A Study of Families' Expectations and Experiences of a Child Guidance Clinic

Summary Recently there has been considerable debate concerning the useof child guidance/psychiatric services. There is a lack of consumerstudies in this area, despite opinion that such studies areessential in the evaluaton of these services. This paper considersthe expectations and experiences of ten families who attendedtheir local child guidance clinic. These families had attendedthe clinic for no more than six appointments before termination.Most parents had expectations which conflicted with those ofclinic staff. The only three families whose expectations concurredwith clinic practice had had previous experience of the ‘helpingprofessions’. Overall less than half the families feltthey had been helped and this seems related to the differencesbetween their expectations and experiences. The clinic's andthe families' opinions concerning the helpfulness of clinicintervention do not always coincide, nor do their reasons fortermination. Ideas for preparation of families prior to attendingthe clinic and for modification of treatment by clinic staffare considered.     

An Examination of the Determinants of Positive Outcome in Child Guidance Social Work

Summary A sample of 50 cases carried by four Child Guidance Social Workerswere monitored over a period of three months and their outcomesassessed from the standpoint of four different assessors; practitioners;researchers; clients; and referring agents. These assessementsof outcome were compared and analyzed in an attempt to identifywhat factors contributed to those interventions evaluated ashaving a positive outcome. The study revealed high levels ofinter-rater agreement with respect to assessment of outcomeand certain factors emerged as contributing to positive outcomeincluding aspects of the problems and children referred andaspects of the interaction between worker and client. Attentionis drawn to the implications of these findings for practice.     

An Evaluation of Social Support Intervention with Depressed Mothers in Child and Family Care

Correspondence to Professor Michael Sheppard, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, UK. Summary The significance of maternal depression to social work practicein child and family care has become increasingly apparent inrecent years. Social support, furthermore, is a concept (aswell as a reality) which provides a major focus for social workpractice. Indeed, social support, it is also clear, is of considerableimportance in helping prevent depression. This paper seeks toexamine social support work carried out by social workers inrelation to depressed mothers in child and family care. In particularit seeks to evaluate the quality of that intervention in thelight of key problem areas associated with high levels of supportneeds, the extent to which social workers target support needsthrough direct, indirect and informal supports, and the extentto which particular interventions are associated with a higheradequacy of support experienced by these depressed women. Thepaper finds a certain degree of haphazardness in social workers’targeting of support needs, although in some areas of indirectsupport, in particular, their targeting is reasonably accurate.There is little evidence of any one form of intervention beingassociated with more adequate support with one significant exception,relief care of children. The paper concludes that social workersneed to develop a keener awareness of support deficits so thatthey are targeted better; they need to monitor more carefullyinterventions carried out by other agencies and professionals;and they should look to relief care of children as a major formof intervention to support these women.     

An Evaluation of a Parenting Payment Intervention Program

This paper analyses the effect of a pilot program to assist single parent claimants to lessen their dependence on social security benefits. A sample of about 5000 persons was randomly assigned to one control and two treatment groups. Those in the treatment groups were asked to attend an initial interview to help them plan for the future and were then referred to other forms of assistance that might help them to realise their plans. Using different estimators and several indicators of outcomes, the evidence for the program having a positive effect on outcomes is very weak. The reason for this result is explored by an analysis of the relationships between the plans participants formulated, the barriers they faced and whether they left benefits. It is found that while the program encouraged claimants to plan for moving into paid work, the assistance offered did not reduce the barriers they faced.     

The Death of a Child

Summary The death of a child is an intrinsically tragic event for theparents of that child. What might appear as abnormal grief inbereaved parents can often be understood in the context of thepreceding circumstances of their lives and that of the child.This paper examines guilt and anger as experienced by a bereavedcouple in relation to the sudden death of their mongol son;the inability of another couple to detach themselves from theirbaby who had suffered a cot death; and the effects on bereavedparents of the denial of death in modern society.     

Have Child Protection Efforts Reduced Child Homicides? An Examination of Data from Britain and North America

Correspondence to Duncan Lindsey, School of Public Policy and Social Research, Department of Social Welfare, University of California, Los Angeles, 247 Dodd Hall, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1452, USA. Summary In a recent British Journal of Social Work article examiningtrends in child homicide statistics collected by the World HealthOrganization (WHO), Colin Pritchard attributes a reduction inchild homicides in England and Wales to improved effectivenessof child protection services. However, further analysis of theWHO data show that the decrease in England and Wales is dueto an unusual single-year drop in homicide rates, and that thereis no evidence of a long-term downward trend. Examination oftrends in Europe and North America show that there are no consistentpatterns in fluctuations in child homicide rates, and in particular,no evidence that fatality statistics have been influenced bythe rapid expansion in child protection efforts.     

