Child & Family Social Work最新文献

This longitudinal study examines the child's place in the foster family through the use of conventional names for familial figures (e.g., ‘mum/dad’) and through the foster parents' intention to adopt the child. Data were collected at two time points during childhood and adolescence, among children placed in kinship and non-kinship foster care in Norway. Children placed at a younger age and children in non-kinship foster care were more likely to call their foster parents for ‘mum/dad’. Children placed at an older age and children in non-kinship care were more often presented as ‘foster child’ by their foster parents. Only 25%–34% of foster parents reported having considered adoption. The most common reason for not considering adoption was that they already deemed to be a family. The use of conventional names for familial figures in foster families might not necessarily reflect the child's integration into a foster family as it seems to be related to the age of the child at placement rather than to the duration of placement. Intention to adopt was relatively low, mostly because foster parents considered adoption as not necessary.

This article features insights from 15 Druze social workers in Israel regarding their experiences dealing with out-of-home placement for Druze children. The study reveals the distinct challenges faced by social workers in bridging professional and socio-religious values and the caution with which they navigate a complex reality and strive to provide culturally appropriate interventions while facing limitations on their freedom of action. Socio-religious characteristics of the Druze influence the interventions of social workers including the restriction on adoption and limited interaction between divorced partners. The process of removing a child from their home can be complex and challenging. This is often due to concerns regarding stigma and the strong desire within closely knit communities to preserve the family name and reputation. Moreover, most Druze social workers reside in Druze villages which can blur the line between personal and professional boundaries. This article underscores the importance of hearing the voices of minority therapists in order to promote culturally competent interventions in social work within the community.

Children exposed to domestic violence (DV) face a heightened risk of many types of short- and long-term problems. Social workers can limit these risks if the support and help they offer is perceived as valuable by the child. The aims of this review were to identify what children exposed to DV value when meeting social workers, to suggest how this knowledge can be used in practice by professionals dedicated to working with these children and to identify and suggest key areas of focus for future research. A synthesis of 18 studies reveals that, in meetings with social workers, children exposed to DV value (1) basic requirements, (2) inclusion, (3) acknowledgement and (4) enjoyment. This review offers a smorgasbord of opportunities for practitioners to meet the wishes and needs of these children. However, comparative research is needed to facilitate adaptation and to distinguish between elements valued by children that are core prerequisites for helping them disclose their experiences and/or aiding their recovery and elements that are less crucial but still valued.

Concept mapping was used to identify criteria foster care workers in Flanders use to regulate visiting arrangements for birth parents of foster children. A sample of 43 foster care workers were asked to answer in writing the question: ‘What criteria do you take into account when you have to regulate visiting arrangements?’ Fifty unique answers were identified by three researchers. In a second phase, 32 foster care workers individually grouped together the statements that according to them covered the same topic. Furthermore, they were asked to indicate the degree of importance and the difficulty to assess each response on a 7-point scale. Multidimensional scaling and hierarchic cluster analyses identified five clusters of criteria: child related criteria, attitudes of birth parent(s), criteria related to placement conditions, interaction with birth parents and criteria related to foster parents. Although sometimes differently grouped or named, the criteria mentioned by foster care workers were almost entirely in line with findings from other research. Foster care workers considered most criteria rather easy to assess. However, the more important criteria were (child related criteria and attitudes of birth parent[s]), the more difficult they were considered to assess. Identification of these criteria can help to improve and systemize the decision-making process.

Child online sexual solicitation has become a significant form of child sexual abuse. Disclosure of online sexual solicitation is a multifaceted and complex process. The role of the disclosure recipient is crucial in the disclosure process, with respect to the initiation of the disclosure, how much children disclose, recantations and the children's well-being. The current study aimed to explore children's experiences, perceptions, challenges and obstacles regarding disclosing online sexual solicitation as revealed in their forensic interviews. The sample, obtained from the Service of Forensic Interviews with Children in Israel, included 32 Israeli children who were sexually solicited online and participated in forensic interviews. A thematic qualitative methodology was used to analyse the children's narratives. The findings demonstrated that children tend to disclose online sexual solicitation to their peers and not to their parents. The children provided three main reasons for this tendency: sexuality, technology and the recipient's response. The current study's findings highlight the important role of peers in the disclosure process of online sexual solicitation. Moreover, the findings reveal children's difficulties disclosing online sexual solicitation to their parents. Practical implications of children's online sexual solicitation disclosure, future recommendations and study limitations are discussed.

