Richard Gäddman Johansson
About me
I have a PhD in Sociology and am employed as Senior Lecturer in Social Work with a focus on Social Welfare and Sociology. I defended my thesis (monograph) at Uppsala University in 2021 with the title "Managing Vulnerability. Everyday Interaction in Sheltered Accommodations".
I have previously worked as Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Mälardalen University (2021), and between the spring of 2022 and fall of 2024 I was employed as Postdoctoral Researcher in Sociology with a focus on Working Life and Social Welfare, also at Mälardalen University.
I am a member of several research networks:
- KritFunk - the Swedish Network for Critical Disability Studies
- Network for Work-life Oriented Care Research
- Swedish Network on Disability Research
Teaching
I teach in the following courses:
- Disability, Diversity and Welfare: Policy, Social Services and Living Conditions (7.5 ECTS credits, advanced level)
- Research Planning (7.5 ECTS credits)
- Sexology I - Sexuality and Society (7.5 ECTS credits, advanced level)
- Social Work as a Knowledge Field (7.5 ECTS credits)
- Sociological and Social Psychological Perspectives in Social Work (7.5 ECTS credits)
- The Welfare State - an Introduction I (7.5 ECTS credits)
I also supervise BA students in Social Work.
Research
My main research interest concerns social and health care work, and the provision of support and services to people with intellectual disabilities. I am particularly interested in studying the dilemmas och opportunities for change that arise in the everyday tasks, encounters, and social interactions that this kind of care and support work entails. Additionally, I also have a scholarly interest in the possibilities for care recipients/service users and caregivers/support workers to exercise power and resistance in different institutional settings.
In general terms, my own research can be characterised as being positioned at the intersections of several areas of study, including social and health care, social welfare, work and organisation, and critical disability studies.
Ongoing research projects:
- Digital Daily Activity Centres. The Digital Leap Triggered by Covid-19 and its Future Consequences for Individuals with ID (Funded by Forte: Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare)
Publications
Articles (peer-reviewed)
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Engwall, K. (2024). Digital daglig verksamhet – utmaningar och möjligheter till digital inkludering för vuxna med intellektuell funktionsnedsättning. Socialvetenskaplig tidskrift, 31(1), 69-88. Doi: 10.3384/SVT.2024.311.4871
Bahner, J., Gäddman Johansson, R. & Svanelöv, E. (2024). Who Counts as a Sexual Subject? The Impact of Ableist Rhetoric for People with Intellectual Disability in Sweden. Sexuality Research & Social Policy, 21(1), 161-176. Doi:10.1007/s13178-023-0087-5
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Hellström Muhli, U. (2018). Developing Care Professionals: Changing Disability Services in Sweden. Professions & Professionalism, 8(2), e2017. Doi: 10.7577/pp.217
Monographs
Gäddman Johansson, R. (2021). Managing Vulnerability: Everyday Interaction in Sheltered Accommodations. Doctoral thesis, Uppsala University. Link to DiVA
Conference papers/presentations
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Engwall, K. (2024). ”With friends like these: Clashing vulnerabilities in facilitating meaningful activities through digital means for adults with intellectual disability”. 31st Nordic Sociological Association Conference – Sociology in a Digital World. Norrköping, Sweden (August 14-16). https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-68186
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Engwall, K. (2024). ”Digital daily activities: Opportunities and prospects of providing meaningful activities for adults with intellectual disabilities with the aid of ICT”. FORSA/NASSW International Conference on Social Work Research, Education, and Practice – Social Work as Emancipatory Practice. Creating Pathways towards Social Justice. Göteborg, Sweden (June 17-19). https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-68185
Gäddman Johansson, R. (2023). ”What do we do? What can we do?: Preliminary findings from a research project on digitally facilitating meaningful activities for adults with ID during the pandemic”. 16th Nordic Network on Disability Research (NNDR) Research Conference. Reykjavik, Iceland (May 10-12). https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-62554
Gäddman Johansson, R. (2022). ”Att hantera sårbarhet i vardagen under ett LSS i kris”. Sociologidagarna - Bortom krisen. Uppsala, Sweden (March 16-18). http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-57638
Hobé, A. & Gäddman Johansson, R. (2019). ”Comparing Teaching Tools and Issues between Unlikely Disciplines”. 8th International Geosciences Student Conference - Sharing Ideas. Responsibly Securing Natural Resources. Uppsala, Sweden (June 16-20). http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-387580
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Sépulchre, M. (2018). ”Remaining Close at a Distance: Negotiating Support and Service Provision at Housing with Special Services”. The Cultural Matters Group (CMG) Dis/Connection Symposium - Conflicts, activism and reciprocity online and beyond. Uppsala, Sweden (September 27-28). http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-362371
Gäddman Johansson, R. (2017). ”From Ambiguities to Opportunities: A review of research on care and intellectual and developmental disabilities”. 14th Nordic Network on Disability Research (NNDR) Research Conference - Living with disability. Örebro, Sweden (May 3-5). http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-313020
Gäddman Johansson, R. & Hellström Muhli, U. (2016). ”Developing Care Professionals: Possible Ramifications of Professional Projects within Swedish Disability Care Services”. 3rd International Sociological Association (ISA) Conference - The futures we want: Global sociology and the struggles for a better world. Vienna, Austria (July 10-14). http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-29937
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