An Evaluation of a Multifaceted Prenatal Program Serving a Diverse Inner-City Population

ABSTRACT

A multifaceted prenatal program incorporating social service and educational components as well as medical care has been operating in Cleveland, Ohio since 1966. We evaluate this program's effect on reducing infant mortality with data from linked birth, infant death and program files for 1985–87 resident birth cohorts. Adjusted for level of risk, participation in the prenatal program was associated with improved survival of newborns among African-Americans and possibly also Hispanics. However, Non-Hispanic White clients, some of whom may have been of Appalachian background, had an excessively high rate of postneonatal mortality. We discuss several hypotheses which might account for these findings.     

An Evaluation of a Group Program for Men Who Batter

This article describes a research study which evaluated a group service for men who batter. Change was evaluated both by self report and as interpreted from the Hemler Scale of Social Functioning. It was demonstrated that male batterers who entered into the group treatment process showed significant change with respect to human social functioning and in the cessation of physical violence towards their partners. Although the personal journey along which a batterer takes responsibility for his actions and finds appropriate coping mechanisms is intensely individual, this study adds to the literature which confirms that a supportive group experience can facilitate this process.     

An Exploratory Analysis of Seven Child Welfare Workers who Confused SIDS with Child Maltreatment Fatalities: A Brief Research Report

Abstract

Previous research shows that child welfare workers (CWWs) have low levels of knowledge of risk factors for child maltreatment fatalities. Further, these gaps in knowledge leave CWWs with misconceptions about causes of deaths and the characteristics of the perpetrators. This brief research report focuses on CWWs’ gaps in knowledge with regard to CMFs and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and explores the socio-demographic characteristics of seven workers who confused fatal child maltreatment and SIDS. These workers were experienced professionals—who were in their middle-age, mid-career, and well-educated—and had been trained in how to recognize risk factors for CMFs. Implications for training and collaboration with other professionals are discussed, as well as the need for research to evaluate training efficacy.     

Discourses of Child Protection and Child Welfare

Correspondence to Gordon Jack, University of Exeter, Department of Social Work and Probation Studies, Amory Building, Rennes Drive, Exeter EX4 4RJ Summary The history and dominance of the discourse of child protectionand its influence over social work practice with children andfamilies is discussed in the light of recent research into theoperation of child protection systems in the UK and elsewhere.The often negative effects of current approaches on professionals,parents, and, particularly, children are highlighted. The issuesof confidentiality and empowerment appear to be of central importancefor current debates about the welfare of children and youngpeople. Three strategies for change are outlined and discussed. It isargued that a fundamental challenge to the child protectiondiscourse is required. Parallels are drawn with the changeswhich occurred in attitudes and responses towards football supporters,following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989. The dangers and shortcomings of the present reliance on a diseasemodel of ‘abuse’, with its focus on individual pathology,are analysed. Support is provided for the development of a newdiscourse, which acknowledges the social contexts within whichallegations of ‘abuse’ arise, and without whichsocial work will continue to be restricted to a procedurallydominated conservative orientation to child welfare.     

Evaluation of Support Groups for Child Abuse Prevention: Outcomes of Four State Evaluations

ABSTRACT

Parent support groups have grown in popularity as a strategy for preventing child maltreatment, but there have been few evaluations of these groups. The purpose of this paper is twofold. One goal is to identify some of the major challenges in the evaluation of parent support groups and to provide strategies for minimizing these potential difficulties. The second goal is to illustrate successful evaluations of parent support groups (i.e., the Circle of Parents® program) in four states. Three of these states used a retrospective pretest method. Outcomes indicated positive performance across all domains of functioning, as measured by a self-report questionnaire. Strengths and limitations of the evaluations are discussed, and recommendations for future evaluations are provided.     

Investigating a Longitudinal Trajectory of Child Obesity and Its Association with Child Maltreatment in South Korea

This study investigated the association between child maltreatment and body mass index (BMI) using data from four waves (wave 2 in 2011 through 5 in 2014) of the Korean Children & Youth Panel Survey collected by the South Korean National Youth Policy Institute. We employed a latent growth curve modeling approach to estimate an unobserved latent trajectory and to test the longitudinal effects of child abuse and neglect on BMI. Our results indicate that child abuse is significantly associated with BMI and children who report higher levels of abuse tend to have higher rates of increase in their BMI. This study addresses a gap in the literature by demonstrating that a parent's maltreatment of their child has a long‐term effect on the rate of change in their BMI over time.     

