Résumés
Abstract
Through a final qualitative interview question, we asked mothers who were involved with the Canadian child welfare system to provide recommendations to improve practices in this system. Through their responses, these women focused on the relationships between parents and workers. Surprisingly, they stated that child welfare workers should “act like friends.” In these descriptions, they stated that child welfare workers should be respectful, honest, caring, supportive, non-judgmental, and encouraging. They further stated that workers should have empathy and provide concrete supports so that parents maintain connections to their children. First, we present the mothers’ recommendations. Then, we situate these findings into best practice literature and discuss both the possibilities and challenges of developing stronger relationships between parents and child welfare workers.
Keywords:
- Relationship,
- child welfare,
- social work practice,
- intimate partner violence,
- mothers,
- empathy
Résumé
Lors d’un entretien qualitatif, la dernière question posée à des mères encadrées par le système de protection de l’enfance les invitait à formuler des recommandations pour améliorer le fonctionnement de ce système. Dans leurs réponses, ces femmes ont mis l’accent sur la relation entre parents et travailleurs sociaux. Étonnamment, elles ont dit que les intervenants devraient « agir comme des amis ». Elles ont précisé que les intervenants devraient être respectueux, honnêtes, bienveillants, attentionnés, ne pas porter de jugement et donner des encouragements. Elles ont aussi dit qu’ils devraient faire preuve d’empathie et offrir un soutien concret pour aider les parents à maintenir des liens avec leurs enfants. Nous commençons par présenter ici les recommandations des mères, puis nous les replaçons dans le contexte des écrits sur les pratiques exemplaires, et enfin nous analysons les possibilités et les difficultés de resserrer les liens entre les parents et les intervenants.
Mots-clés :
- Relations,
- protection de l’enfance,
- pratique du travail social,
- violence entre conjoints,
- mères,
- empathie
Parties annexes
Bibliography
- Alaggia, R., Jenney, A., Mazzuca, J., & Redmond, M. (2007). In whose best interest? A Canadian case studyof the impact of child welfare policies in cases of domestic violence. Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention, 7(4), 275-290.
- Atwool, N. (2013). Birth family contact for children in care: How much? How often? Who with? Child Care in Practice, 19(2), 181-198.
- Bennett, M., Spillett, L., & Dunn, C.(2012). Jumping through hoops: An overview of the experiences andperspectives of Aboriginal mothers involved with child welfare inManitoba. First Peoples Child & Family Review, 7(1), 76-83.
- Bourassa, C., Lavergne, C., Damant, D.,Lessard, G., & Turcotte, P. (2008). Child welfare workers’practice in cases involving domestic violence. Child Abuse Review, 17(3), 174-190.
- Buckley, H., Carr, N., & Whelan, S.(2011). “Like walking on eggshells”: Service user views andexpectations of the child protection system. Child & Family Social Work, 16(1), 101-110.
- Chapman, M. V., Gibbons, C. B., Barth, R.P., & McCrae, J. S. (2002). Parental views of in-home services:What predicts satisfaction with child welfare workers? Child Welfare, 82, 571–596.
- Clarke, J. (2011). The challenges of child welfare involvement for Afro-Caribbean families in Toronto. Children and youth services review, 33(2), 274-283.
- Dale, P. (2004). “Like a fish in a bowl”: Parents’ perceptions of child protection services. Child Abuse Review, 13(2), 137-157.
- Davies, L., & Collings, S. (2008). Emotional knowledge for child welfare practice: Rediscovering our roots. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 78(1), 7-26.
- Davies, L., Krane, J., Collings, S., & Wexler, S. (2007). Developing mothering narratives in child protection practice. Journal of Social Work, 21(1), 23-34.
- de Boer, C., & Coady, N. (2007). Good helping relationships in child welfare: Learning from stories of success. Child & Family Social Work, 12(1), 32-42.
- Dumbrill, G. C. (2006). Parental experience of child protection intervention: A qualitative study. Child Abuse & Neglect, 30(1), 27-37.
- Earner, I. (2010). Double risk: Immigrant mothers, domestic violence and public child welfare services in New York City. Evaluation and program planning, 33(3), 288-293.
- Emerson, D., & Magnuson, D. (2013). Child protection intervention in domestic violence: An illustrative case narrative. Child & Youth Services, 34(3), 236-249.
