Social support available for substance‐dependent mothers from families with parental substance abuse

Substance‐dependent mothers, who have grown up with parental substance abuse, struggle during and after treatment to abstain from substances while trying to process traumatic experiences and integrate their family into society. The aim of this study was to explore the social support available for these mothers to help them stay abstinent and create safe family environments for themselves and their children. Using purposeful sampling, we approached nine mothers admitted for 1 year to a family ward at a substance abuse clinic and their significant others. Through in‐depth, qualitative interviews, first with the mothers, later with their significant others, we investigated characteristics of the available social support. The findings indicated that the significant others had limited resources and were themselves exposed to adverse and cumulative psychosocial and socioeconomic risk factors. Their relationships with the mothers were, nevertheless, close, consistent and reliable. Supporting the existing social network should be an integrated part of the work of family welfare services aiming to help substance‐dependent mothers from families with parental substance abuse to rehabilitate and to integrate successfully into local communities.     

“It's like he just goes off,BOOM!”: mothers and grandmothers make sense of child‐to‐parent violence

Child to parent violence (CPV) involves continual and cumulative abusive actions perpetrated by children and adolescents towards their parents or caregivers. This abuse produces short‐term distress and ongoing long‐term harmful consequences for parents and their families. Practitioners, researchers and policy‐makers are increasingly challenged to identify, conceptualize and respond to this form of family violence. A major challenge is that parents and caregivers under‐report this abuse so there is a lack of awareness and understanding of their psychological experiences in relation to CPV. This research adopts an interpretative phenomenological approach to explore the psychological experience of CPV. Interviews were conducted with six New Zealand mothers and two grandmothers who all experienced CPV. This abuse was experienced as an ‘emotional bloody roller coaster’ of unconditional love through to hatred; as ‘judgement’ – self‐blame and others' blame of their parenting skills; and the ‘absent father’ in their adolescents' lives was drawn on as an explanation for the abuse. Taken together, these psychological experiences identify the silencing of CPV is related to parents' conflicting emotions towards their children, their thoughts and feelings about themselves and how other people view them, and the impact of an absent father figure in their children's everyday lives.     

A tangled web: parental contact with children in kinship care

Contact between parents and children in care is a contested area. Parental contact is recognized to be important, yet may present protective issues; in the kinship care environment, it brings the particular challenges of complex family relationships. Seeking the parents' perspective in a child protection context is difficult and therefore under‐researched. This paper describes a nested study within an Australian research project on family contact in kinship care in which the perspectives of 18 mothers and 2 fathers were sought via in‐depth interviews. Mothers and fathers described strong feelings of disempowerment in the context both of their family and the child protection system. The relationship between parent and caregiver emerged as a significant issue. All of the parents wished to remain in contact with their children in a meaningful way, whether or not they were likely to resume their children's care; however, contact arrangements presented many difficulties for them. Mothers articulated the need for services that are more empowering and respectful, rather than oriented towards them as failed parents. In order to build appropriate models of support and intervention, we argue for a more inclusive conceptual frame for family life that gives greater recognition to the role of non‐custodial parents in the lives of their children.     

Jumping through hoops – the cost of compliance on sole parents

Australian governments along with other western countries have made significant changes to the welfare system with a focus on encouraging sole parents on social security payments to move into paid work. This paper reports on in‐depth interviews with 48 sole parents about their experiences with the welfare‐to‐work process and with a range of other services. Although parents reported some positive encounters, they also described a range of negative experiences, including how they needed to repeatedly prove their entitlement to help, leaving them feel as if they were undeserving of support. The study has demonstrated that it is often the most vulnerable parents who feel under close scrutiny and who have to work extra hard to get the help they need. These experiences can also see them disengaging from services. The findings show how the current policy environment adds to the complexity of sole parents' lives reinforcing their disadvantage.     

Less than human: a qualitative study into the experience of parents involved in the child protection system

This paper reports on the findings from a qualitative study into the experiences of parents who were involved in the English child protection system in 2013. Seventeen in‐depth interviews were conducted involving 19 parents and/or partners, and a framework approach was used to analyse the data. There were positive experiences of individual social workers and some positive experiences of the child protection system. However, the overwhelming theme of the parents' experiences was that the system was uncaring, inflexible and for some harmful to both themselves and their children. Despite being included in the child protection process, parents felt they were not afforded the same rights as a participant, as a decision‐maker or as a partner in seeking to improve the situation. The threat of consequences silenced parents who felt unable to speak out or challenge the things they disagreed with or coerced others into signing agreements they did not agree to. Such experiences related to a sense that they were being treated as ‘less than human’. These findings are considered within the context of recent reforms within the English child protection system.     

