Research into Norwegian child welfare since World War II reveals an ambiguous picture; the intervention of the State in family life signals both tightening social control of all family members and emancipation of the less powerful from patriarchal rule. As the rights and needs of children are considered more important, the control of parents, especially the mother, is increased. The central position of children and their interests have been strengthened in child welfare legislation. However, it is not the child but rather child welfare officials who define what is in the best interest of the child, and child welfare legislation is still mainly paternalistic. In child welfare casework, there is a danger that the lived experience of the child never emerges from the shadows cast by the interaction between adults. In relation to older children who came in contact with child welfare primarily because of their own problem behavior, the ambiguity of emancipation and social control has taken a somewhat different shape. Authorities aim to keep children out of prison, and humanitarian considerations have been coupled with hopes of more effective crime prevention. Problem children have also been affected by the increasing importance of the best interest of the child as the main objective in child welfare decisions. In order to secure both emancipation and social control, the best interest of the child and the State's interest in preventing crime have to be understood as one and the same. 15 references