Book review: The origins of active social policy: labour market and childcare policies in a comparative perspective

"The Origins of Active Social Policy: Labour Market and Childcare Policies in a Comparative Perspective." Giuliano Bonoli. Oxford University Press. March 2013. --- Since the mid 1990s, governments throughout Europe have invested massively in two areas: active labour market policy and childcare. The result, a more active welfare state, seems a rather solid achievement, likely to survive the turbulent post-crisis years. This book contains case studies of policy trajectories in seven European countries and advanced statistical analysis of spending figures. Giuliano Bonoli provides a rich and well-referenced narrative, which readers can use to scaffold their understanding of Western European social policies, writes Donna Peach

The Experience of Be(com)ing a Prospective Adoptive Parent in 21st Century Britain

Creating adoptive families for 'looked after children' requires the continuous recruitment of prospective adoptive parents. The British government's demand for an increase in the number of children adopted led to the extension of legalised constructs of who can become an adoptive parent. However, our understanding of prospective adopters' remains anchored to a pronatalist ideology that perpetuates a hegemonic view of motherhood and fatherhood. These socio-political dynamics interweave placing pressure on social workers, prospective adopters and children to replace the biological promise of perfect pronatalism with an idealised expectation of legally permanent familial solutions. In this thesis, I employed a social constructionist methodology to undertake two studies, the first of which thematically analysed discourses in the 2012-2013 National adoption week campaigns. The analysis found pronatalism rhetoric dominated the repertoires and notable by its absence was the non-construction of British, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) adoptive families. Other emotive discourses construct adoptive parents as 'selfless' with critical undertones for those who were too 'nervous' to take on the responsibility. The second study examined the lived experiences of 21 adults who self-identified as prospective adopters. Three emerging themes illuminated the complexity of adoption as a route to parenthood. Participants' experience of negotiating pronatalist dominant views of adoption influenced how they made sense of adoption as a choice and determined their sense of readiness. Contemplating adoption with their friends and families identified the complex socio-familial factors that influenced their motivations to adopt. Finally, their experiences led them to reconstitute their sense of self as they prepared for a future that may or may not include becoming an adoptive parent

Social media:A psychology postgraduate's reflection

Social media is increasingly being utilised as a means of sharing research and ideas, showing your skill-set and collecting data. This article reflects on the positives and potential pitfalls for psychology postgraduates of this burgeoning area

The lived experiences of pastoral staff employed in social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) secondary schools: a narrative exploration

This paper explores experiences of pastoral staff, working in social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) special secondary schools, regarding the psychological impact of their work. To date, attention has been given to the educational experiences of pupils attending SEMH schools and teachers working with pupils with SEMH needs in mainstream schools. Whilst these studies provide insight into the experiences of pupils and teachers, they do not explore the experiences of those occupying pastoral roles in SEMH schools. Using narrative research, five participants, recruited from schools in the Northwest of England, took part in interviews, conducted via video conferencing. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Analysis adopted a two-stage approach. The first stage focused on each individual narrative, preserving it as a whole story, the second involved analysis across the five narratives. Both stages used Fraser’s (2004) seven stage approach, enabling long sections of narrative to be broken down into themes, whilst preserving the nuances within and across narratives. The first stage of analysis identified numerous themes specific to each participant, the second stage, the focus for this paper, identified two common themes across the narratives: ‘It’s a struggle,’ ‘and ‘My emotionally dirty work’. This is the first study to explore the psychological impact of working in SEMH secondary schools, from the perspective of pastoral staff. Findings have policy and practice implications; defining professional standards, appropriate training, and tailored supervision. An ‘ethos of care’ within SEMH schools could mitigate against the impact of struggles and work perceived as emotionally dirty

Parents' points of view: an evaluation of the M'Lop Tapang special needs programme, Cambodia

M’Lop Tapang is a registered non-governmental organisation working in South West Cambodia and providing services to 5000 vulnerable children and 2500 families.This evaluation was commissioned to review M’Lop Tapang’s special needs programme.Interviews were conducted with 35 parents / carers of children who receive services from M’Lop Tapang’s special needs programme . Nearly all of these parents / carers reported that they had noticed improvements in their children’s behaviour or functional ability since attending the programme. Significantly, almost all also reported a dramatic reduction in stress as a result of their child attending the programmes.While the study revealed many positive aspects of M'Lop Tapang’s special needs programme it also highlighted areas for improvement, particularly in areas of parental learning and education

Children and Young People’s Advocacy House North: Final Report

The vision for a children’s advocacy centre in the north of England was first mooted in a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust report (Rowland 2014). Having witnessed the work of the child advocacy movement in the USA, Rowland argued that a UK based children’s advocacy centre would be an exciting and innovative project that could result in real benefits for children in the area in which it was located. He argued that the children’s advocacy centre would fully involve children of all ages in the location, design and service-specification. It would be a place where children could self-refer to get advice and support with a wide range of problems, including physical and mental health, social care, protection, help with relationship difficulties, bullying and schooling. He also acknowledged the importance of co-design and co-production, whereby the children and young people with most to gain from the centre would work with the adults with access to resources (skills and money) to make it happe

Book review: Diversity in family life: gender, relationships and social change

"Diversity in Family Life: Gender, Relationships and Social Change." Elisabetta Ruspini. Policy Press. June 2013. --- As new forms of ‘non-traditional’ families grow in number, there is a need to understand these new arrangements and models of parenthood. This book discusses examples of the relationship between changing gender identities and processes of family formation in the Western experience. It aims to show that in the 21st century it is possible to form a family without sex, without children, without a shared home, without a partner, without a working husband, or without heterosexual orientation. Donna Peach finds this an interesting and innovative book that serves to disrupt not only traditional constructions of family but also the links between research, academia and social media

Book review: Social research after the cultural turn

"Social Research After the Cultural Turn." Sasha Roseneil & Stephen Frosh (eds.) Palgrave Macmillan. January 2012. --- Social Research after the Cultural Turn aims to address fundamental questions facing those working in the social and human sciences today: How have the epistemological and political contexts of social research changed? Can we still define a distinct sphere of ‘the social’ to research? What distinguishes social research from cultural studies and the humanities? Donna Peach writes that the breadth of topics and depth of enquiry into epistemological and methodological assumptions makes this book a useful companion for academics in any area of the social sciences