Children's experiences and needs in relation to domestic and family violence: Findings from a meta‐synthesis

Domestic and family violence is a significant issue experienced by many children that can have severe detrimental impacts to their health, development, and well‐being. Despite the significance of this issue, it is only recently that children have been included in research that seeks to understand the impacts that domestic and family violence may have on their lives. This paper reports on the findings of a meta‐synthesis, which explored qualitative research about children's experiences of domestic and family violence. Thirty‐two studies, including from the United Kingdom, North America, and Australia were included for review. The meta‐synthesis found that children describe domestic violence as being a complex, isolating, and enduring experience that often results in disruption, losses, and challenges to their significant relationships. Children's common feelings of fear, worry, powerlessness, and sadness were also uncovered, in addition to the strategies they employed to try and facilitate the safety and emotional well‐being of themselves and their family. Children's wants and needs are also highlighted. The findings demonstrate that despite the increasing interest in children's experiences of domestic and family violence, qualitative research remains limited, with many gaps evident. Implications for research, policy, and practice are considered.     

What do we know about the social networks of single parents who do not use supportive services?

The role that social support and social networks play in mediating isolation and stress experienced by vulnerable families is well established. However, a major issue facing supportive human services is to find and engage families with limited social networks and link them to supports that could improve outcomes for their families. This paper reports on the results of in‐depth interviews with 20 sole parents with children aged under 5 who were not well connected to services. It documents their social networks with the use of a social network map. Using a social capital lens, the analysis attempts to differentiate the different relationships in the participants' lives. Most participants were not satisfied with their informal networks, with conflicted or ambivalent reliance on family, absence of support and community engagement and fragility of informal networks. Although this group of isolated mothers does encounter the formal service system, the opportunities to increase and strengthen their networks do not eventuate. Better understanding of the nature and extent of social networks can inform practitioners and policy‐makers of the critical factors needed to increase service use for parents with limited resources.     

Me,myself and I: perceptions of social capital for mothers ageing out of the child welfare system

Youth ageing out of the child welfare system become parents at rates two to three times higher than their non‐child welfare system involved peers. Substantial literature acknowledges that youth ageing out who are parenting are vulnerable; yet, little is known about their lived experiences. Social capital, or the actual or potential resources available from one's network, can provide essential resources for the wellbeing of parents ageing out. This qualitative study examined social capital of mothers ageing out from the perspectives of both mothers and service providers. We conducted small group interviews with 13 mothers ageing out and 14 service providers. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings revealed the use of a social capital framework delineates that mothers lacked beneficial social relationships and, consequently, support. A lack of trust coupled with a desire to break intergenerational patterns and norms contributed to understanding why mothers ageing out may not capitalize on resources that providers often considered available. Based on findings, we conclude that providing mothers ageing out with additional opportunities to develop trust, positive relationships with mentors and extended services may help to disrupt intergenerational patterns of maltreatment and promote child and family wellbeing.     

‘I want to be better than you:’ lived experiences of intergenerational child maltreatment prevention among teenage mothers in and beyond foster care

The growing body of research on teenage motherhood in foster care has largely focused on the risks involved for both mother and child, yet these mothers depict a much more complex picture of their own experience of becoming and being mothers. The current study employed interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore 18 in‐depth, qualitative interviews from six participants on the meaning and experience of motherhood among teenage mothers in foster care and in the years immediately after ageing out. This study focused on a particular dimension of motherhood: participants' efforts to break the cycle of child abuse and neglect with their own children. Two themes emerged as characteristic of these experiences: (i) treating children well/parenting differently and avoiding the system; and (ii) reducing isolation and enhancing support. Given the increased likelihood of the children of teen mothers – particularly those who have been maltreated – becoming involved with the child welfare system, study findings suggest possible strategies for disrupting cycles of intergenerational child welfare involvement generated by young mothers themselves. Practice implications for addressing possible substance abuse, mental health and relational and parenting needs are discussed.     

For the child's sake: parents and social workers discuss conflict-filled parental relations after divorce

After a divorce, the former partners have to form new relationships between themselves as parents, and with their children. What does this reconstruction involve? What are the tasks facing the parents? What are the areas of conflict? This paper attempts to answer these questions. Eight initial sessions of parental mediation were chosen for the analysis. The analysis indicates that statements about the ways in which parents are entitled to their children, and vice versa, are common denominators for the transition from nuclear family parenting to post‐nuclear family parenting. In the sessions, parents dealt with this duty by fighting a battle for a place in the children’s lives. The battles were expressed in negotiations about time and place. The analysis revealed two different solutions to the problem of the parents’ entitlements. One was the creation of the homogeneous family, with one parent and the children living together in a close relationship, giving the other parent visiting rights. The other was to form a heterogeneous family, based on the idea that it is possible to build a childhood on differences and dissimilarities. Most of the conflicts originated from parents’ efforts to create homogeneous families.     

