'I Value What You have to Say'. Seeking the Perspective of Children with a Disability, Not Just their Parents

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child acknowledges the right for children to express opinions about issues affecting them and the right to have these views heard (Davis, 1998). There has been an increase in the number of international studies including children as informants in research, but there is noticeably less published research including children as informants in Australia if they have a disability. Rather, there has been a reliance on parents/carers for insight into their child's experiences. In this article we present the results of a qualitative pilot study where we interviewed parents and their children who have cerebral palsy about their perceptions and experiences of communication in the medical consultation. We found that the views of children and parents were different, further reiterating the need to seek the perceptions of children as well as their parents.     

Trying to Comfort the Parent: A Qualitative Study of Children Dealing With Parental Depression

In this article, we look at children’s experiences of parentification in families in which one of the parents is hospitalized for depression. Children (7–14 years old) and their parents were invited for a family interview. Using thematic analysis, we constructed a general framework of 14 children’s experiences, guided by the explorative research question: How do children experience parental depression and how do they experience their own caregiving in the family? The thematic analysis revealed eight themes. One of these themes (trying to comfort the parent) was selected for a microanalysis in one family interview. Our study illustrates the process of overt negotiating of caretaking between parent and child with an underlying moral dilemma and related emotions. The dynamic of children hiding their worry can be seen as an answer to the parent’s expressed wish to not burden her children. These dynamics are situated in ongoing debates in family therapy literature, and some suggestions for therapeutic practice are formulated.     

Emotional Safeguarding: Exploring the Nature of Middle‐Class Parents’ School Involvement1

Although discussion of parents’ school involvement generally surrounds academic success, there are also emotional motivations for parents’ school interventions. In this exploratory analysis, based on interviews with 21 parents and teachers, I show how these middle‐class parents’ concerns for children extend beyond grades and academic success to the children’s own emotional comfort with schooling. I discuss examples of emotional safeguarding, a parental practice to protect children’s happiness at school. Results also suggest that emotional and academic concerns for children at school are interrelated, and parents often approach the emotional with the academic in mind. Parents focus on reducing children’s anxiety or discomfort at school with the ultimate goal of instilling a love of learning. The parents in this study perceive an emotional route to achieving academic success for their middle‐class children. Unlike parents, teachers in the study identify parents’ concerns as academic or a product of parents’ anxiety. This research introduces the possibility that while parents’ academic concerns are very real, they are also accompanied by equal and occasionally greater concerns for children’s happiness and well‐being at school.     

Why more ‘quality time’ is not on the top of children's lists: the ‘qualities of time’ for children1

For many years the everyday reality of working parents and their children has been captured in notions of ‘quality time’ versus ‘quantity time’. On the one hand it is suggested that what families need is ‘more time’ for parents to spend together with their children and less time working. On the other hand this has been countered with arguments saying that attention has to be paid to how parents spend their time together with their children. As a result quality time is often presented through idealised images of ‘happy families’. Quality time is seen as parents engaging with their children in particular activities or outdoor excursions that create and maintain family enjoyment, care and togetherness. However, such debates are based on assumptions of what would be ‘good’ for today's children and neglect the perspective of children themselves. This paper draws on field research carried out with 10–11‐year‐old children on their understandings and use of time in an urban and a rural setting in the north of England. The paper points to five ‘qualities of time’ identified by children. These qualities suggest that children's views of time spent with their families cannot be seen as separate from the time they spend with friends, at school and on their own. The paper argues that the quality/quantity time conundrum needs replacing by fuller and more representative accounts of the varied aspects of time that matter for children. These need to be situated in the processes through which family, school and work life take place on a daily basis and in relation to children's life course. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Parents of psychiatrically hospitalized children: A decade of changing perceptions

Psychiatric hospitals for children have changed dramatically during the last decade. The lengths of hospitalizations have been shortened; the psychopathology of children qualifying for admission is more severe, often with neurological or biochemical components. In some hospitals, there has been an increasing emphasis on research. All of these changes have affected the staff's perceptions of the children's parents; these changes appear to have resulted in a more supportive, less critical attitude toward these parents. This may be significant in increasing parents' confidence in coping with their child's illness and their family's stress. The need for empirical, longitudinal research is emphasized.The research mentioned in this article was funded by the American Cancer Society.     

