the services were implemented.…”

Individual, Group and Organised Experiential Expertise in Recovery from Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health Problems in Finland

“…This was done even though it was evi-15 dent that some of the associations would not be able to convene or otherwise organise the distribution of the questionnaire during the responding period. Personal and social empowerment as a shared, change-oriented and strengths-based process was considered when forming the questions concerning the resources, methods and outcomes of 20 EE-based activities (Hur, 2006;Hokkanen, 2012Hokkanen, , 2014a. The questionnaire was constructed and piloted with twenty-one active members of the target population, seven employees of the associations and two senior researchers of the topic.…”

“…In group EE, personal experiences were taken to the group level, which constructs and strengthens personal, shared and proxy agency (Roth, 2004;Hokkanen, 2012;Loumpa, 2012;J€ arvikoski et al, 2013). Three of 25 the resources (Q2) found useful in acting as an expert by experience were related to cultivating individual EE and turning it into group EE: participating in activities (64 per cent found it extremely important), absorbing skills from peers (50 per cent) and absorbing skills from professionals (42 per cent).…”