Helping families where parents misuse drugs or alcohol? A mixed methods comparative evaluation of an intensive family preservation service

Option 2 is an intensive family preservation service for families with serious child protection concerns related to parental misuse of drugs or alcohol. A previous evaluation indicated that it reduced the number of children entering care and, as a result, produced cost savings; however, little data were gathered from families. This study involved interviews with 15 families (46 children) who had received the service, and a comparison group of 12 families (28 children) referred but not provided the service due to no workers being available. Outcomes and experiences were compared, on average, 5.6 years following referral. Findings included a significant reduction in children entering care, and improvements in relation to substance misuse, parental well‐being and family cohesion. There was no difference in emotional and behavioural welfare of children. Qualitative accounts were very positive about the impact of the service, identifying effective engagement of parents and key elements of good practice in supporting families to change. The findings provide additional support for suggesting that high quality, intensive interventions with families affected by parental substance misuse can be effective. Key lessons for current attempts to deal with the increase in children entering care and the English government's ‘troubled families’ initiative are considered.     

Supporting families living with parental substance misuse: the M‐PACT (Moving Parents and Children Together) programme

The Moving Parents and Children Together (M‐PACT) programme is one of the growing number of interventions tailored to meet the multiple and complex needs of children and families affected by parental substance misuse. This paper pulls together the qualitative findings from 13 evaluated M‐PACT programmes in England. Sixty‐four families attended an M‐PACT programme, including 82 children and 75 adults. Qualitative data were collected from 37 children, 36 adults and over 30 group facilitators. Six themes are discussed: engaging with M‐PACT, shared experiences, understanding addiction, changes in communication, healthier and united families, and ending M‐PACT. The majority of families benefitted in a range of ways from the programme: meeting others who were experiencing similar problems, greater understanding about addiction and its impact on children and families improving communication within the family. In many families there was more openness and honesty, stronger relationships and more time as families, and a reduction in arguments and conflict. The key findings are discussed in terms of the potential for interventions of this kind to reduce family‐related harm from parental substance misuse.     

Battling parenting: The consequences of secure care interventions on parents

Secure care in Sweden is the most intrusive child welfare intervention, and children and their family members have restricted contact. For each child in secure care, there are at least twice as many affected family members and parents who must manage the consequences of this institutionalization. Clearly, it is just as important to understand how secure care affects parents as it is to understand how secure care affects children. To address this issue, we conducted in-depth interviews with 11 parents to eight children who had been placed in secure care during their childhood, focusing on the institutional and societal structures that affected these parents and their parenting. With a narrative approach, stories alluding to a metaphor of war are identified. These stories reveal how all parents (but especially single mothers) are affected by their diverse socio-economic positions and the rigid frames of family life presumed by child welfare interventions. In these narratives, parenting emerges as a social practice rather than a skill. Above all, the stories demonstrate a great deal of vulnerability and sensitivity of parenting. The findings raise critical questions about the meaning and overarching consequences of institutional interventions in a family life.     

What parents value from formal support services in the context of identified child abuse

Parents whose children are identified as having experienced or being at risk of experiencing significant harm potentially provide an invaluable dimension to our understanding of the circumstances that result in child abuse or neglect and how best to respond to these invariably complex situations. This paper reports findings from a study of the experiences of six parents.
In-depth interviews were conducted with four mothers and two fathers who had been referred to an intensive family support service by the Queensland statutory child protection authority. Using a critical ecological perspective, the study focused on identifying and understanding the experiences of the parents in using formal family support services, including aspects of service delivery that were helpful or unhelpful. Parents also commented on their experiences of statutory child protection services.
Service components and worker qualities that parents identified as being helpful included being accessible, targeted and integrated and being able to meet a continuum of needs, from a micro to a broader level. Their reports provide invaluable insight into how formal family support services, including child protection services, can better meet the needs of parents in addressing the recurring problem of child maltreatment.     

Mothering Mothers: An Exploration of the Perceptions of Adult Children of Divorce

It is clear that divorce shapes children's and adolescents lives in a variety of ways and that these are largely negative – they have worse physical and psychological health, they are less well‐off financially and have an increased likelihood of themselves divorcing. Aside from outcomes which are easily measurable, less is known about the ways in which divorce impacts on long‐term relationships ‐ particularly those between children and their parents. This exploratory paper looks at the relationships between divorced mothers and their adult children and finds that, like other studies, their relationships are marked by intimacy, but unlike other studies, this intimacy is neither enjoyed nor embraced. The participants report that their mothers were damaged by the separation, that their anger is ongoing many years afterwards. It is argued that these factors, amongst others, contribute to the ambivalent relationships some of the participants perceive they have with their mothers today and their uncertainty about caring for them in the future.     

