The Parent Concerns Questionnaire: evaluation of a mothers' self report instrument for the identification of problems and needs in child and family social work

The measurement of problems and needs is a major issue for policy and practice in social work and social service provision. There has, furthermore, in recent years, been an increasing emphasis on gaining an understanding of users or clients' views of needs and service provision. However, there have been few attempts to develop practitioner and ‘client friendly’ ways of gaining information on problems and needs, either on an individual basis, or through the collection of aggregated data which can be used by local authorities as a whole. Where these have taken place there has been little attempt to assess their reliability or validity. This paper reports on the design and development of the Parent Concerns Questionnaire, an instrument designed to obtain the views of mothers in general, and depressed mothers in particular, in families subject to child and family care intervention. The paper reports on the reliability and validity of this instrument, which is presented as appropriate for use, both with families containing depressed mothers and other families subject to child and family care intervention. It may be used to examine problems and needs both on an individual family‐by‐family basis, and through the aggregation of data, on an authority‐wide basis. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Haitian orphanage crisis: Exporting neoliberal family ideals in the debate on vulnerable childhoods in Haiti

In light of recent global debates over the dangers of institutionalised orphan care, a new model of family care premised on the trope of family reunification has emerged among Haitian and US faith-based actors as the best alternative for ensuring vulnerable children's well-being. This article offers a critical cultural reading of narratives on family reunification in Haiti in social media and advocacy discourse, revealing how this approach privileges Northern assumptions about proper parenting and family life. Not only are these ideas a mismatch with realities in Haiti, they evoke deficit constructions of family and childhood that facilitate the nation's further positioning as a subject of transnational neoliberal governmentality.     

Lone mothers and paid work: the ‘family-work project’

When a mother starts work, her daily life changes in various ways: time, money, relationships, quality of life, and well-being are all subject to modification and potentially greater uncertainty. This is also true for her children, who must adapt to changed circumstances and perhaps play a different role within the family as a consequence. Sustaining work and care over time means that the situation of being a working family must become part of the everyday and regular practice of the family, and this actively involves all family members. This article explores this concept of a ‘family-work project’ through a qualitative longitudinal study of British lone mothers and their children, starting as the mothers took up work and following the families for four to five years. The research captured the experiences of the families as they negotiated the demands of sustaining employment while living on a low, but complex, income.     

Pathological Gambling and Couple: Towards an Integrative Systemic Model

This article is a critical literature review of pathological gambling focused in the family factors, particularly in the couple dynamics. Its main goal is to develop an explicative integrative systemic model of pathological gambling, based in these couple dynamics. To achieve that aim, a bibliography search was made, using on-line data bases (e.g., EBSCO Host) and recognized books in pathological gambling subject, as well as in the systemic approach in general. This process privileged the recent works (about 70 % of the reviewed literature was published in the last decade), however, also considered some classic works (the oldest one dates back to 1970). The guiding focus of this literature search evolves according to the following steps: (1) search of general comprehension of pathological gambling (19 references), (2) search specification to the subject “pathological gambling and family” (24 references), (3) search specification to the subject “pathological gambling and couple”(11 references), (4) search of systemic information which integrates the evidence resulted in the previous steps (4 references). The developed model is constituted by different levels of systemic complexity (social context, family of origin, couple and individual) and explains the problem as a signal of perturbation in the marital subsystem vital functions (e.g., power and control) though the regularities of marital dynamics of pathological gamblers. Furthermore, it gives theoretical evidence of the systemic familiar intervention in the pathological gambling.     

Contemporary discourses on children and parenting in Norway: Norwegian Child Welfare Services meets immigrant families

Discourses on children and what is considered to be proper parenting have been accentuated by the processes of globalization. In Norway, we study current discourses on children and parenting, based on a particular case: Norwegian Child Welfare Services' interaction with and intervention in immigrant families with children. We use a discursive analytical framework to analyse a sample of 80 newspaper texts, reflecting on and debating this allegedly problematic meeting. The texts are derived from regional and country-wide Norwegian newspapers in the period 1 January 2011 to 30 April 2013. Distinct discourses located in the texts concerned: (1) No-tolerance for parenting practices implying violence and force; (2) Every child is a subject of individual – and equal – rights; (3) Good parenting is child-focused and dialogue based and (4) Norwegian Child Welfare Services – authoritative as well as contentious in family matters. The discourses indicate the presence of two important subject positions, first, the child as the pivot. This implies that children are given a superior moral status, and are to enjoy human dignity and values such as individuality, equality and justice, individual rights and an obligation for the state to oversee and ensure this position also for the child. The other important subject position concerns parents as guarantors for children developing proper skills. This compels processes toward standardization and homogenization of parenting which positions some groups of parents as deficient.     