- Forrester, D., Kershaw, S., Moss, H., & Hughes, L. (2008). Communication skills in child protection: Howdo social workers talk to parents? Child & Family Social Work, 13(1), 41-51.
- Friend, C., Shlonsky, A. & Lambert,L. (2008). From evolving discourses to new practice approaches indomestic violence and child protective services. Children and Youth Services Review, 30(6), 689-698. doi: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2008.01.006
- Gladstone, J., Dumbrill, G., Leslie, B.,Koster, A., Young, M., & Ismaila, A. (2012). Looking at engagementand outcome from the perspectives of child protection workers andparents. Children and Youth Services Review, 34(1), 112-118.
- Hardy, F., & Darlington, Y. (2008).What parents value from formal support services in the context ofidentified child abuse. Child & Family Social Work, 13(3), 252-261.
- Healy, K., Darlington, Y., & Feeney,J. A. (2011). Parents’ participation in child protectionpractice: Toward respect and inclusion. Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 92(3), 282-288.
- Holland, S., Forrester, D., Williams, A., & Copello, A. (2013). Parenting and substance misuse: Understandingaccounts and realities in child protection contexts. British Journal of Social Work, 44, 1491-1507.
- Howe, D. (2010). The safety of children and the parent-worker relationship in cases of child abuse and neglect. Child Abuse Review, 19(5), 330-341.
- Hughes, J., Chau, S., & Poff, D. C.(2011). “They’re not my favourite people”: Whatmothers who have experienced intimate partner violence say aboutinvolvement in the child protection system. Children and Youth Services Review, 33(7), 1084-1089.
- Jones, A., & Vetere, A. (2016).“You just deal with it. You have to when you’ve got achild”: A narrative analysis of mothers’ accounts of howthey coped, both during an abusive relationship and after leaving. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 1359104515624131.
- Johnson, S. P., & Sullivan, C. M. (2008). How child protection workers support or further victimize battered mothers. Affilia, 23(3), 242–258.
- Keeling, J., & Van Wormer, K. (2012).Social worker interventions in situations of domestic violence: What wecan learn from survivors’ personal narratives?. British Journal of Social Work, 42(7), 1354-1370.
- Kemp, S. P., Marcenko, M. O., Hoagwood,K., & Vesneski, W. (2009). Engaging parents in child welfareservices: Bridging family needs and child welfare mandates. Child Welfare, 88(1), 101-126.
- Klausen, R. K., Karlsson, M., Haugsgjerd,S., & Lorem, G. F. (2015). Motherhood and mental distress: Personalstories of mothers who have been admitted for mental health treatment. Qualitative Social Work, 15(1), 103-117.
- Lapierre, S. (2010). Moreresponsibilities, less control: Understanding the challenges anddifficulties involved in mothering in the context of domestic violence.British Journal of Social Work, 40(5), 1434-1451.
- Lapierre, S., & Côté, I.(2011). “I made her realize that I could be there for her, that Icould support her”: Child protection practices with women indomestic violence cases. Child Care in Practice, 17(4), 311-325.
- Lavergne, C., Damant, D., Clément,M. È., Bourassa, C., Lessard, G., & Turcotte, P. (2011). Keydecisions in child protection services in cases of domestic violence:Maintaining services and out-of-home placement. Child & Family Social Work, 16(3), 353-363.
- Levitt, D. H. (2001). Active listening and counselor self-efficacy: Emphasis on one microskill in beginning counselor training. The Clinical Supervisor, 20(2), 101-115
- Maiter, S., Palmer, S., & Manji, S.(2006). Strengthening social worker-client relationships in childprotective services addressing power imbalances and“ruptured” relationships. Qualitative Social Work, 5(2), 161-186.
- Mandell, D. (2008). Power, care and vulnerability: Considering use of self in child welfare work. Journal of Social Work Practice, 22(2), 235-248.
- Mirick, R. G. (2014). The relationship between reactance and engagement in a child welfare sample. Child & Family Social Work, 19(3), 333-342.
- Morrow, S. L. (2005). Quality and trustworthiness in qualitative research in counseling psychology. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52(2), 250.
