Fathers' experiences with child welfare services

The lack of engagement of fathers by child welfare services is well‐documented in the literature as a serious problem. Towards addressing this problem, this paper reports the findings of interviews with 18 fathers about their involvement with child welfare services in Ontario, Canada. Qualitative analysis of the interviews yielded themes about what men saw as the positive and negative aspects of their involvement with child welfare. Positive aspects of service involvement for fathers included understanding and supportive workers, useful assistance from workers, being connected to useful resources and being given a ‘wake‐up call’. Negative aspects of service involvement included uncaring, unhelpful and unprofessional workers; prejudice against fathers; and experiencing the child welfare system as unresponsive, uncaring and rigid. Implications for practice are discussed with a view to improving the engagement of men in, and their experiences with, child welfare services.     

Child sexual abuse: a marker or magnifying glass for family dysfunction?

A report of child sexual abuse leads to a multi-agency investigation that often reveals other maltreatment and dysfunctional behaviors within the family. Due to recent developments in this field, the emphasis of the investigation has shifted to the child’s history rather than information from the parent or accused, or the presence of injuries. In the last 10 years Children’s Advocacy Centers have become a central component to the investigation of child sexual abuse and provide a means for long-term follow-up of referred families. The idiosyncrasies of this investigative and advocacy system have provided an in-depth view of the families of sexually abused children.Four family types emerge: safe and secure, safe and insecure, unsafe and enmeshed, and unsafe and insecure. The characteristics of child sexual abuse, the response to the child’s disclosure of abuse, and the prognosis for the child victim vary among the different family types. An innovative long-term program of wrap-around services for sexually abused children and their families provides counseling, peer activities, family mentoring, and child mentoring while tracking the symptoms and behaviors of the child victims. The identification of a child victim of sexual abuse can be a tragic crisis and an opportunity for intensive and timely intervention.     

Responding to child sexual abuse: an evaluation of social work by children and their carers

This paper presents the views and perceptions of 35 children and their current carers regarding the social work response to child sexual abuse. Interviews with the children and carers, including foster carers and residential carers, were carried out 2–4 years following disclosure, thus the nature of social work support in the longer term, as well as the initial response, is assessed and described. Three evaluations of social work support are presented: the child-ren's evaluations of social workers known since disclosure, and two evaluations from the carers, one focusing on the child's needs, and one focusing on their own as carers. All three evaluations perceived the majority of social workers as having helped. Aspects of social work considered essential included providing emotional support and reassurance, providing information and explanation and arrang-ing and coordinating services, including counselling or therapy.
  Carers of children who were abused by someone outside the family were less likely to receive social work support. The frustra-tion and disappointment expressed by some of these carers reaffirms the importance of assessing needs even when the child is considered protected from further abuse. The findings of this study support the need to refocus responses to abused children and their families.     

Caregiver involvement in behavioural health services in the context of child welfare service referrals: a qualitative study

Human service agencies serve a growing number of adults with behavioural health needs. Despite these agencies' key role in identifying need and facilitating services, many individuals do not receive care or end services prematurely. Few studies have explored the experiences of families referred to behavioural health services by such agencies or the extent to which families' perceptions of service need align with those of treatment providers and frontline workers. This study presents findings from a qualitative study of caregivers involved with child welfare agencies who were referred to behavioural health services. Researchers reviewed agencies' case records and conducted in‐depth interviews with 16 caregivers, 9 child welfare caseworkers and 12 behavioural health treatment counsellors. Findings suggest that when deciding to engage in services, caregivers weigh not only their individual and family behavioural health needs but also potential agency intervention, including loss of child custody. Many professionals reported that involvement with a child welfare agency hindered the caregiver's disclosure of behavioural healthcare needs. Implications for managers and practitioners are discussed.     

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.     