Children in out-of-home care may experience multiple losses, from separation from birth parents and siblings to loss of friendships, culture, and sense of belonging and normality. The impacts of these significant losses on a child's development and wellbeing have typically been the subject of childhood trauma research. While understanding the impact is important, children's experiences of the losses and the ways adults can support them to grieve are less explored in research. Recently, out-of-home care researchers have begun to address this knowledge gap by applying the concept of ambiguous loss to capture and understand children's grief and loss. This article builds on this work and reports findings of a qualitative study that involved 30 out-of-home care practitioners. Constructivist Grounded Theory was applied to analyse the research data which resulted in the HEAR model that outlines the practice components that out-of-home care practitioners considered important in effectively responding to children's experience of ambiguous loss. These components are (1) Honouring ambiguous loss; (2) Establishing a care community; (3) Attuning to the lack of finality of ambiguous loss and (4) Reducing ambiguity. This article presents research findings that supported the development of the HEAR model, and discusses its implications for out-of-home care practice.

Research shows differences in gendered caring expectations between mothers and fathers across countries and how they are affected by the development of different family forms and cultural practices. In this study, we explore the meaning that 14 children and youths in long-term non-kinship foster care in Spain ascribe to their birth mothers. We found three main perspectives among the participants. Within these perspectives, age, gender and socio-cultural context seem to be intertwined in how children and youths in foster care perceive their birth mother's role in their lives. The analysis gives insight into the complexity of child–mother relationships and how young people navigate these. In light of these findings, we discuss some practical implications for social workers in child protection services.

This article offers a cross-national comparison of social work in two countries, Australia and Canada, about the care of Indigenous children within the context of colonization and the evolving profession. The discussion is based on data from two empirical studies that examined professional discourse relating to the removal of Indigenous children from their families and Indigenous peoples more broadly within key historical time frames. The studies involved a content analysis of the flagship journals of the Australian and Canadian professional associations. It is argued that a critical interrogation of professional discourse within these historical and national particularities provides insights that can inform a broader understanding of how practices and constructions of social work are shaped within contemporary practice contexts. The studies revealed that very little attention was paid to problematizing colonial policies and practices, including the state-sanctioned forcible removal of countless Indigenous children from their biological families, while the professions in both countries were complicit in the oppressive treatment of Indigenous peoples that have left a legacy of intergenerational trauma. The findings suggest a way of understanding social work as a discipline beyond the historical specificities of the two countries that has relevance to social work across the globe.

The infants of women with histories of problematic alcohol and other drug use are among the most vulnerable children known to statutory child protection services, which they enter at a younger age, and in which they remain longer. The net results include overwhelmed child protection systems and the birth of subsequent children conceived to ease women's grief at the loss their infants. Without adequate and appropriate support to the mother and her family, the pattern repeats. Obstetric services have an important role to play in the assessment of risk and protective factors in the perinatal period and in determining pathways to service provision. A comprehensive assessment considers the availability and quality of informal support prior to activation of formal systems of support, both statutory, where engagement is mandated, and non-statutory, where support is offered on a voluntary basis. This paper uses quantitative methods to explore the social networks of women with problematic substance use in the transition to motherhood and the relationship between formal and informal support systems and infant outcomes. Surveys were held with two counsellors from the Women's Alcohol and Drug Service (WADS), a specialist obstetric clinic in Melbourne, Australia, and with 18 child protection workers. In addition, the Norbeck Social Support Questionnaire (Norbeck, 1984; Norbeck et al., 1983) was administered with 20 participating mothers to measure levels of formal and informal support, as well as the type and quality of support available to mothers over a 12-month period, and to consider the provision of social support against known outcomes for infants. The findings demonstrate that WADS counsellors made several referrals for most women but that there was little in the way of long-term follow-up by non-statutory service providers, with most women experiencing a dramatic drop in support over the 12-month period. Women whose main informal support was from a domestically violent partner, and those who had been in out-of-home care in their own childhood, were particularly vulnerable to losing the care of their infant. The role of child protection varied markedly across the 12-month period, particularly in relation to the extent that a relationship between formal and informal systems of support for mothers and their infants could be established. Overall, the study findings demonstrate that mothers experienced diminishing formal and informal support over time and that the quality of social support available to the mother was more important in terms of outcomes for women and their infants than the quantity.

This study explores parental mediation of smartphone use by rural-to-urban migrant children in China. A total of 16 migrant parents participated in semi-structured interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis is conducted to analyse the transcribed interviews. Findings indicate that migrant parents are highly concerned about the harmful impact of smartphone use on their children. Three parental mediation strategies mentioned in previous studies are confirmed, that is, restriction mediation, monitoring and active mediation, whereas a new mediation strategy, namely, activity substitution, is identified in this study. This study finds that the parents use a combination of different strategies for parental mediation. Furthermore, four themes identify the challenges in parental mediation: Lack of time, skills and helper for parenting and father's absence, inconsistency between parents' restrictive mediation and own overuse practices, the adverse effect of COVID-19 and the need for professional help. Finally, implications for social work practice are discussed.