This study examined the practices that are currently being utilized by San Bernardino County for Social Work Practitioners in Child Protective Services (CPS) concerning retention of social workers.

This study looked at the potential reentry-aged women employed by the San Bernardino County Department of Children's Service. It identified the characteristics, motivations, needs and barriers of the reentry age female student. This study explored the reasons why some SBCDCS reentry-aged workers choose to further their education, while others do not.

This study uses a qualitative research design to examine the skills and knowledge that both CPS (Child Protective Service) workers and Foster Care Professionals have regarding AOD (Alcohol and Other Drug) issues. It includes information on professionals' perceptions of whether or not more education in this area is needed, and the impact that these AOD issues are having upon the child welfare / foster care systems.

Studien undersöker utmaningar inom socialtjänstens arbete med barnutredningar och relationen till föräldrar, specifikt när relationen till föräldrar inte blir produktiv och snarare hindrar utredningsarbetet. Konsekvenser av en dålig relation kan vara att barnet blir osynligt i processen då fokus hamnar på föräldrars problematik och känsloliv, samt att barnets situation inte kan utredas och barnet riskerar att fara illa. Studien är kvalitativ och använder sig av semi-strukturerade intervjuer som tolkats ur begrepp från compassion-fokuserad terapi. Studien har genomförts med en deduktiv ansats och en tematisk analys. Resultat visar att relationens problem ofta handlar om föräldrars känsloliv och primitiva affektsystem, vilket beror på biologiskt och evolutionärt naturliga reaktioner i situationer där föräldraskapet hotas. Möjligtvis kan socialsekreterare bemöta föräldrar på ett mer ödmjukt sätt om de har en generell kunskap om hur affektsystemen påverkar föräldrar i mötet med socialtjänsten samt låta föräldrarnas affekt vara en del av processen. / This study examines the challenges that social workers in the child protective services face in relations to parents, specifically when the relationship with parents become problematic and hinders the investigation. The consequences of a bad relationship can be that the child becomes invisible in the investigation process because the problems and feelings of parents stand in the way. There is also the risk that the living situation of the child is left undiscovered and that harm may come the child. This is a qualitative study that used semi-structured interviews, analyzed through terms from compassion-focused therapy. The study used a deductive approach with a thematic analysis. The result shows that problems in the relationship often come from the feelings of parents and how they are effected by primitive affects that can be explained by biology and evolution. These reactions are natural in these circumstances regarding how parents might feel threatened in their parental status. Social secretaries might be able to treat parents in a humbler manner, with a general knowledge of how parents react according to primitive affects when meeting the child protective services, and maybe let the feelings of parent be a part of the process.

Cette recherche s’intéresse à comprendre le vécu expérientiel d’intervenant.es de la protection de la jeunesse ayant travaillé auprès d’un groupe sectaire. Le premier objectif est de décrire leur vécu ainsi que les effets perçus de l’intervention aux plans personnel et professionnel. Ensuite, les facteurs ayant influencé leur vécu sont explorés. En dernier, des pistes afin d’améliorer le vécu des intervenant.es sont dégagées en prévision d’intervention dans des contextes similaires. Les contenus d’entrevues individuelles réalisées auprès de douze intervenant.es des équipes de l’évaluation et de l’application des mesures ayant travaillé dans la situation ciblée ont été soumis à une analyse thématique. Les résultats soulèvent plusieurs facteurs influençant la façon dont l’expérience est vécue par les intervenant.es, particulièrement selon l’étape du processus de la protection de la jeunesse. Les deux équipes décrivent une expérience différente. D’un côté, l’équipe de l’évaluation rapporte un vécu lourd et intense. D’un autre côté, les intervenant.es de l’application des mesures décrivent une expérience décevante et frustrante. De plus, selon les répondant.es, l’intervention a eu des effets dans les sphères personnelles (ex. affective) et professionnelles (ex.satisfaction au travail). Les participant.es de l’étude proposent des pistes d’amélioration en lien avec l’organisation et les conditions de travail ainsi qu’avec le soutien psychologique. Le mandat d’intervention différent des deux équipes ainsi que la présence de facteurs de risque associés au développement de difficultés émotionnelles semblent expliquer la distinction entre les vécus. En somme, l’intervention auprès d’un groupe s’apparentant à un mouvement sectaire constitue un contexte de travail exceptionnel et exigeant. Des mesures précoces pour assurer le bien-être ainsi que le soutien psychologique et clinique sont importantes afin d’améliorer le vécu expérientiel. / This research project sought to understand the lived experiences of child protective services caseworkers who intervened with a sect. The primary objective was to describe the CPS caseworkers’ experiences and their perception of the effects of the intervention on their personal and professional lives. Second, the factors that influenced their lived experiences were explored. Last, ways to improve CPS caseworkers’ lived experiences were identified, with a view to future interventions in similar settings. Thematic analysis was performed on the content of the individual interviews conducted with 12 CPS members of the assessment and service provision teams who had worked in the setting in question. The results point to a number of factors that influenced their lived experiences, in particular in relation to specific stages of the child protection process. The two teams described quite different experiences. On the one hand, the assessment team reported an intense, stressful experience. In contrast, the service provision team spoke of a disappointing, frustrating experience. Furthermore, the respondents said that the intervention impacted the personal (e.g., emotional) and professional (e.g., job satisfaction) spheres of their lives. Study participants suggested ways to improve their lived experiences in terms of organization and working conditions, as well as through psychological support. The differences between the lived experiences of the two teams would appear to stem from their different intervention mandates and the presence of risk factors associated with the development of emotional issues. To sum up, CPS intervention with members of a sect-like movement is an exceptional, very demanding work environment. It is essential to take early measures to ensure CPS caseworker well-being and provide psychological support and clinical supervision in order to improve their lived experiences.