A space of safety: Children's experience of equine‐assisted group therapy

Owing to a shift in alcohol and other drug practice towards a more ecological understanding of the impact of problematic parental substance use, children who were previously forgotten by practitioners are increasingly being included in alcohol and other drug service provision. Occurring concurrently with these changes has been a boom in interest in non‐talk‐based therapies to enhance child well‐being. Examples of such therapeutic interventions include adventure‐based activities, theatre, yoga, music, and purposeful interaction with animals. The latter approach, increasingly delivered by social workers, is known as animal‐assisted therapy and involves the inclusion of animals in a goal‐directed intervention. Equine‐assisted therapy (EAT) is a specialised branch of animal‐assisted therapy in which horses are used to cofacilitate therapeutic interventions. Although EAT practitioners argue horses are uniquely effective therapeutic animals, a strong evidence base has not yet developed. The present study utilised qualitative methods to explore children's individual experiences of an EAT program. Thematic analysis of interview data found that EAT is beneficial to children experiencing problematic parental substance use as it offers an environment in which children can feel safe and secure and are supported to grow, personally and socially, by mastering fears, making new friends, and improving their interpersonal behaviours.     

Troubled families: vulnerable families' experiences of multiple service use

This paper draws on a small‐scale study examining the experiences of highly vulnerable families with complex and enduring needs. The previous UK government and the current government have sought to develop policy and service initiatives that target families who present high levels of need and require high cost services. However, to date remarkably little is known about family perspectives and experiences. In this paper, family accounts of their experiences are presented and it is suggested that from these come some difficult practice questions. The family data reveal evident gaps in existing practice and challenges social work to ‘think family’ in new ways. The paper explores how families understand they are understood at the point of engagement, the assumptions that are made about family knowledge, and how families share and withhold information about their needs and experiences. In the discussion, the argument is made for the development of nuanced practice capable of recognizing and working with the ways highly vulnerable families ‘do family’, and the processes that support and inhibit professional interventions.     

Socially excluding housing support to homeless substance misusers: two Swedish case studies of special category housing

This article discusses special category housing for homeless addicts, based on case studies of two different housing programmes and using both qualitative and quantitative data. The staff and residents were interviewed about their experiences of the programmes. Longitudinal data were collected on various indicators of substance misuse and the frequency of contact with the social services at different levels. Our findings show that special category housing has positive direct effects on the housing stability of the residents and their feelings regarding their quality of life, but not on their substance misuse. However, the increased housing stability seems to be more a direct effect of their staying on the programme, rather than a long-term effect. Furthermore, although their quality of life improves, the residents still experience a lack of belonging and feel that their lives lack meaningful content. The choice of special category housing as an intervention model thus seems to perpetuate rather than prevent social exclusion and can possibly be described as an expression of 'institutionalised resignation'.     

A children's space? Participation in multi‐agency early intervention

The common assessment framework provides a model of early intervention, which is familiar in local authorities throughout England, and asserts a participatory framework of child and family engagement. This article draws on data from a research project undertaken in 1 local authority in the Midlands of England, to explore the experiences of children, young people, and their families, who were engaged in the process of multi‐agency early intervention. The article considers the young people's involvement, including their accounts of attending common assessment framework meetings, and their engagement by practitioners. The research found that young people's participation was limited. The findings suggest that this is, in part, a response to disciplinary discourses around schooling and attendance. In addition, the narratives of parents and young people showed that under‐resourcing of work with young people meant that the time taken to build relationships and engage them in a process of self‐assessment, planning, and decision making was constrained and rationed. The article concludes that to achieve a participatory children's space, an active and more engaged model of childhood needs to be facilitated by practitioners and parents outside the school‐dominated space found in this study.     

Parents' Experiences During the Family Reunification Process: A Chinese Context

Family reunification is always an integral part of a permanency plan and is a preferable outcome for children in care. However, reunification is not straightforward, involving many subsequent negotiations between parents, children, and social workers, sparking various emotions and struggles among the involved parties. Current research on parental experiences of family reunification is predominantly of a cross‐sectional nature, and rarely reflects the parents' experience throughout the process. This paper reports the results of a qualitative panel study aimed at exploring the experiences Chinese parents have during the process of children returning home from care. Seven parents were recruited. Data was collected at three time points and informants narrated their experiences from both a retrospective and prospective perspective. The findings showed that all parents struggled to become competent caregivers. Three salient themes were identified: inferiority, adjustment, and challenge. The parents' experiences revealed the prevalence of stigmatization among social work professions toward parents. This study recommends re‐focusing the policy direction and intervention strategies of out‐of‐home care from family coercion to family support.