Maltreatment and Internal Representations of Relationships: Core Relationship Themes in the Narratives of Abused and Neglected Preschoolers

This study examined whether the predominance of particular themes in maltreated pre-schoolers' stories about relationships is related to type of maltreatment they experienced. The MacArthur Story Stem Battery was administered to 49 maltreated and 22 non-maltreated children. Children's representations of self and other were extracted from the resulting stories using the Core Conflictual Relationship Theme Method. Significant differences were found among the physically abused, sexually abused, neglected, and comparison subgroups with respect to the predominance of specific relationship themes in their stories. Both physically abused and neglected children represented the self as angry and opposing others more frequently than non-maltreated children. Neglected children represented others as hurt, sad, or anxious more frequently than both abused and non-maltreated children. Compared with all other children, sexually abused children represented others more frequently as liking them, and compared with physically abused children, expressed more frequent wishes to be close to others. This study supports the hypothesis that maltreated children's internal representations of relationships are related to their experiences of specific types of maltreatment.     

Patterns of entry to community‐based services for families with children with developmental disabilities: implications for social work practice

The purpose of the present study was to understand, from parents' perspectives, the process of entry to community‐based services for children with developmental disabilities and to explore the relationship between patterns of entry and parent‐reported needs and priorities for service. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 43 mothers and 29 fathers of children with developmental disabilities approximately 6 months after the families entered community‐based childhood disability support services in Manitoba, Canada. Analysis of the coded interview data resulted in the identification of three process factors influential in the entry of families to community‐based support services: recognition of problems in child development, formal diagnosis of child disability and linkage between diagnostic services and the community‐based support system. Analysis of these processes identified four patterns of service entry associated with differing family needs for service: early entry, prompt entry, delayed entry and atypical entry. The results can be understood as a typology useful for social workers in the assessment of family needs and priorities at the point of entry to community‐based services.     

Living in the red zone: the experience of child‐to‐mother violence

Child‐to‐mother violence is an area of family violence that has received limited attention over the past 20 years but is a problem for many families. It is poorly understood in the community and this lack of understanding creates a basis for families and service providers to minimize the abused mothers' experience. This paper is drawn from a larger study that aimed to explore child‐to‐mother violence in a high‐risk geographical area and describes a qualitative theme developed from 185 participating women's narratives, ‘Living in the red zone’: the experience of child‐to‐mother violence. The red zone refers to danger and was an element throughout women's narratives. It is clear from the reflections of these women that child‐to‐mother violence is a significant and complex issue. Mothers were predominantly struggling in silence with their experiences of a child or children whose behaviour was threatening and/or abusive. Their experiences were most often minimized and/or devalued by family and community members, which may prevent affected women from seeking support. Mothers generally had limited concepts of the possibilities open to them to improve their situation, or limited access to appropriate and empathic individuals or services.     

The Day-to-Day Reality of Delivering Shelter Services to Women Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence in the Context of System and Policy Demands

ABSTRACT

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is the most common form of gender-based violence affecting Canadian women. Women often seek help from shelters to deal with IPV and its consequences. These shelters function within a broader context that shapes how services are delivered. This study was undertaken to better understand how structural factors including policies shape shelter service delivery and reveal systemic and structural complexities that influence those services and women's ability to rebuild their lives. This feminist qualitative study combined in-depth interviews and focus groups with 37 staff and 4 executive directors from 4 shelters in Ontario, Canada, and included critical discourse analysis of salient policy texts. The findings illuminate the complexity of the structural challenges faced by abused women and the shelters that support them. Systemic impediments were shown to determine how shelters support abused women, the obstacles women face moving forward, and the extent and availability of their options. Future research should include policy evaluation of policy written and enacted, cost analysis examining the actual costs of delivering shelter services and supporting women after leaving, examination of potential alternatives to the identified structural challenges, and investigation of system coordination of services and support for abused women.     

Effective casework practice with adolescents: perspectives of statutory child protection practitioners

Many child protection practitioners struggle with the complexity of problems and the limited casework time for adolescent cases. However, there is little research on child protection practice or case management that can guide a practitioner working with adolescents in the child protection system. The aim of this study was to explore and describe the nature of effective child protection practice with adolescents from the perspective of statutory child protection practitioners in one state in Australia. Data were collected through focus group discussions and interviews with child protection practitioners and managers currently working with adolescents (n= 44). A grounded theory approach was used to identify the dominant themes or categories and form linkages and relationships through constant comparison techniques. Seven key categories emerged from this analysis: characteristics of the young person and their family; ‘walking it together’– the centrality of relationships; ‘looking back/looking forward’– practice strategies; practitioner attributes and skills; ‘walking a fine line’– working with the families of adolescents; ‘walking with services’– effective inter‐agency work; and organizational context in effective child protection practice with adolescents. Key implications for practice and areas for further research were discussed.     

