Child-centered approach in the context of the assessment of children in need: Reflections of child protection workers in Estonia

Objective

This article describes empirical results on how practitioners understand the concept of child-centered approach and how it is applied in practice, extending knowledge of the unresearched phenomena in Estonian child protection practice.

Method

A small-scale study included twenty child protection workers from different regions in Estonia, exploring the child-centered approach in assessment practices through in-depth semi-structured interviews.

Results

Results indicate that child-centered approach in the child protection workers' practice is characterized, firstly, by doing work for the child, and less by working with the child, including the fact that some practitioners are somewhat unclear about the meaning of child-centered principle. Majority of the participants underscored the importance of child involvement and partnership in the decision-making process, nevertheless, their case reflections showed that most of them did not include the child in the assessment.

Conclusions and implication for practice

Findings highlight several challenges in Estonian child protection system and suggest a need to find ways to support child protection workers' competence and confidence to conduct comprehensive assessments based on the child-centered approach, including the child in the assessment process.     

Ethical Issues in Continuing Care

No abstract available for this article.     

‘The performative surprise’: parody,documentary and critique

Can parody help us to ‘re‐imagine’ the organizations and institutions we live with (Du Gay 2007 Du Gay, Paul. 2007. Organizing identity: Persons and organizations after theory, London: Sage.  [Google Scholar], 13)? Or, like many forms of critique, does parody risk being incorporated: becoming part of the power it aims to make fun of? In this paper, drawing on Judith Butler’s work, I argue that certain circumstances enable parody to destabilize hegemonic, taken‐for‐granted institutions (Butler 1990 Butler, Judith. 1990. Gender trouble: Feminism and the subversion of identity, London: Routledge.  [Google Scholar]). I explore these ideas through a reading of the Yes Men documentary (Tartan Video 2005 Yes Men. 2005. “Directed by Chris Smith, Dan Ollman and Sarah Price”. Tartan Video.  [Google Scholar]). This film features a series of humorous representations of the World Trade Organization (WTO). I show how these act to denaturalize and effectively critique this dominant force in global trade. This paper discusses the value of parody for helping us to re‐think and re‐make particular institutions and organizations. In doing so, I point to the importance of creating a spectacle in which parody can travel beyond its immediate location, so that it can reach ever newer audiences with its ‘performative surprise’ (Butler 1990 Butler, Judith. 1990. Gender trouble: Feminism and the subversion of identity, London: Routledge.  [Google Scholar], xxvi). I suggest that the rise of the Internet and inexpensive documentary techniques offer interesting new ways for achieving this.     

Determinants of Engagement in Paid Work Following Social Security Benefit Receipt Among Older Women

ABSTRACT

Work behavior among older men approaching or following retirement has received considerable research attention over the past two decades, but research on older women's work behavior is still in its incipient stage. Based on data from the 1982 New Beneficiary Survey (NBS) and the 1991 New Beneficiary Follow-up (NBF), this study analyzes the extent and determinants of employment among women who received their first Social Security benefits between 1980 and 1981. More than one fourth of the women continued to work or rejoined the labor force following their first Social Security benefit receipt. Financial need was found to be the primary reason for and the most significant determinant of women's continuing work or (re)entry into the labor force. But the level of education, health, spouse's work status, and previous work history were also found to be significant determinants of the likelihood and duration of their employment following Social Security receipt.     

Purpose: A Misunderstood and Misused Keystone of Group Work Practice

SUMMARY

This paper examines the use of Purpose in social group work practice. It identifies and discusses six common mistakes that practitioners often make in regard to this central concept. A group example is used to illustrate the paper's content. The paper's intent is to enhance workers' understanding of and ability to use Purpose skillfully in their work with groups.     

农村高龄老人的照料需求与照料供给分析

本文利用2005年"中国高龄老人健康长寿调查"跟踪调查的数据,通过对照料需求和照料供给的分析,揭示出农村高龄老人的照料现状并提出解决供需矛盾的对策。研究结果表明,我国农村地区有1/3的高龄老人需要他人提供某种日常生活方面的帮助,女性的照料需求高于男性。大多数农村高龄老人能够获得较为满意的家庭照料,但是社区照料基本处于空白,同时机构照料也处于发展的低级阶段。鉴于农村特殊的经济社会环境,应继续鼓励和支持家庭照料,大力发展机构照料,而探索适合农村地区的社区照料服务也刻不容缓。     

资本的生态批判——早期高兹的生态马克思主义思想研究

高兹延续马克思主义的政治经济学批判,剖析了资本主义社会中逐渐显露出来的新需要、人力资本与资本之间的本质关系。高兹对资本主义生态危机、异化消费、贫困、科技等现实问题展开全面批判,其思想对我们理解现代化进程中所遇到的问题具有重要的启示意义。     

影视之镜下的人类之像——人类学纪录片在影视媒介中的“视像”呈现

影视媒介从一开始就与人类学结下了不解之缘,并催生了人类学纪录片和影视人类学。采用影像文本分析的方法,从人类学纪录片的视角、视点、视域三个方面,探讨了纪录片在影像人类学透镜下展现人之类像的镜像机制。     

人性与犯罪论纲

人性是一切人生而固有的普遍本性,具有动物性和文化性的两重性。从人起源于动物来看,人性起初充满着动物性,没有文化性,所以,人性是本恶的。犯罪是具有严重社会危害性的应当采取措施加以防治的行为。犯罪人既有人的一般属性,又有反社会性的特殊属性。犯罪作为人本身的一种行为,必然与人性是相互影响的。人性之需要、人性之趋乐避苦、人性之个性等,都是影响犯罪发生的重要因素。当然,犯罪亦影响人性,具体表现在犯罪摧残人性,刑罚要求关照人性。     

企业实施碳减排融资问题研究

资金是企业实现碳减排必须解决的首要问题。由于碳排放贯穿于产品全生命周期,因而企业将面临产品全生命周期的巨额融资需求。然而,日益严格的气候法规和能源技术研发的难度却严重影响企业的融资能力,增大企业的碳融资风险。因此,文章从实施合同能源管理、参与碳交易、建立多层次融资体系等角度构建了一个综合的碳减排融资机制,以满足企业实现碳减排的资金需求,化解碳融资风险。