Child & Family Social Work最新文献

Researchers have paid little attention to child supervision in Laos, an ethnically-diverse country with a community-informal child protection system, and where many young children are regularly home alone or with another child. To explore what constitutes (in)adequate child supervision and its perceived effects, we conducted individual interviews with community leaders and professionals (n = 23) and focus group discussions with parents/adult caregivers (n = 74) and 12–17 year-old children (n = 51) in six rural villages in Saravane and Borikhamxay provinces. Adults and children in both provinces described similar understandings and support systems of child supervision. Mothers are the main caregivers of young children, and literate fathers contribute to supervising school-age children. Grandparents, older siblings and other relatives, teachers, and village authorities contribute substantively to child supervision. The main aims of supervision are child safety, socialization and moral development in cultural context. Parental unavailability due to employment, farming and migration; limited infrastructure; and lack of material resources are the main barriers to adequate supervision and may result in injuries, school dropout, teenage pregnancy and illicit drug use. Understanding the determinants, consequences, and patterns of child supervision across cultural and socio-economic groups is needed to inform culturally acceptable strategies to support children and families.

Child to parent violence (CPV) is a form of family violence that has seen a growth in research attention over the past decade. However, little research has examined how this problem is understood by those outside of academia. This is despite recognition that public understandings of a particular social problem shape the landscape in which that problem plays out. To address this research gap, we analysed data from 463 public comments posted on YouTube in response to four UK news broadcasts that reported on the problem. Using a discourse analytic approach, we examined how posted comments framed the cause of, and solutions to, CPV. While a range of causes were identified, the posts predominantly blamed the parents, mobilizing child development discourses to attribute the cause of CPV to either parental use of violence, or to a lack of parental violence, towards children. The solutions offered reflect a penal populism that supports extremely punitive sanctions against children who engage in CPV. This study suggests that public campaign and education initiatives need to do more than raise public awareness about CPV—they must also inform the public about how broader social policy operates in relation to children, families and the state.

Scholars and advocates are at odds about how to achieve higher levels of child safety and permanency. Calls for change include the recent upEND focus on eradication of child welfare services to a radical refocusing of the present system towards prevention/early intervention. To clarify the implications of reform over abolition, we seek to portray a future in which the abolition of child welfare has occurred, in juxtaposition to maintaining four core elements of established child maltreatment programmes around the world: (1) receiving and responding to community signals about the risk to children; (2) assessment of need coupled with a proportionate response; (3) rights protections to ensure fairness when placement outside the family is required; and (4) procedures for accountability and quality improvement. For each of these functions, we outline abolitionist advocates' positions and implications for children and parents. Across these elements, we delineate how assigning these responsibilities to communities, as suggested by upEND, would likely (1) exaggerate racial and economic inequities and (2) create structural barriers that would increase harm to children. We suggest several evidence-informed enhancements to practice, research and policy that would mitigate these inequities while also increasing safety and permanency.

The Treatment Programme for Families with Children in Andalusia is fundamentally aimed at promoting the integral development of children and adolescents through the strengthening of parental competences and family preservation strategies. In the last 20 years, this programme has been applied to over 75 000 families, involving about 150 000 children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of this family intervention programme on the quality of life and behaviour problems of the children. This quasi-experimental and longitudinal study had two non-randomized groups (intervention group and comparison group) and two evaluation measures (pre-treatment and post-treatment). The intervention group was constituted by 297 families (540 children) who had participated in the programme. The comparison group consisted of 95 families (138 children) at a similar risk level, although these families had not participated in the programme. The results showed a significant improvement in the quality of life of the children of the families that belonged to the intervention group, which was significantly greater than the evolution detected in the children of the families that belonged to the comparison group. The results of efficacy and efficiency of this type of practice constitute a quality criterion of evidence-based programmes and a requirement to maintain public investment.

According to government data, there is a slow decline in foster care in Italy, especially for teenagers, caused by an insufficient number of available foster families. The need to provide an intense stimulus to foster care is evident. This study conducted individual qualitative interviews with 126 foster parents of teenagers, transcribed and analysed using Atlas.ti software. Valuable indications for social services were individuated. The importance of the foster parents' intrinsic motivations and the suggestion for social services to emphasize them in the recruitment campaigns were reaffirmed. The appropriateness of directing the proposal towards foster parents with previous experience in parenting, foster parenting or working with teenagers was also confirmed. Additionally, results revealed that foster parents connected to foster parents' associations/networks and religious groups are preferred. The importance of the relationship between foster parents and social services and suitable support for the ongoing fostering is pivotal. Establishing a relationship based on trust and the diffusion of the foster care invitation through testimonies and word-of-mouth was also highlighted. The initiatives promoting spaces and occasions for teens needing foster care and potential candidates for fostering to meet them have promising outcomes.

