Overview

This open access book offers a comprehensive review of the deinstitutionalisation process in the Nordic countries and its long-term developments from 1960 to 2020. Challenging the popular idea of deinstitutionalisation as a “mission accomplished” in this region, it heralds discussion about how the relocation process has unfolded and what consequences it has had for people with intellectual disabilities in practice. It presents a compelling narrative of the history and the current status of services for people who moved out of institutions to live in the community and discusses to what extent the intentions have been achieved. Retracing the conceptualisation of normalisation in the 1960s and the new wave of deinstitutionalisation in Norway and Sweden in the 1980s and 1990s, this collection discusses how dismantling of institutions came to the forefront of the political agenda. It scrutinises the drivers of change in policies and practices for persons with intellectual disabilities, exploring changing ideologies, political goals, and service developments in the context of more general policy developments in the Nordic region. Leading experts in the field unveil the complex dynamics between ideologies, policies, practices, and contexts to challenge and reconsider lessons learned in the past fifty years from the Nordic experience. A ‘must read’ for students and researchers interested in disability studies, intellectual disability, social policy, social work, special care nursing, rehabilitation, as well as professionals, policymakers and stakeholders.

Full Product Details

Author:   Jan Tøssebro ,  Anders Gustavsson
Publisher:   Springer International Publishing AG
Imprint:   Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN:  

9783031916519

ISBN 10:   3031916514
Pages:   276
Publication Date:   02 August 2025
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  College/higher education ,  Professional & Vocational ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Introduction (Jan Tøssebro and Anders Gustavsson).- Chapter 2. Normalisation 60 years beyond – the developments and current status in the Nordic countries (Jan Tøssebro, Inge S. Bonfils, Antti Teittinen, Magnus Tideman and Rannveig Traustadóttir).- Chapter 3. International ideas, ideologies and pioneers of disability reform (Rannveig Traustadóttir).- Chapter 4. Did the institutions really disappear? The Norwegian deinstitutionalisation reform in retrospect (Johans Tveit Sandvin).- Chapter 5. The symbolic power of residential architecture (Inge Storgaard Bonfils and Anne Kathrine Frandsen).- Chapter 6. New social roles and identifications (Anders Gustavsson).- Chapter 7. Living with intellectual disabilities in Sweden: individualisation, negotiation, local variation, categorisation and self-advocacy (Magnus Tideman).- Chapter 8. Housing services for persons with intellectual disabilities and recent structural changes in the Finnish welfare state (Antti Teittinen).- Chapter 9. Personal assistance for persons with intellectual disabilities – experiences and challenges in the Nordic welfare states (Ole Petter Askheim).- Chapter 10. Drivers of change in policies for persons with intellectual disabilities, 1960-2020 (Jan Tøssebro).- Chapter 11. Dignity - The result of the past and the challenge of the future (Mårten Söder).- Chapter 12. Progressing beyond institutional closure to a good life for people with intellectual disabilities – reflecting on the Nordic countries (Christine Bigby).- Chapter 13. Deinstitutionalising without disaffiliating, or how to preserve the power to act. (Isabelle Ville-Ravaud).- Chapter 14. Editors’ reflections (Anders Gustavsson and Jan Tøssebro).

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Author Information

Jan Tøssebro is Professor Emeritus at NTNU Social Research in Trondheim, Norway. He has published widely in areas such as disability policy, living conditions of disabled people, and inclusion. He has been a member of public committees on disability policy and chaired the Norwegian State Council on Disability.  Anders Gustavsson is Professor Emeritus in Education at Stockholm University, Sweden. He has published widely in special education and the lived experiences of persons with intellectual disabilities. He has been guest professor at Ecoles des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris.

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