This project outlines the existence of neoliberal multiculturalism and identifies the implications and limitations of its practice. Neoliberal multiculturalism involves the institutionalization of group autonomy by the state to download responsibility to jurisdictions that have historically lacked sufficient fiscal capacity and have been hampered by colonialism in the development of the political capacity necessary to fully meet the requirements entailed by the devolution. At the same time, this practice releases the formerly responsible jurisdiction from the political burden of the policy area(s) despite its continued influence and effect. As demonstrated by my analysis of the Indigenous child welfare devolution that has occurred recently in Manitoba, neoliberal multiculturalism therefore involves a certain kind of “privatization”—that is, it involves the appearance of state distance from said policy area. This practice problematizes the traceability of power and decision making while at the same time it co-opts and in many ways neutralizes demands from critics of the state by giving the appearance of state concession to these demands. In response to the dangers of neoliberal multiculturalism, I situate multiculturalism in a robustly political model of democratic multi-nationalism (characterized by both agonism and deliberation) in order to combat multiculturalism’s tendency simply to rationalize “privatization” and to enhance democratic accountability. My approach goes beyond dominant constructions of group autonomy through group rights by emphasizing that autonomy is a relational political practice rather than a resource distributed by a benevolent state. Building on my analysis of Indigenous autonomy and the unique challenges that it presents for traditional democratic practices, I outline a contextually sensitive, case-specific employment of what I term “democratic multi-nationalism”. This approach conceives of Indigenous issues as inherently political in nature, as opposed to culturally defined and constituted, and therefore better meets the challenges of the colonial legacy and context of deep difference in which Indigenous-state relations take place today.

There is little known about mothers who are recovering from addictions who lose custody of their children. This hermeneutic thesis, using Canadian phenomenologist Max van Manen’s method and a combination of both scholarly elements and rich storytelling, explores the lived experience of four women recovering from addictions who have lost custody of their children. Using a dual approach of manual and computer-assisted coding, three themes (each with three sub-themes) emerged from semi-structured interviews. The first theme, betrayal, examines three sources of betrayal for the women. The second theme, soul-ache, describes the spaces that a mother finds herself in upon losing custody of her children. The third and final theme, reclamation, follows the mothers as they learn to live again. The findings of this thesis, situated within disciplinary knowledge, extend current knowledge regarding these mothers. The implications arising from this thesis are discussed and recommendations for future research are provided. / 2011-03

The present study examines the use of formal and informal supervision as it relates to determining burnout in child welfare social workers. This was measured by using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Respondents were social workers in a small child protection agency. Using descriptive data and frequencies, results were used to focus directions for further research. The results indicate that only the length of formal supervision is significant in reducing emotional exhaustion in social workers (p < .05). Higher education levels were also seen as a protective factor against depersonalization (n = 16).

Ninety-six child protection files were scrutinized according to the Holland Complex Care Case Review Data Collection Instrument in order to verify the applicability of the instrument to determined the variables influencing social workers in the determination of bringing an adolescent in need of protection into care. Results show that school related issues seem to influence workers in determining the need to remove the child from the family. Statistical analyses indicated numerous correlations supporting the link between case complexity and the need to bring an adolescent into care.