Managing sexually abused and/or abusing children in substitute care

This paper reports on research on the characteristics, management and therapeutic treatment of sexually abused and/or abusing children in substitute care. Of the 40 sexually abused and/or abusing young people aged 10 or over in the interview sample, two‐thirds showed sexual behaviours in the placement studied but one‐third did not. The range of sexual behaviours shown by the young people is described. Analysis of the findings shows that four key components of effective management are supervision, adequate sex education, modification of inappropriate sexual behaviour and therapeutic attention to the needs that underlie such behaviour. Supervision includes planning for safe care before placement, preparing other children in the setting, teaching young people how to keep themselves safe when out on their own, and careful monitoring of contact with birth family members. The need for a proactive approach to sex education is stressed. Effective management approaches to masturbation, sexualized behaviour and sexually abusing behaviour are discussed but the processes of denial and minimization of sexual abuse and the development of high thresholds for action when looked after children are abused or at risk are shown to present obstacles to effective care. Finally, the importance of addressing children's deeper needs is emphasized, including the importance of regular review of their need for counselling. At the end of the article two case examples from the study are given.     

Service user participation in diverse child protection contexts: principles for practice

Promoting the participation of children and parents in child protection practice is one of the most complex and sensitive areas of social work practice. Increasingly, child protection legislation and policy in many parts of the world enshrines ideals of service user participation. Yet, with the exception of extensive discussion about family group conferencing, the principles and methods for achieving participatory practices in child protection work remain underdeveloped. We use the term 'child protection' to refer to a broad spectrum of child and family welfare services aimed at prevention of (or intervention to address) child abuse and neglect. This spectrum of services includes intensive family support, family support, domestic violence, statutory child protection and child and family advocacy services. In this paper, we present findings from the first phase of a 3-year study into participatory practice in child protection. In this paper, we present findings from a qualitative analysis of interviews with 28 child protection practitioners across five domains of child protection work. Our analysis reveals three core principles of participatory practice underpinning these practitioners' accounts as well as contextual differences among them. We conclude with a discussion of the educational implications of our findings.     

‘Like walking on eggshells’: service user views and expectations of the child protection system

This paper reports on a study of service users' views on Irish child protection services. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 67 service users, including young people between 13 and 23. The findings showed that despite refocusing and public service management reforms, service users still experience involvement with the services as intimidating and stressful and while they acknowledged opportunities to participate in the child protection process, they found the experience to be very difficult. Their definition of ‘needs’ was somewhat at odds with that suggested in official documentation, and they viewed the execution of a child protection plan more as a coercive requirement to comply with ‘tasks’ set by workers than a conjoint effort to enhance their children's welfare. As in previous studies, the data showed how the development of good relationships between workers and service users could compensate for the harsher aspects of involvement with child protection. In addition, this study demonstrated a high level of discernment on the part of service users, highlighting their expectation of quality standards in respect of courtesy, respect, accountability, transparency and practitioner expertise.     

Non‐abusing mothers' support needs after child sexual abuse disclosure: A narrative review

The role of maternal support has been perceived as vital throughout the recovery process of sexually abused children. However, it is important to look at the concept “support” from the perspective of non‐abusing mothers' personal needs. This narrative review of the literature aimed to find out how non‐abusing mothers' need for support in their responses to disclosure of child sexual abuse has been recognized. A comprehensive search on Jyväskylä University Library interface yielded 12 academic articles based on empirical research. These articles were selected from those considered to have sufficiently investigated support for non‐abusing mothers and included a mixture of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed‐method research. The data consisted of peer‐reviewed online articles published in English between 2000 and 2017. Four themes emerged from the thematic analysis: improving the quality of the whole social support network for non‐abusing mothers; being blamed, maternal guilt, and shame; anger; and coping strategies. The findings show that the support needs of non‐abusing mothers are usually explained based on their interaction with sexually abused children. However, it is necessary to listen to women's needs independently of their mothering role. If these mothers are better understood, not only they, but also their children, could be empowered.     