Child-Parent Relationship Therapy with Extra-Familial Abused Children

Sexual abuse by a perpetrator outside of the family is the most prevalent form of child sexual abuse. It is associated with serious consequences for both the child and his family. Surprisingly, however, the issue of extra-familial sexual abuse has received very little research and clinical attention. The purpose of the current study was to explore the effectiveness of Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT), which uses nondirective play therapy tools, among parents of extra-familial abused children and their parents. In order to do so, data was collected from 51 parents who participated in CPRT, at three points in time: pretreatment stage, at the beginning of the first meeting; and in the post treatment stage. The data included the parents’ reports via three questionnaires: Parenting Stress Inventory (PSI), Compassion Fatigue Self-Test (CFST), Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Overall, the results indicated a decrease in internalizing and externalizing symptoms among the children, as well as in parenting stress and in parental secondary trauma symptoms. This study contributes to the literature on interventions with victims of extra-familial child abuse and their parents. Specifically, the results highlight the benefits and importance of involving both parents and children in therapeutic interventions for victims of extra-familial child sexual abuse, with particular emphasis on the benefits of Child-Parent Relationship Therapy.     

What Not to Wear? Girls,Clothing and ‘Showing’ the Body

Consumption practices of children in contemporary Western societies are implicated in the reconstruction of childhood, according to both popular debate and to those academic perspectives stressing the individualisation of identities within the life course of late modern consumer societies. Yet, little is known about the meanings children themselves give to their own consumption. Drawing from an ethnographic study of children aged 6–11 years and their families, the paper presents girls’ constructions of fashion in relation to their own bodies and to those of others. It is shown that although girls may both desire and actually ‘dress up’ in fashionable clothing, they present a range of contingent and contradictory meanings for doing so. For some girls, ‘dressing up’ in certain clothes may be a way of ‘ageing up’ toward feminine adulthood, albeit in restricted contexts and after negotiations between themselves and their parents as to what can be worn and where. Nonetheless, girls in the study also showed anxieties and disapproval of ‘showing the body’ through ‘revealing’ clothing. The article concludes by considering the implication of these findings for debates about gendered childhoods, and intergenerational relations in late modern consumer society.     

Attachment,Affective Responsiveness,and Cohesion in Adoptive Families: Child and Parent Perspectives

Some adoptive families are at risk for problems in family functioning. This study investigated the extent to which attachment to parents and affective responsiveness of the family predicted family cohesion and satisfaction with the adoptive family from both the child's and the parent's perspectives. Using a sample of 50 adopted children and their parents, our findings indicated that attachment to mother was salient in predicting children's perceptions of family cohesion and satisfaction with their adoptive family. Parental ratings of affective responsiveness of the family predicted parents' evaluation of family cohesion and their satisfaction with the adoption. As hypothesized, children and parents differed in their ratings of the cohesion and affective responsiveness of their family, with children reporting lower levels of these constructs than parents. Implications for practitioners and directions for future research are discussed.     

Behavior Problems of Sexually Abused Children in Foster Care

Research has shown that sexually abused children display a number of behavior problems. Many of these children are placed in substitute care, especially foster homes. The current project was undertaken to measure foster parents' perceptions about the behavior problems of sexually abused children in their care. Two studies were completed. The first was a large survey of foster parents in a Midwestern state. The second study utilized a sample of foster parents to complete a standardized behavior inventory which has previously been used in child sexual abuse research. The types of behavior problems described by foster parents and implications for future research are discussed.     