Expressions of youth citizenship are evident in young people’s actions, behaviours, and embodied experiences. Young people in late (post) modernity occupy a liminal position when it comes to citizenship. On the one hand, they are conceived of as rights-bearers with particular responsibilities to themselves and others; at the same time, they are presumed to belong to a family unit that will take care of their major interests. Young people with government care experience (henceforth referred to as “youth-in-care”) practice citizenship at an intersection of private and public in their lives as wards of the state. They are expected to belong to foster families of some sort, even though this kind of living situation is often temporary, fragmented, and unsettling. In an era of self-responsibility and rights claims, being unmoored from traditional family life illustrates some of the inherent tensions of practicing citizenship. While youth citizenship literature has proliferated in the last two decades, the focus has often been on rights and responsibilities, rather than the differences in citizenship practices amongst youth themselves. Expressions of citizenship by youth-in-care are contextualized by internal and external factors that shape these young people’s lives. Furthermore, the history, politics, cultural difficulties and social implications of child protection systems have received much attention from academics and policy-makers, but research on youth-in-care as citizens remains rare. This dissertation explores the gap in the literature by looking at the ways that citizenship is complex, multilayered, and fluid for this group of young people. A qualitative research design is used to examine how youth-in-care practice citizenship in their daily lives. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants between the ages of 14-24 in Greater Victoria, all of whom had been in government care at some point in their lives (n= 20). Transcripts were coded using an analytical hierarchy strategy. Findings indicate that the social group in question – youth-in-care – practiced citizenship in a multitude of ways, and that it was important to take situational or social context into consideration when examining how they expressed citizenship. Analysis of participants’ narratives revealed three types of citizenship practices, namely self-responsible citizenship, dissenting citizenship and reluctant citizenship. Expressions of citizenship were navigated through experiences of self-responsibility and rights, belonging and exclusion, and risk and resilience. Citizenship, therefore, is best understood through behaviour and actions, as well as enacted and embodied by participants themselves. For youth-in-care, citizenship practices matter in their relationships with others, the ways they experience belonging and exclusion, and the discourses of resiliency and vulnerability which emerge from their narratives. The dissertation concludes with a consideration of the implications of the findings for the literature on youth citizenship, focusing on the ways that youth citizenship is contextualized by experiences with family, peers, institutions, and the government care system. / Graduate / 0628 / 0626 / 0630 / kbutler@uvic.ca

This quantitative study was conducted using a population of Child Protection Social Workers (CPSWs) and other staff at a relatively small Child Welfare agency in Eastern Ontario (Northumberland County). The participants (n = 29) completed four questionnaires aimed at gathering data regarding demographics, Ongoing Stressors, Critical Incidents, and Horowitz's Impact of Events Scale (IES). The goal of the research was to add to the scant empirical data regarding stress and post-traumatic stress in CPSWs and Child Welfare organizations as a whole. The results indicated that 9 out of 11 front-line CPSWs were considered to be experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder based on their IES scores at the time of the testing. The study includes descriptive and correlational data for the participants.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-140). / Also available by subscription via World Wide Web / ix, 150 leaves, bound ill. 29 cm

This project outlines the existence of neoliberal multiculturalism and identifies the implications and limitations of its practice. Neoliberal multiculturalism involves the institutionalization of group autonomy by the state to download responsibility to jurisdictions that have historically lacked sufficient fiscal capacity and have been hampered by colonialism in the development of the political capacity necessary to fully meet the requirements entailed by the devolution. At the same time, this practice releases the formerly responsible jurisdiction from the political burden of the policy area(s) despite its continued influence and effect. As demonstrated by my analysis of the Indigenous child welfare devolution that has occurred recently in Manitoba, neoliberal multiculturalism therefore involves a certain kind of “privatization”—that is, it involves the appearance of state distance from said policy area. This practice problematizes the traceability of power and decision making while at the same time it co-opts and in many ways neutralizes demands from critics of the state by giving the appearance of state concession to these demands. In response to the dangers of neoliberal multiculturalism, I situate multiculturalism in a robustly political model of democratic multi-nationalism (characterized by both agonism and deliberation) in order to combat multiculturalism’s tendency simply to rationalize “privatization” and to enhance democratic accountability. My approach goes beyond dominant constructions of group autonomy through group rights by emphasizing that autonomy is a relational political practice rather than a resource distributed by a benevolent state. Building on my analysis of Indigenous autonomy and the unique challenges that it presents for traditional democratic practices, I outline a contextually sensitive, case-specific employment of what I term “democratic multi-nationalism”. This approach conceives of Indigenous issues as inherently political in nature, as opposed to culturally defined and constituted, and therefore better meets the challenges of the colonial legacy and context of deep difference in which Indigenous-state relations take place today.

Thesis (MSocSc)--University of South Australia, 1996

No description available.