The research group “Participating Children and Youth” is an interdisciplinary team engaged in research, development work, knowledge advancement, and dissemination. The group investigates questions related to children’s and young people’s participation within child welfare, preventive work, inclusion of minorities, as well as communication, collaboration, and conversation methods based on children’s age and capacities. The research group is organizationally affiliated with the Department of Social Work at NTNU.

Children’s right to participation in matters concerning them is anchored in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and Norwegian law. Regardless of age, children have the right to participate, and the varying prerequisites for participation challenge professionals in their approaches. Professionals’ perspectives on children, power dynamics, asymmetry, and the context of participation can impact the realization of children’s and young people’s rights. The research group is particularly concerned with these aspects.

The group collaborates with partners nationally and internationally and is involved in the “Children’s Rights in Practice, Special Interest Group” (SIG).
Additionally, they have developed a Ph.D. course titled “Perspectives on Collaboration with Children,” offered at the Department of Social Work, NTNU, and the University of Stavanger.

• Samhandling om og med barn og unge i krevende livssituasjoner
• Barn som samarbeidspartnere i barnevernsarbeid

• Panda - Participation and Collaboration for Action

• Salkauskiene, I., Wilson, S., Gresdahl, M., Juul, R. (2023). Children’s experiences of collaborative relationship with child welfare and protection professionals in Norway: a state-of-the-art review
• Gresdahl, M., Fauske, H. & Storhaug, A. (2023). Predictors of child participation in child welfare emergency placements – A Norwegian case file study.  Child & Family Social Work.
• Husby, I. S. D., Slettebø, T., & Juul, R. (2018). Partnerships with children in child welfare: The importance of trust and pedagogical support. Child and Family Social Work, 23(3), 443-450. 
• Husby, I. S. D., Kiik, R., & Juul, R. (2019). Children’s encounters with professionals–recognition and respect during collaboration. European Journal of Social Work, 22(6), 987-998. 
• Juul, R., & Husby, I. S. D. (2020). Collaboration and conversations with children in Child Welfare Services —Parents' viewpoint. Child and Family Social Work, 25(S1), 9-17.
• Kvello, Ø. (2021). A child friendly supervision: Inviting children to participate. I O. Ness, S. McNamee & Ø. Kvello (red.), Relational work and supervision of therapists and counsellors. London: Palgrave.
• Kvello, Ø. (2021). Samtaler med barn og ungdom: Medvirkning, kommunikasjon og metoder. Bergen: Fagbokforlaget. (Dansk versjon; Kvello, Ø. (2024). Samtaler med børn og unge. Inndragelse, kommunikation og metoder. Frederiksberg: Samfundslitteratur).