Child Sexual Abuse and the Male Monopoly: An Empirical Exploration of Gender and a Sexual Interest in Children

Correspondence to Mike Freel, Child Protection and Review Unit, Kirklees Children and Families Services, Westfields, Westfields Road, Mirfield, WF14 9PW, UK. E-mail: mike.freel{at}kirkleesmc.gov.uk Summary Researchers argue there is a male monopoly in the perpetrationof child sexual abuse, and that a male sexual interest in childrenis relatively common in society. Government and organizationsworking with children have done little to address possible implicationsof such research. This study explores gender differences inan expressed sexual interest in children, a history of childhoodsexual abuse, and the relationship between these two factors.A self-administer questionnaire was given to a sample of 92female and 91 male public sector child care workers. Resultsshowed a significantly higher percentage of males (15 per cent)than females (4 per cent) expressed a sexual interest in children.Females (20 per cent) were more than twice as likely as males(8 per cent) to report childhood sexual abuse. More than twiceas many men who had been sexually abused as a child (29 percent) expressed a sexual interest in children compared withnon-abused men (14 per cent), but this did not reach statisticalsignificance. In summary, this study found that a sexual interestin children is relatively common among male public sector childcare workers. Prevalence findings for childhood sexual abuseare broadly in line with other research. Experiencing childhoodsexual abuse was not related to a sexual interest in children,but this finding is based on small numbers reporting such aninterest.     

Child protection social workers' constructions of children and childhood: An integrative review

Social workers' constructions of children and childhood are central to how professionals interact with children and support their needs. The aim of this integrative review was to provide a comprehensive portrayal of child protection social workers' constructions of children and childhood. We analysed and synthesized 35 empirical studies with samples of social workers in the child protection domain where issues regarding the child or the child's situation were the study focus. The findings show that children and youth are constructed as a generalized group viewed in light of their parents. We see a fragmented and context‐free child produced by causal shortcuts strongly informed by specific and, at times, simplified and biased psychological knowledge. Moreover, we identify constructions of the child in need of protection and thereby position children as objects for intervention, separating that from children as subjects in their own rights. Although the participatory child is visible in the data material, the actual practice of involving children seems arbitrary.     

Child Budgeting as a Strategy for Policy Change

This article analyses how ‘child budgeting’ is used as a strategy to influence government towards better welfare policies for children in India. Though children constitute more than one‐third of the population, the budgetary expenditure for this age‐group is comparatively very low. The article describes the situation of children in India, and the method of child budgeting being practised by advocacy institutions in India.     

Current Issues in Child Protection: An Overview of the Debates in Contemporary Journals

Correspondence to Celia Doyle, School of Behavioural Studies, Nene College, Northampton NN2 7AL Summary This article provides an overview of the current debate andconcerns in child protection work as reflected in current, mainlyBritish, academic and professional journals. Some of the concernswhich have been expressed during the past twenty years are stillpart of contemporary discourse. These include the divide betweenphysical punishment and abuse, child fatalities, assessment,procedures, intervention and prevention. Some more recent themeshave also emerged, in particular ritual abuse, the links betweendomestic violence and child maltreatment, children as witnessesand the plight of children with disabilities and young corers.Perhaps the most prominent feature is the overwhelming pre-eminenceof articles about child sexual abuse. Physical neglect remainson the sidelines while emotional abuse, as the main or soleform, merits barely a mention.     

Consequences and Costs of Closing a Publicly Funded Methadone Maintenance Clinic

Objective. We examine volunteering to support the relief effort after the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building. We address two issues: (1) how widespread was volunteering and what forms did it take, and (2) does Wilson and Musick’s (1997a) “integrated theory of volunteer work” help to explain variation in volunteering in this disaster situation? Methods. We use data from the 1996 Oklahoma City Survey (OKC Survey). The 1996 OKC Survey is based on a random sample of the adult population of Oklahoma City and was administered 10 months after the bombing. Results. Nearly 75 percent of the sample respondents volunteered to support the relief effort in at least one way; giving money and donating nonprofessional goods or services were the two most prevalent volunteer activities. Socioeconomic status, knowing someone killed or injured in the bombing, belonging to voluntary organizations before the bombing, and being affiliated with a religious denomination were predictors of volunteering, depending on the type of volunteer activity considered. Conclusions. The magnitude of volunteering after the Murrah Building bombing was in line with volunteer efforts after other disasters. The integrated theory of volunteer work is a useful framework for studying volunteering after disasters.     

The Geriatric Worker in a Community Mental Health Clinic:

Special geriatrics services are now a reality in many community mental health clinics, thus making it timely for clinicians and administrators to look at the problems faced by geriatric workers in that setting. This article addresses the problems in the worker's role by first comparing it to those of other special population mental health workers. Systemic difficulties and structural problems of the job are examined with emphasis on the worker's experiences and feelings. The author contends that the worker's issues parallel those of elderly clients. Solutions for changing negative aspects of the separate service role are discussed and their impact on service delivery described.