Adolescent Violence: A Systemic and Feminist Perspective

In writing this paper I want to locate adolescent violence toward family members firmly within the spectrum of family violence, including spouse abuse, child abuse, and elder abuse. To call violence of this sort ‘challenging behaviour’, or to see it as ‘delinquency’ is to locate it outside this spectrum, where it is less subject to scrutiny from a systemic and feminist perspective. This paper looks at the relevant literature on adolescent violence, and attempts to develop family therapy theory in this difficult area. It is a companion piece to Marni Sheehan's more practice-focused paper in this issue.     

The Baby as Subject: The Hospitalised Infant and the Family Therapist

This article is concerned with the experience of infants who endure long hospitalisations. It explores the concept of the baby as subject; that is, infants as active, psychic participants in their earliest relationships. It explores therapeutic possibilities with hospitalised infants from an infant mental health perspective. It advocates for family therapists to equip themselves for infant—parent therapeutic work.     

A Contribution to the History of Family Therapy in Australia and New Zealand: A Bibliometric Perspective*

The content of the first ten volumes of The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy is analysed to provide a picture of the major themes and subject matter addressed in its formative years using the techniques of bibliometrics and content analysis. A methodology is developed for measuring the prevalence of subject content in the journal which could have application in other fields. The interdisciplinary character of family therapy is demonstrated by the diversity of cited end-of-article journal references. A list of most-cited journals is provided. The characteristics of authorship are discussed with respect to geographic dispersion, institutional affiliation, seniority and gender. The issue of collaborative authorship is discussed in relation to the patterns of co-authorship observed in this period, 1979–1989. The analysis identifies signs of the emergence of family therapy as a discrete field. The paper concludes also that there are positive signs of maturation of the journal. It offers some pointers about directions for the journal in the next phase ofits development.     

Negotiating a moral identity in the context of later life care

Strategies to maintain independence for older people have received considerable attention as a social policy solution to the financial and social impact of the ageing population. Critical scholars in gerontology have also highlighted the negative consequences of promoting independence in this way. Understandings of independence have profound implications for caring relationships as people age. To investigate the ways that older people talk about caring we interviewed 48 people aged 55-70years. A discourse analysis of these data showed that a dominant discourse of 'independence' was drawn upon to value self-sufficiency and construct dependence on others as burdensome. This construction of care provides a comfortable position for those who can afford to purchase professional care; however, those without resources are unable to accept unpaid help without also accepting a position of dependency. An alternative discourse of 'being there' constructs having others to provide personal care as a virtue and obligations to provide such care as based on family duty and affection. This discourse emphasises connections between people and a moral obligation to care which also creates difficulties for those with fewer material resources. The position for a dependent older subject in these two discourses may seem incompatible but can be reconciled by reframing independence as autonomy. Autonomy for those requiring care alongside a wider recognition of caring as the responsibility of all members of the community rather than with individual family members would support a flexible approach to later life care arrangements.     

A Survey of Specialist Youth Gender Diversity Services in Australia: A Whole‐of‐Family Approach

The number of referrals for children and young people seeking to affirm their gender has risen exponentially in Australia and elsewhere. Whilst the individual mental health needs and treatment outcomes for this group have been the subject of recent research, considerably less emphasis has been placed on exploring and amalgamating individual family member experiences, particularly siblings, using circular questioning. Yet, gender diversity is known to affect everyone in the family, and research clearly demonstrates that youth who feel validated and supported by individual family members in their gender identities benefit from improved mental health and global outcomes. This study aims to explore current clinical practices, professional viewpoints, use of circular questioning, and whole‐of‐family involvement in specialist youth gender diversity services in Australia. Clinical leads and coordinators of publicly funded youth gender diversity services and individual specialists across Australia were invited to complete an online survey, exploring individual protocols and practices in relation to involving the family, and the rationale underpinning this. All six respondents agreed that adopting a systemic understanding, considering general family functioning, and seeking individual family member opinions, was critical. Nevertheless, all family members were infrequently seen, with resourcing issues and time constraints being cited as the main reasons. The value of adopting a systemic and whole‐of‐family line of enquiry was supported by all respondents. Whilst sibling viewpoints were considered valuable by most professionals, siblings were infrequently seen for a variety of reasons. Further attention could therefore be given to involving siblings during specialist assessments. The findings consistently highlighted the value of a systemic line of enquiry and whole‐of‐family approach for gender diversity services and specialists. However, no current assessment guidelines incorporate this as a recommendation. Therefore, future Australian guidelines could formalise a systemic approach.     