The children of alcoholics: An exploratory study

This study explored the relation of parents alcoholism to the health, behavior, and learning problems of their children. To control for the impact of hospitalization on the children, two control samples were obtained. In general, the problems among children of alcoholics were the same as for children in the control group except in the area of behavioral problems. The implication of these results for further research and for clinical practice were discussed.     

Adult-child activities and child development outcomes in developing countries: an empirical investigation in Thailand

ABSTRACT

Is doing activities with young children important for their development? This study aims to examine the effects of adult-child activities on cognitive and non-cognitive development in pre-school children in developing countries by using Thailand as a case study. The adult-child activities of interest are reading, storytelling, singing, outings, and playing. Using national representative secondary data on children aged 3–4 years from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS4) of Thailand, our results show that while the level of children‘s participation in these activities is relatively high compared to other developing countries, the proportion of children with “normal” cognitive and non-cognitive development is still low. We find that only singing, outings, and playing have positive statistical effects for children who live with both parents (with playing having the highest positive effect), but for children who do not live with both parents or live with others, the positive effect remains only for singing. On the other hand, storytelling, singing, and outings seems to have statistically significant positive effects for non-cognitive outcomes among children who live with both parents (with outings having the highest positive effect). No activities have statistically significant effects on non-cognitive development of children who do not live with both parents. The recommendations call for greater attention on advocating adult-child activities in the context of developing countries.     

When the rehabilitation ideal fails: a study of parental rights termination

This study explored the circumstances of parents whose extreme neglect and abuse of their young children justified the drastic state action of termination of their parental rights. Records of 97 children age 6 and under whose parental rights were terminated between 1991 and 1997 in Minnesota were reviewed. Profiles of parents and children were drawn from these data, and a "risk pool" of parents whose children became wards of the state was identified. Guidelines are drawn from this "risk pool" that may help alert practitioners to those parents who are unlikely to safely maintain their children. Questions and implications for policy and practice are highlighted.     

Negotiating Languages in Immigrant Families

This study is about the multifaceted nature of language use in immigrant families. Following earlier explorations of language in the segmented assimilation framework and using adolescent and parental data from the 1995 wave of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study, this article examines how adolescents’ use of English with their parents relates to their proficiency in English and ethnic languages, and their personal language preferences, as well as their parents’ language proficiency and use. The findings suggested that adolescent language choice in child–parent interactions reflected the family’s ways to negotiate the distinct linguistic repertoires of immigrant parents and their children. The adolescent use of English was not necessarily associated with social and emotional estrangement between generations. Even when adolescents generally preferred English, they were less likely to use English in child–parent interactions if their parents, particularly their mothers, were less proficient in English. On the other hand, adolescents were more likely to speak English to their parents if their mothers were proficient in English, regardless of what language parents used with the children. Parents who spoke to their children in English likely responded to their children’s doubts about their ethnic language proficiency and were linguistically and emotionally ready to make that transition.     

Social support characteristics among nonclinical African-American and Filipino-American parents with school-age children

This study is the first phase of a project to develop a culturally-appropriate, family-mediated social support intervention program. This phase consisted of in-home interviews with 26 African-American (AF) and 26 Filipino-American (FA) parents who were not receiving counseling or social services for parent-child conflict, and self-reported adequate personal and family functioning. In general, parents were college educated and employed full-time and had house-hold incomes of over $25,000. On average, AF parents were 35 years old, with 4 people in the household, including 2 children (mean AGE = 10 years). FA parents were older, averaging 45 years, and had 6 people in the household, including 3 children (mean AGE = 12 years). Mean scores on standardized measures reflected high self-esteem and positive attitudes toward their children and families. Social network size averaged 32 and 38 members for AF and FA mothers respectively, and 24 and 29 members for AF and FA fathers. Most parents reported that fewer than 50% of their network members knew each other. Data also suggested that parents reported a generally positive orientation to utilizing support resources, and favorable perceptions of and satisfaction with support form family and friends. Analyzes revealed that only functional support variables were significantly associated with parent well-being. Study limitations, service implications, and further research directions are discussed.     

