Challenges in recognizing and facilitating disclosures of intimate partner violence in customer service calls about maintenance support

Abstract

Separated parents in Sweden need to sort out child maintenance themselves unless there are ‘special reasons’, such as experiences of intimate partner violence (IPV), in which case the Swedish Social Insurance Agency (SSIA) may function as an intermediary. In such cases, the parent must disclose their experiences for institutional assessment. This study uses conversation analysis (CA) to examine 132 phone calls between parents and SSIA officers, examining how parental conflict and possible violence is brought up and responded to. The analysis shows how parents describe cooperative problems in non-specific terms, incrementally adding information that makes possible violence inferentially available, rendering it difficult for case officers to distinguish IPV from post-separation conflicts. Case officers typically respond minimally and do not encourage further tellings, which means that IPV may go unnoticed. The study highlights the need for training in how to recognize possible IPV and how to facilitate such disclosures.