My Father's Other Name Is Rita

Transvestism is a misunderstood subject in the world of psychology. Most research done on transvestism is clinically investigated. This case study is unique in that I know this transvestite personally. He is my father. Therefore, my approach was from a humanistic point of view. This case study offers insights into the relational interactions and reactions from the family members of the transvestite. Further studies in cultural aspects of this psychosexual phenomenon would be greatly to our advantage. In time, transvestism may be looked upon with different eyes as the doors of androgyny begin to open wider.     

‘I Just Don't Agree’: A Voice-Oriented Analysis of An IFPS Case of Alleged Child Maltreatment

In contrast to the many outcome studies of Intensive Family Preservation Services (IFPS), little is known about the underlying personal and relational dynamics of family crisis interventions. This article focuses on the core evolving dynamics of the changing self-presentations of a parent involved in an intensive home-based family preservation case of alleged child maltreatment. Three key family intervention sessions were videotaped and transcribed including both verbal and nonverbal behavior. The Listening Guide Method – a theoretically flexible, qualitative, relationally oriented method of in-depth interpretative analysis – served as our guide for this case analysis. In the processes of change toward a jointly constructed meaningful narrative on responsibility and self-care, two key elements emerged as playing a pivotal role: (1) the momentum of a potential referral of children to out-of-home care that precedes the start of an IFPS intervention and (2) the rhizomatic or root-like intertwinement of the voices of both parent and therapist with respect to the rationale for any involvement of society in the family. We argue that discourses on imminent placement in the context of family preservation deserve a genuine and valuable position in the initial discourse of a family therapist when entering a family in the context of crisis intervention. Both in understanding and driving any processes of change, we may need to reconsider our own willingness to step into the blending interplay of discourse and counter-discourse with our clients on the subject of our often drastic intervention. Consequently, we may read this narrative analysis as an invitation to reflect on the conceptualization of ‘client readiness’ in psychotherapy and to shift our thinking on preconditions for therapy from a client's readiness toward a therapist's attentiveness to listen.     

THE SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP: AN IDENTIFICATION OF THE PRIMARY ELEMENTS IN THE RELATIONSHIP AND AN APPLICATION OF TWO THEORIES OF ETHICAL RELATIONSHIPS

Many authors on the subject of marriage and family therapy supervision point to the fact that the quality of relationship between supervisor and supervisee is crucial to the process. However, little has been written about the nature of this relationship. This article identifies key elements in the relationship and introduces a theoretical framework for understanding those elements based on the principles of ethical relationships proposed by Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy and Nell Noddings.     

Women Who Work: The limits of the neoliberal feminist paradigm

This article examines Ivanka Trump's Women Who Work, arguing that it represents the newest permutation of the neoliberal feminist subject. After providing an overview of the recent emergence of neoliberal feminism, I explain why the book should be considered part of the wider cultural landscape in which this variant of feminism has increasingly become commonsensical. I then turn to demonstrate how Women Who Work construes the ideal female subject not only as generic human capital but also incites her to invest in herself constantly, where activities ranging from professional workshops through hobbies to friendships are understood as practices that appreciate the value of the self. The conversion of women into generic rather than gendered human capital remains, however, incomplete, since the ideal of a happy work–family balance continues to serve as a push back to the wholesale erasure of traditional notions of sexual difference. Finally, I highlight that neoliberal feminism is erasing other long‐standing divisions and political differences. Not only does the private–public divide collapse, but so, too, does the distinction between one's private self and one's public enterprise as the self itself becomes an enterprise. This dual process of collapse and reconfiguration shapes the newest neoliberal feminist subject, the main protagonist of Trump's Women Who Work.     

