| Summary: | The aim of this study is to examine how the role of the school counselor is negotiated and can be understood through the interaction with other professions at the school. This was done through observations of collaborative meetings concerning pupils with high problematic school absence and qualitative interviews with four school counselors. The theoretical framework of the study consists of a number of concepts associated with symbolic interactionism. Previous studies show that the profession as a school counselor is associated with weak state governance and vague descriptions of the assignment's practical meaning. This in combination with numerical disadvantage makes the school counselor's role sensitive to ambient expectations within the school organization. Accordingly, the present study shows that the role of school counselor takes different forms depending on the organization in question, as well as the school counselor's own perception of his- or herself in the role. The studie also show that the school counselors seem to put a great responsibility on themselves when it comes to conveying and standing up for the boundaries and meaning of their experienced assignment. As fundamental for the assignment, the school counselors see a preference for the pupil, which sometimes puts them in a position where they need to be critical of the educational organization, which can mean a vulnerability for them selfs in the role. At the same time, the school counselors describe this as an important function for the role and mean that it is part of their psychosocial competence to be able to respond to both educational personell and pupils from the individual's perspective and needs. They also see the openness of the assignment as enabling since they are allowed to adapt their work forms based on these needs as well as what they themselves attach importance to in the assignment.
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