Child Welfare Professionals On Kinship Caregivers: Attitudes And Implications

In 2006, new policies mandated Ontario child welfare agencies to explore potential placements with kin when children are removed from their homes. The philosophical basis driving Ontario policy is the belief that family-based care is better for children. Despite the dramatic rise in the numbers of kinship homes, controversy continues to surround the mandated exploration of kin (Geen, 2003). Kinship policies have required shifts in child placement practices and have imposed changes in the beliefs, attitudes and norms of child welfare professionals. Early practitioners tended to pathologize kinship networks and worked from the belief that children required rescuing from abusive family systems (Jefferson-Smith et al., 2002). This study examines professional attitudes about family-based care and the influence of those attitudes about practice decisions. One-hundred and ninety two child welfare professionals answered an on-line, anonymous survey. The theory of planned behaviour guided the research questions. The effects of stress, workload and job satisfaction on attitudes are also explored. These findings indicate that a large majority of professionals continue to have some reservations regarding family-based care. It also shows a large amount of subjectivity and great divide among professionals in their practice decisions. Negative attitudes toward family-based care are found to influence the number of kinship families pursued; increase the number of verified maltreatment investigations and increase the number of children removed from kinship homes. High levels of stress, workload and low job satisfaction are also found to negatively influence professional attitudes. Biased investigations and removal decisions should be examined further and addressed as they can result in concerning implications for families and children. Current Ontario standards should be tightened to avoid the subjectivity in decision-making. Workload, stress levels and job satisfaction should also be considered for professionals struggling with understanding the value of kin

Foster and Kinship Care: An Examination of the Legislation that Aims to Improve Permanency and Continuity of Care in Ontario

Changes to the Ontario child welfare system in 2006 were based on the premise that expanding kinship placement options for children in the care of the Society would improve permanency outcomes and minimize placement disruptions. This study examined whether foster care or kinship care were associated with permanency outcomes and continuity of care of children. Analyses indicated that children living in foster care were more likely to achieve permanency, but were more likely to be separated from siblings. Children in kinship care were more likely to engage in running (AWOL) behaviour. There were no differences in placement disruptions, with both kinship and foster care placements exhibiting strength and dedication to youth stability. These findings suggest that Ontario legislation promoting kinship care may not contribute to improved permanency for children as originally anticipated.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/106165/1/2012-Brisebois Lee Foster and Kinship Care CJHSS.pd

Low-income fathers’ barriers to participation in family and parenting programs

There is considerable evidence that fathers and father surrogates are overrepresented as the perpetrators of child maltreatment. National child welfare data indicate that fathers were identified as a perpetrator in half of all child maltreatment fatalities in which a parent was responsible. Without comprehensive services that target the entire family, including fathers, efforts to prevent child abuse are likely to fall short of their intended goals. Despite the overrepresentation of fathers as perpetrators of child maltreatment, fathers have been largely absent in the child maltreatment services literature. This suggests that child welfare practitioners do not consider fathers as central to the work of protecting children. Child welfare caseworkers acknowledge that bias and lack of training on how to engage fathers may contribute to the exclusion of fathers from services. Yet little is known about the best practices for engaging fathers in parenting and prevention efforts, and there is a gap in our understanding of the barriers to father engagement from the perspective of fathers.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/106166/1/2011-Lee-Yelick-Journal-Family-Strengths.pd