Marte Tonning Otterlei

Marte Tonning Otterlei is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of Stavanger, affiliated with the Faculty of Social Sciences. Her work focuses on child welfare systems, parental experiences in care proceedings, and dialogue-based decision-making processes. She holds a PhD in Social Work and has extensive experience in qualitative research methodologies.

Key research interests include family reunification dynamics, communication practices during care transitions, and systemic challenges faced by child welfare workers. Her work emphasizes understanding the emotional and psychological impact of state interventions on families, particularly through positional analysis frameworks.

Recent publications explore innovative dialogue processes for reunification after care orders, grief management in child removal contexts, and the ethical dimensions of parental notification systems. She has contributed to international conferences on child welfare equity and social justice issues.

Media engagement includes analyses of terminology's impact on care removal perceptions and studies on worker isolation in high-stress cases. Her 2022 monograph Perspektiver på omsorgsovertakelser synthesizes findings from multiple studies on care transition processes. Collaborations include work with Redd Barna on child participation initiatives.

Research outputs emphasize actionable insights for improving family participation, worker well-being, and systemic empathy in child welfare practices. Current projects address communication frameworks for difficult conversations in care proceedings.