Women’s Experiences with Infertility: The Fluidity of Conceptualizations of ‘Family’

In this study, I examine women’s experiences with infertility and the impact upon their conceptualizations of ‘family.’ Active interviews with 32 women revealed most women started out with conceptualizations that reflected a traditional ideology of family. Participants who conceived biological children through medical assistance expressed a broader conceptualization of family through a greater appreciation for their children and family life in general. Women who did not conceive, despite medical assistance to do so, also discussed broadening their conceptualizations so that ‘family’ took on new meanings, structures, and/or significance. Conceptually, the analysis shows how notions of family are not static, but rather a fluid process subject to interpretation and re-evaluation as a result of life events, in this case, encounters with infertility.     

The construct of intergenerational solidarity in a lineage perspective: A discussion on underlying theoretical assumptions

Although the construct of intergenerational solidarity has been crucial in analyses of relationships between family generations and contradictory results are obtained, the theoretical assumptions underlying the construct have not been discussed. The present aim is to make this construct of intergenerational solidarity a subject of debate, primarily focusing on the assumed connections between the dimensions of the construct and the theoretical presumptions found in Durkheim's concept of mechanical solidarity. The discussion relies on various empirical studies of family generations. It is concluded that the theoretical assumptions underlying the construct do not seem to be adequate for describing family relations across generations, and an alternative theoretical approach is suggested as a basis for further discussion.     

Conjuring up traditions: atmospheres,eras and family Christmases

Despite some macro level concern with the concepts of tradition and ‘detraditionalization’, sociologists for the most part have paid relatively little attention to the everyday realities of family traditions as they are experienced and narrated in people's lives. Based on a qualitative study of ‘Family Backgrounds and Everyday Lives’, this article explores people's experiences and narratives of family Christmases, and examines how traditions are conjured up and evoked in multi‐dimensional, embodied, emplaced and sensory ways. The article argues that in recognizing and conjuring up family practices and happenings as ‘traditions’, people create a vivid and potent sense of generational eras, atmospheres and family styles. These have a moral currency that matters – sometimes quite profoundly – in people's lives, and are the subject of debate and negotiation between, as well as within, generations. Christmas traditions, it is argued, are central in the constitution of eras not least because they enable the bundling up of time – past, present and anticipated for descendant generations – into packages of generalized ‘time out of time’, characterized by distinctive atmospheres, and around which memories can coalesce and about which stories can be told. These atmospheric eras – more than broad or macro understandings of ‘tradition’ – are central in how generational dynamics and personal family histories take shape, and how memories are ‘indexed’ in and through time.     

THE POLITICS OF FUNCTIONAL FAMILY THERAPY: A FEMINIST CRITIQUE*

This paper examines the political processes inherent in Functional Family Therapy (FFT). It argues that this model of family therapy takes a covert political stance which reinforces traditional gender roles in both family and therapist. Of particular interest are FFT's affirmation of existing interpersonal functions in the family, as well as suggested therapist use of self. The implications of this stance are discussed, as well as recommendations for change.     

Nineteenth century stature and family size: binding constraint or productive labor force?

A neglected area in historical stature studies is the relationship between stature and family size, which are documented here to be positively related. The relationship between material inequality and heath is the subject of considerable debate, and there was an inverse relationship between material inequality and stature. After controlling for family size and wealth variables, the paper supports a positive relationship between the physical environment and stature.     

Ecologically defining the mistreatment of adolescents

Ecologically defined, the problem of adolescent/family conflict for otherwise “normal” families is a reaction to crisis in the life cycle of the family. A family's success in weathering the crisis is indicated by their successful maturation to the next stage of the cycle; we can assume that in such cases the ratio of stress to coping ability was such that the family could integrate that stress. When conflict escalates to abuse and neglect, however, the indication is that stress has outstripped coping ability, and the implication is for stress-reducing intervention quite unlike the standard existing interventions in either the juvenile justice or child welfare systems, which negatively label family members, make them adversaries, fragment their coping capabilities, and even subject them at times to situations worse than those for which they needed help originally. The interventions called for are those that support beleaguered families; that are based on conceptualizations of people as adaptable and capable of solving their own problems if they are given adequate supports.