BRAC²eD Model: an approach to de-bias decision-making in adoption assessments with prospective adopters from minoritized ethnic groups"

Cultural misunderstanding, systemic barriers, restrictive policies, inconsistent and subjective views around standards and requirements have prevented families from a minoritized ethnic background from successfully adopting. Such barriers have led to reluctance and a lack of trust in the adoption system. In this paper, I argue that these barriers arise from cognitive bias that affects decision-making in adoption. The BRAC²eD model for debiasing is introduced to support adoption assessments of individuals and families from minoritized ethnic groups. BRAC²eD recognizes that the process of assessing prospective adopters is complex and offers strategies to debias. In this model, social workers are encouraged to acknowledge the existence of bias, engage in debiasing nudges, internal conversations and reflexive processes that support challenging bias, the utilization of cognitive resources towards debiasing, and change and determine proportionate decisions. The contention for appropriate language around Black, Asian, Mixed heritage and Other minoritized groups is acknowledged. The author uses ‘minoritized ethnic groups’ as a preferred term based on her own identity, however appreciates that those referred to may have their own preferred terms. With that in mind, social workers must understand the cultural and sub-cultural differences and preferences without homogenizing the people they work with

Utilising genetically informed research designs to better understand family processes and child development: implications for adoption and foster care focused interventions

Understanding the interplay between genetic factors and family environmental processes (e.g. interparental relationship quality, positive vs negative parenting practices) and children’s mental health (e.g. anxiety, depression, conduct problems, ADHD) in the contexts of adoption and foster care research and practice is critical for effective prevention and intervention programme development. While evidence highlights the importance of family relationship processes (e.g. interparental relationship quality, parent‒child relationship quality) for the mental health and well-being of children in adoption and foster care, there is relatively limited evidence of effective interventions specifically for these families. Additionally, family-based interventions not specific to the context of adoption and foster care typically show small to medium effects, and even where interventions are efficacious, not all children benefit. One explanation for why interventions may not work well for some is that responses to an intervention may be influenced by an individual’s genetic make-up. Alternatively, the targets of family relationship level interventions (e.g. parenting processes) may not always affect the specific environment ‘trigger’ deemed salient to specific child/adolescent outcomes. This article summarises how genetically informed research designs can help disentangle genetic from environmental processes underlying psychopathology outcomes for children, and how this evidence can provide improved insights into the development of more effective preventive intervention targets for adoptive and foster families. We discuss current difficulties in translating behavioural genetics research to prevention science and provide recommendations to bridge the gap between behavioural genetics research and prevention science, with lessons for adoption and foster care research and practice

Ethics and reflexivity in researching HIV-related infertility

In this chapter, I draw on fieldwork conducted for my doctorate that explored the lived experiences of people living with HIV (PLWHIV). I was interested in PLWHIV who had accessed fertility treatment and child adoption services. HIV-related infertility and adoption are different to other forms of infertility or experiences of adoption because some of those affected may not be biologically infertile. When untreated, HIV can affect reproduction and increase the risk of HIV transmission during unprotected sexual intercourse to both a non-positive partner and potentially an unborn baby. Consequently, PLWHIV who wish to become parents are generally encouraged to access counselling in order to establish safer methods of having children. Fertility treatment or adoption are possible options that avoid the risk of HIV transmission to the unborn baby and partner (Savasi, Mandia, Laoreti & Certin, 2013). In this chapter, I discuss how I managed professional and personal relationships during fieldwork as I researched a small community of PLWHIV

Understanding women’s help-seeking for problematic and unhealthy alcohol use through the lens of complexity theory

Purpose It is well established that women face multiple barriers accessing treatment for problematic and unhealthy alcohol use, but less is known about how their interconnected problems affect how they seek help from, and access, alcohol-treatment services. This study aims to explore the dynamic nature of women’s help-seeking for problematic and unhealthy alcohol use and how this can be compounded by unsuitable treatment services, especially when women present with complex needs. Design/methodology/approach Thirteen semi-structured interviews with women who had accessed alcohol-support services were conducted, audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically using the complexity theory. Findings For women with complex needs, the process of seeking help may trigger unpredictable behaviours, health or social problems and intermittent serial access to treatment. Current services do not always address women’s holistic needs. Unless services focus on addressing interconnected problems – including historic trauma – they may compound the complexity of women’s problems. Complexity theory offers novel insights into this process, a concept not applied to problematic and unhealthy alcohol use treatment previously. Research limitations/implications Services should adopt the complexity-focused perspective featured in this study. While the authors acknowledge the increase in gender-responsive provision, the limitations of this study include a small sample size, the self-selecting nature of the sample and retrospective reporting. Participants were recruited and selected by service staff resulting in gatekeeping and possible sampling bias. Practical implications Services should adopt non-linear approaches to treatment. Implementing complexity approaches to treating women’s problematic and unhealthy alcohol use should capture the dynamics, complexity and non-linear nature of women’s help-seeking journeys as well as their internal and external responses that may result in relapse. The authors recommend complexity-focused, multiple-component and integrated collaborative strategies to address not only addiction but also all components of women’s needs, including past trauma. Originality/value Applying complexity-thinking to help-seeking experiences for alcohol treatment and recovery services is novel and proved useful in understanding the variety of women’s experiences and how these interact with their help-seeking behaviours, including treatment environments

Social stigma and vulnerabilities of HIV/AIDS-positive people: reconsidering social work education and NGOs’ role in Bangladesh

Despite the low incidence of HIV in Bangladesh, an HIV diagnosis results in stigma and discrimination. Therefore, the study looked at the causes and patterns of social exclusion, as well as strategies for reducing the exclusion of HIV/AIDS positive people. It also emphasized the importance of reconsidering social work education and the role of non-governmental organizations in curbing the stigma that these people confront. In this qualitative study, a convenience sampling approach was utilized to select the participants from the NGO, Ashar Alo Society (AAS). The findings are grouped into four themes: social stigma towards HIV/AIDS positive people, social exclusion from family and community, healthcare, education, and employment, the role of the non-governmental organizations in reducing their exclusion and vulnerabilities and reconsideration of social work knowledge. Recommendations include the provision of remote healthcare and support services to combat stigma, as well as the adoption of social work knowledge in the new NGO efforts to assist PLWHIV in accessing care

Pulling it all together: emotional reflexivity in health and social care field research

All the contributors to this book recommend taking a self-conscious decision to use emotional reflexivity as part of their research practice. In practice, much thought has gone in to what it means to do reflexivity and what it means to be transparent about the goings-on in the field. This is important as dual roles such as researcher practitioner can have an impact on the research, especially where practice and research roles collide and influence the data we collect. Having ways to step back and to reflect on subjectivities and practice and research identities enables an analytic eye on our own reactions as practitioner researchers