Doctoral Candidate Florence Wieder

I am a German-French ethnologist and social worker, currently pursuing my PhD at Heidelberg University in the Department of Ethnologie. My research focuses on expectations in child protection and is based on ethnographic fieldwork within the General Social Services (Allgemeiner Sozialer Dienst, ASD) of a German Youth Welfare Office (Jugendamt).

I hold a Bachelor’s degree in International Social Work from Ludwigsburg and a Master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Heidelberg University. My work is grounded in an interdisciplinary approach that brings together social work practice and ethnological analysis.

Alongside my doctoral research, I work as a district social worker (Bezirkssozialarbeiterin). This dual position enables me to combine practitioner knowledge with analytical distance and to examine institutional processes from within. It provides unique insights into the dynamics of child protection, while also raising important methodological and ethical questions concerning my role as both practitioner and researcher.

My research explores how expectations are produced, negotiated, and stabilized in child protection, and how they shape institutional practices and social relations. I engage with theoretical perspectives from anthropology and social theory, particularly approaches to value, expectations, and communication.