Simen Mørstad Johansen will defend his thesis “Human Rights and the Family Interest Triangle. Exploring the Conditions for Trust between parents and child protection in Norway and Romania” for the PhD in Social Sciences, specialization in Social Work and Social Policy.
The trial lecture and public defence will also be streamed live (oslomet.zoom.us).
Webinar ID: 660 8099 1868
The thesis is available here (nva.sikt.no).
Leader of the public defence: Head of department Anne-Britt Djuve, Department of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, OsloMet
This thesis explores how human rights shape the governance of family life and the conditions for trust between parents and child protection services in Norway and Romania, as embedded in national trust contexts. Anchored in the family-interest triangle of children, parents, and public institutions, it links the right to respect for family life to trust theory and the governance of expectations.
The study combines document analysis of law and policy with survey data on trust. It develops and applies an integrated human rights standard for parenting expectations, parenting support, and in-home measures. The findings show that neither country fully aligns governance with this standard. Norway follows a rights-oriented trajectory, but underarticulates parents’ rights and lacks rights-based parenting support. Romania’s frameworks appear rights-oriented on paper, yet are fragmented and unevenly implemented, and trust in CPS reflects the broader trust-and-confidence context.