Multigenerational punishments on the children of Salvadoran immigrant and deported fathers

Drawing on qualitative research conducted in the United States and in El Salvador, the author examines the experiences of the children of 40 immigrant men and 40 deported men. This study reveals the harmful effects of U.S. immigration policies and enforcement practices on the children of Salvadoran immigrant and deported fathers. Their children were found to have experienced the unintended consequences of U.S. immigration laws and enforcement practices in their own lives and relationships. These findings support Enriquez's (2015) concept of “multigenerational punishments” where children of immigrant parents share the risks and limitations associated with their parent's immigration status. They also experience the negative spill-over effects of immigration policies and enforcement practices even though they were not directly targeted by these laws. This study reveals multigenerational punishments manifested in the form of social, economic, emotional, and physical inequalities which negatively affected the children of Salvadoran immigrant and deported fathers. As a result, many of their children experienced harmful changes in their lives and relationships under the U.S. immigration enforcement regime. This study is significant in that it provides insight into the issues that immigrant families face and the need for policy interventions for immigrant and deported parents and their children.     

A Prospective Study of Behavioural Disturbance in Children Who Subsequently Experience Parental Divorce

This study examines changes in children's behaviour as a function of parental divorce. As part of a large scale general population study on the effects of marital disharmony on children, 139 children from the general population were followed up from a previous study. These children and their mothers were interviewed first between 1979 and 1982 (time 1) and then followed up between 1984 and 1986 (time 2). Between the time 1 interview and the time 2 interview, 16 children's parents had separated or divorced. This paper deals with the mothers' report of changes in the behaviour of these children between time 1 and time 2 as a function of their parents' divorce, and compares this with changes in children's behaviour whose parents live in disharmonious (N = 40) or harmonious homes (N = 50). Children's reports of their own behaviour at time 2 are also presented. The data show that children in disharmonious homes and children whose parents subsequently divorce show higher levels of disturbance than children in harmonious homes. Children whose parents subsequently divorce show their disturbance prior to the divorce. Children's coping strategies in response to divorce were also investigated and and an association was found between children's behavioural problems and (a) self-blame and (b) not having friends whose parents had divorced.     

“Parent Advocacy” as an Ideological Code: LGBTQ Parents Engage with Disability Services

What does the work that LGBTQ parents do to find resources for their disabled children reveal about the social organization of services? This article presents findings from an institutional ethnography study based on interviews with 15 lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer (LGBTQ) parents and six key community informants in Toronto, Canada. The analysis focused on the work parents did to engage with disability service systems on behalf of their children, and the ways in which families’ social privilege and/or marginalization affected their experiences. Particular attention was paid to the ways in which “parent advocacy” was taken up, responded to, and critiqued in these interviews. “Parent advocacy” was found to operate as what Dorothy Smith has called an “ideological code” (Smith 1999), offloading systemic responsibilities onto parents, shielding inequities, and promoting individualized competition between service users. This study suggests that the systemic organization that makes “parent advocacy” necessary also renders parents’ relative privilege or marginality central to what their children receive.     

Eine Forschungsstudie zum Elternkurs des Deutschen Kinderschutzbundes e.V. „Starke Eltern — Starke Kinder®“

The course for parents organized by the German Society for the Protection of Children ?Strong parents — strong children“ offers support to parents in their methods of upbringing their children. The effects the participation in this course can have on parents, their children, the family atmosphere and the partents-child relationship were evaluated in a research study at the University of Applied Sciences Cologne.After briefly introducting the course for parents the study ist meant to show how deeply the drawing up of research parameter (i.e. dimensions of education) and the realisation of the evaluation were influenced by the anthropology and dialogical pedagogy of the Polish doctor and pedagogue Janusz Korczak (1878–1942).The contribution describes pedagogical reflections on and the relevant dimensions of the educational methods that encourage respectively inhibit development. The essay then delivers first results of the accompanying research.