Ellen Syrstad

Ellen Syrstad completed her doctorate at VID, at the Center for Diakonia and Professional Practice with the dissertation: Understanding the incomprehensible: the meeting between parents who have been deprived of the care of their children, family welfare and child welfare in 2020. This was a qualitative interview study where parents who had been deprived of the care of their children and therapists from family welfare were followed through several interviews. Her master's study was also carried out at VID, in family therapy and systemic practice where family welfare was explored through focus groups and fieldwork.

Syrstad has worked at the Faculty of Social Sciences since 2013, and teaches both at bachelor's level, several continuing education programs in child welfare and at master's level in social work and child welfare. She is also jointly responsible for the continuing education in conflict and conflict management. Syrstad is currently researching family reunification after care takeover, where she interviews parents, children, foster parents and case workers in child welfare about their experiences with reunification. Parallel to this, she is conducting a review study in the same field. She is also the editor of two ongoing book projects: Neglect and care takeover, as well as an anthology on conflict and conflict management in close relationships. From January 2023, she will be the editor of the journal Fokus på familien.