Il existe peu de recherches, surtout en francophonie, qui portent une attention au point de vue des parents qui consomment des drogues sur leurs expériences personnelles en lien avec la prise en charge de leurs enfants par les services de protection de la jeunesse. Cette étude cherche à contribuer à la connaissance en la matière, en donnant une voix aux mères qui consomment des drogues illicites, des voix essentielles pour le développement et la bonification des services de soutien qui leur sont destinés. Ancrée dans deux cadres théoriques, la théorie de la reconnaissance et la théorie de l’intersectionnalité, cette recherche se focalise sur l’expérience, les stratégies et les logiques d’action des mères qui consomment des drogues illicites ayant des enfants pris en charge par les services de protection de la jeunesse. S’inscrivant dans une méthodologie qualitative et phénémonologique, neuf entretiens ont été menés avec des mères en s’inspirant de l’outil du récit de vie de Bertaux (2006). L’analyse des récits permet de faire émerger trois types de logiques d’action mises en place par les mères dans leur recherche de reconnaissance avec les services de protection de la jeunesse au Québec : une logique d’action d’indignation, une logique d’action de collaboration et une logique d’action de distanciation. Les résultats mettent en lumière l’articulation entre les expériences et les rapports que vivent ces mères avec la protection de la jeunesse et les stratégies qu’elles adoptent pour préserver leur dignité. Elle souligne l’importance des expériences de reconnaissance et de mépris dans la construction de leurs logiques d’action. Les récits des mères rencontrées et les résultats de cette recherche témoignent de l’impact que le mépris peut avoir sur leurs vies et de la grande nécessité de penser et d’agir à travers le prisme de la reconnaissance. Sur la base de ces résultats, quatre recommandations d’approches d’intervention sont évoquées comme étant prometteuses pour le renforcement de la reconnaissance et du pouvoir d’agir des mères qui consomment des drogues illicites. / There is little research, especially in the French language, that pays attention to the point of view of parents who use drugs and their personal experiences in relation to Child Protection Services (CPS). This study seeks to contribute to knowledge in this area, by giving a voice to mothers who use illicit drugs. These voices are essential for the development and improvement of the support services intended for these mothers and their children. Anchored in two theoretical frameworks, the theory of recognition and the theory of intersectionality, this research focuses on the experience, strategies, and logics of action of mothers who use illicit drugs with children taken into care by CPS. As part of a qualitative and phenemonological methodology, nine interviews, based on the life story tool of Bertaux (2006), were conducted with mothers who use illicit drugs. The analysis of these accounts reveals three types of logics of action put in place by mothers in their search for recognition with the youth protection services: a logic of indignation, a logic of collaboration and a logic of distancing. The results highlight the articulation between the experiences and relationships these mothers have with CPS and the strategies they adopt to preserve their dignity. It underlines the importance of experiences of recognition and contempt in the construction of their logics of action. The stories of these mothers and the results of this research testify to the impact that contempt can have on their lives and the great need to think and act through the prism of recognition. Based on these findings, four recommendations for intervention are invoked as being promising for strengthening recognition and empowerment of mothers who use illicit drugs.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur brobyggare beskriver sitt arbete med att bygga tillit till socialtjänstens barn- och ungdomsvård (BoU). Brobyggare är personer som har god förankring i det svenska samhället, samtidigt som de delar språk och kulturell bakgrund med en specifik minoritet och som därför kan fungera som en bro mellan minoritetsgruppen och samhällets institutioner. Studiens empiri består av kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer med tolv brobyggare. Materialet har bearbetats med Braun och Clarkes (2006) metod för tematisk analys. Resultatet visar att de föräldrar brobyggarna möter känner sig utpekade av socialtjänsten på grund av sin invandrarbakgrund vilket även förstärker den osäkerhet som många upplever i sitt föräldraskap. Detta, tillsammans med den informationsbrist som råder kring socialtjänstens arbetssätt bidrar till en djupgående rädsla för BoU i brobyggarnas målgrupper. Vidare visar studien att brobyggarnas tillitsskapande arbete möjliggörs av den relation de bygger med sin målgrupp. Relationen byggs delvis med hjälp av en delad kulturell identitet med målgruppen men även genom brobyggarnas flexibilitet att vara där det behövs när det behövs. Med relationen till målgruppen som bas kan brobyggaren bidra till att minska avståndet till socialtjänsten. Ett viktigt verktyg är kulturtolkandet som möjliggör ömsesidig förståelse mellan socialtjänstens personal och målgrupp. / The purpose of this study is to examine how link workers describe their work with building trust in child protective services (CPS). Link workers are persons who are well established within Swedish society while sharing language and cultural background with a specific minority. This enables them to act as a bridge between the minority group and the institutions of society. The study's empirical data consists of qualitative semi-structured interviews with twelve link workers. The data has then been processed using Braun and Clarke's (2006) method for thematic analysis. Our results show that the link workers’ target groups feel particularly singled out by CPS due to their immigrant background, which also reinforces the uncertainty that many experience in their role as parents. Additionally, the lack of information about the working methods of CPS exacerbates the situation further and results in a deep-seated fear of CPS. The study also finds that the link workers' trust-building is made possible by the relationships they build with their target groups. This is facilitated partly through a shared cultural identity but also through the link workers' ability to be flexible with where and when they meet parents. With these relationships as a starting point, the link workers aid in bridging the gap between their target groups and CPS. An important part of this work is intercultural mediation, which enables mutual understanding between social service employees and the target groups.