Child safeguarding services intervene when a child is at risk of serious emotional or physical harm. Oxfordshire County Council is implementing a new approach to child safeguarding (Family Solutions Plus [FSP]) with a greater focus on whole family support and reducing the need for foster care. We sampled two cohorts of children closed within 1 year and examined the time spent in services. The sample included 474 children entering services before the new model's implementation and 561 children after. A greater proportion of children receiving FSP required a single care plan before their case was closed (85.9%; 69.4%, p < 0.001) and only experienced the lowest level plan (74.5%; 61.8%, p < 0.001). On average, this group spent less time in services for the period being observed (MD = 17.58, 95% confidence interval = 6.19, 28.96). At this early stage, no significant reduction in the number of children requiring foster care was seen (5.5%; 3.9%, p = 0.23). These initial findings suggest a potential association of FSP with a reduced number and level of care plans as well as length of time. Local authorities in England may investigate further whether FSP is a potentially useful model in improving safeguarding services.

This paper uses critical realism to identify mechanisms that activate successful relationships. It draws data from a longitudinal, mixed-methods study of youth who used multiple services. It examines functionality of four relational mechanisms: power, recognition, responsiveness and mutuality that lead to positive change and explores the implications of these for practice with youth with complex needs.

Fatherhood interventions have emerged as significant tools for strengthening father identity and parenting skills. Despite the growing evidence of the effectiveness and benefits of these interventions for fathers and their families, there are limited studies on fathers' and providers' perspectives and experiences with the implementation of father-based interventions. To fill this gap, we explore the unique experiences of the Black and Latino programme staff and fathers in the implementation of the 24/7 Dad® intervention. Qualitative data were collected between October 2021 and February 2022 from all programme staff (n = 7) and selected Dad 24/7 fathers (n = 20) from the English (n = 10) and Spanish (n = 10) intervention groups. All programme staff completed a semi-structured interview via phone and/or video conferencing. A qualitative descriptive approach was used for analysis. Average age of staff was 53 years; mean age of fathers was 43 years. Among staff, 43% were Black, and 57% were Latino. Fathers self-identified as Black (30%) and Latino (70%). Three key staff themes were benefits to fathers, impact on fathers and facilitators, and ways to strengthen fatherhood interventions. Three key father themes were intervention benefits, intervention impact (what ‘made it work’) and ways to strengthen intervention services. Fathering is a key component in maintaining healthy families and communities. Fatherhood interventions have great potential for empowering fathers and strengthening families. Finding ways to a relational approach, allocating more time for robust participation and building on facilitators' experiences and assets can help strengthen the impact of fatherhood interventions.

Family-centred practice (FCP) has been suggested as a best practice for treating youth with emotional and behavioural difficulties in residential care. In this preregistered systematic review, we examined how FCP is operationalized and measured in residential youth care and which family outcomes are associated with FCP. Our systematic search in six databases identified 5784 articles. We analysed included articles by coding the operationalizations of FCP in the interventions and study measures. Further, we descriptively summarized relations between FCP and family outcomes. Thirteen articles met our inclusion criteria. In these articles, FCP was operationalized by five types of youth worker actions in interventions and was measured as five types of family involvement. Ten articles examined pre–post differences in family-centred interventions. Only four articles analysed relations between FCP and a family outcome. Studies found some support for a positive association between FCP and whole-family functioning, but overall, the association between FCP and family outcomes remains unclear. Our findings demonstrate that more research is needed that specifically examines different aspects of FCP and how they relate to family outcomes in residential youth care. Such studies can benefit from the conceptual model proposed for FCP in residential youth care interventions.

Depression and Internet addiction are common public health problems among adolescents. Previous literature has examined this association, but its underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The present study aims at identifying the influencing mechanisms of this association by constructing a moderated mediation model focusing on social withdrawal and school belonging. A sample of 616 Chinese middle and high school adolescents are surveyed regarding Internet addiction, depression, social withdrawal and school belonging. The Macro PROCESS was used to examine the proposed theoretical model. Results reveal that social withdrawal partially mediates the nexus between Internet addiction and adolescent depression. In addition, school belonging significantly moderates the association of social withdrawal with adolescent depression. These findings may guide future prevention and intervention strategies for depressed teenagers affected by Internet addiction.