- Mullins, J. L. (2011). A framework for cultivating and increasing child welfare workers’ empathy toward parents. Journal of Social Service Research, 37(3), 242-253.
- Palmer, S., Maiter, S., & Manji, S. (2006). Effective intervention in child protective services: Learning from parents. Children and Youth Services Review, 28(7), 812-824.
- Peled, E., & Gil, I. B. (2011). The mothering perceptions of women abused by their partner. Violence Against Women, 17(4), 457-479.
- Pennell, J., Rikard, R. V., & Sanders-Rice, T. (2014). Family violence: Fathers assessing andmanaging their risk to children and women. Children and youth services review, 47, 36-45.
- Perera, D. N., Short, L., & Fernbacher, S. (2014). There is a lot to it: Being a mother and living with a mental illness. Advances in Mental Health, 12(3), 167-181.
- Radcliffe, P. (2011). Motherhood, pregnancy, and the negotiation of identity: The moral career of drug treatment. Social science & medicine, 72(6), 984-991.
- Regehr, C., Kanai, K., McFadden, J. & Saini, M. (2016). Essential law for social work practice in Canada. Don Mills, ON: Oxford University Press.
- Savvidou, I., Bozikas, V. P.,Hatzigeleki, S., & Karavatos, A. (2003). Narratives about theirchildren by mothers hospitalized on a psychiatric unit. Family process, 42(3), 391-402.
- Schreiber, J. C., Fuller, T., & Paceley, M. S. (2013). Engagement in child protective services: Parentperceptions of worker skills. Children and Youth Services Review, 35(4), 707-715.
- Segal, E. A. (2011). Social empathy: Amodel built on empathy, contextual understanding, and socialresponsibility that promotes social justice. Journal of Social Service Research, 37(3), 266-277.
- Semaan, I., Jasinski, J. L., & Bubriski-McKenzie, A. (2013). Subjection, subjectivity, and agency: Thepower, meaning, and practice of mothering among women experiencingintimate partner abuse. Violence Against Women, 19(1), 69-88.
- Shim, W. S., & Haight, W. L. (2006).Supporting battered women and their children: Perspectives of batteredmothers and child welfare professionals. Children and Youth Services Review, 28(6), 620-637.
- Sykes, J. (2011). Negotiating stigma: Understanding mothers’ responses to accusations of child neglect. Children and Youth Services Review, 33(3), 448-456.
- Spratt, T., & Callan, J. (2004). Parents’ views on social work interventions in child welfare cases. British Journal of Social Work, 34(2), 199-224.
- Stanley, N., Miller, P., Foster, H. R., & Thomson, G. (2011). A stop–start response: Socialservices’ interventions with children and families notifiedfollowing domestic violence incidents. British Journal of Social Work, 41(2), 296-313.
- Strega, S., Fleet, C., Brown, L.,Dominelli, L., Callahan, M., & Walmsley, C. (2008). Connectingfather absence and mother blame in child welfare policies and practice.Children and Youth Services Review, 30, 705–716.
- Studsrød, I., Willumsen, E., & Ellingsen, I. T. (2014). Parents’ perceptions of contact with theNorwegian child welfare services. Child & Family Social Work, 19(3), 312-320.
- Turney, D. (2012). A relationship-based approach to engaging involuntary clients: The contribution of recognition theory. Child & Family Social Work, 17(2), 149-159.
- Van Nijnatten, C. (2010). Deadlocked dialogues in child welfare. British Journal of Social Work, 40(3), 826-840.
- Virokannas, E. (2011). Identity categorization of motherhood in the context of drug abuse and child welfare services. Qualitative Social Work, 10(3), 329-345.
- Waterhouse, L., & McGhee, J. (2015). Practitioner–mother relationships and the processes that bind them. Child & Family Social Work, 20(2), 244-251.
- Wiig, E. M., Haugland, B. S. M., Halsa,A., & Myhra, S. M. (2014). Substance-dependent women becomingmothers: Breaking the cycle of adverse childhood experiences. Child & Family Social Work. doi: 10.1111/cfs.12190
- Weger Jr., H., Castle, G. R., & Emmett, M. C. (2010). Active listening in peer interviews: Theinfluence of message paraphrasing on perceptions of listening skill. The International Journal of Listening, 24(1), 34-49.