Patterns of family service needs and caregiver–child relationships among families at risk of child welfare involvement

Caregivers at risk of involvement in the child welfare system report high levels of need for multiple types of services, and their children have high levels of mental health need. Caregivers from families with more service needs, as well as unmet needs, are less likely to be engaged with child welfare services and may have diminished capacity to care for their child. This study takes a family‐centered approach by using latent class analysis to identify patterns of both caregiver and child service needs among families at risk of child welfare involvement. Using data from the LONGSCAN consortium (N = 957), we identified 4 classes of service needs among child welfare‐involved families. We then examined differences between the 4 classes based on demographics, maltreatment histories, unmet service needs, and caregiver–child relationship. The caregivers were split fairly evenly among the 4 classes: low needs, medical needs, poverty support, and high needs. There were significant differences between classes on assessed variables, with higher levels of needs associated with diminished caregiver–child relationships.     

A preliminary review of the parenting assessment and skill development service: A 10-day residential service for families at risk of child maltreatment

Tweddle's Parenting Assessment and Skill Development Service (PASDS) is a 10-day residential programme for families at risk of child maltreatment. The service aims to conduct a comprehensive parenting capacity assessment to inform case management and improve parenting practices. The aims of the study were to (1) describe the psychosocial functioning of parents taking part in PASDS, (2) describe the key parenting assessment outcomes, and (3) explore parents' experiences of participation in PASDS including (a) perceived barriers and enablers of participation and (b) perceived outcomes for their family. Participants were 18 parents who participated in Tweddle's PASDS in Melbourne, Australia. A mixed methods study comprising a case file review and qualitative interviews was conducted. Parents accessing PASDS had experienced adverse childhood events, and many were experiencing mental health difficulties. Interviews with parents revealed perceived benefits of PASDS in improving parenting knowledge and skills, family relationships, and parenting confidence. At the time of discharge, 33% of families were assessed as unable to provide independent care for their child. The current findings have important implications for the further evaluation of evidenced-based services which can improve the accuracy of parenting capacity assessments, aiding in child protection decision-making related to child placement and safety.     

Welfare Workers' Cultural Models of Domestic Violence

ABSTRACT

Despite progress in policies and services for domestic violence, service use remains lower than the need suggests. This study, an analysis from a larger project on social service providers, examines welfare workers' shared beliefs about domestic violence. Using a mixed method design utilizing pile sorts (n = 38; 11 child welfare and 29 financial assistance), a survey (n = 57; 24 child welfare and 33 financial assistance), and in-depth interviews (n = 3; two child welfare and one financial assistance)—workers organized their ideas about factors that contribute to domestic violence, rated the factors along key dimensions of meaning (importance, controllability, characteristics of victims or perpetrators, and cause or effect), and shared experiences of their work with domestic violence cases. Financial assistance and child welfare workers organized their beliefs similarly demonstrating consensus on the importance of the factors, and shared beliefs about the factors that were causes and effects of domestic violence. In interviews, child welfare workers emphasized their focus on systems and collaboration. Despite areas of agreement, child welfare and financial assistance workers did not demonstrate consensus on ideas about domestic violence overall. The findings have implications for practice, specifically for improving responses to domestic violence and increasing the use of domestic violence services.     

The transition to adulthood from care as a struggle for recognition

This article explores young people's experiences in the transition to adulthood from child welfare services and how Honneth's theory of recognition can be useful as an analytical tool to help us understand these experiences. The underpinning empirical research consisted of interviews and focus groups with 43 adolescents who had been in contact with Norwegian child welfare services. Three themes emerged as particularly important: having good relationships to caring adults, being listened to and able to influence their own lives, and receiving support and encouragement. The research shows how young people's difficulties in leaving care can be understood as experiences of misrecognition and points to some ways in which these can be overcome.     

The impacts of accessible service delivery on front‐line helping relationships in child welfare

This paper presents the results of a study comparing the impacts on helping relationships of locating front‐line child protection service providers in central locations or in accessible school and neighbourhood service delivery sites. Creating easier access to front‐line child protection service providers, fostering more positive community perceptions of child welfare services, improving client and service provider satisfaction with helping relationships and services, and increasing families' willingness to ask for help were core objectives at the accessible sites. Using a quasi‐experimental outcome design, file reviews and qualitative interviews with service providers and parents, this study presents evidence that accessible sites had substantial success in achieving these objectives when compared with central service delivery locations.