Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1992. / Title from title page screen, viewed February 1, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Paula Smith (chair), Kenneth Strand, Thomas Caldwell, Miryam Assaf-Keller, Alan Repp. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 74-86) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 142 p. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 95-115).

Background: The role of foster carer is a complex and emotionally demanding one. This is particularly true in the presence of difficult behaviour which can, at times, leave the foster carer feeling overwhelmed and increases the risk of placement breaking down. It is therefore important to find ways to support foster carers. The present study sought to explore the lived experience of foster carers caring for children who presented with difficult to manage behaviour, with consideration given to their attachment characteristics. Aim: The primary aim of this study was to generate a grounded theory of foster carers’ experience of caring for a child who presents with difficult to manage behaviour, in order to inform supports. Method: The study adopted a qualitatively driven mixed methods design (QUAL+quan). Grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) was used as the primary component. Eight female foster carers, with either past or present experience of caring for a child who they felt presented them with difficult to manage behaviour, were interviewed. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Adult attachment data was gathered to elaborate and enhance the interpretation of the foster carers’ narratives. Foster carer’s attachment characteristics were measured using The Relationship Scales Questionnaire (RSQ: Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994), and the presence of behavioural difficulties were confirmed using the Assessment Checklist for Children (ACC: Tarren-Sweeney, 2007). Results: A core category emerged from the grounded theory analysis (‘Making Sense’) in addition to five main categories (‘Personal Impact’, ‘What Helps’, ‘What Makes it Difficult’, ‘Responding’ and ‘The Relationship’). The overarching theme to emerge from the research was the influence foster carer’s level of reflection and understanding of the behaviour (their mentalizing capacity) had on their experience of the child’s difficult behaviour, which appeared to relate to their attachment characteristics in addition to a number of internal and external factors. Consideration is given to the psychological process that emerged from the categories generated from the foster carers’ narratives, and the consequent proposed ground theory. Conclusions: The findings confirm the complexity of the foster caring role, and suggest the positive impact foster carer’s reflective stance can have on their experience of difficult behaviour in the child they care for. Research strengths and limitations are discussed, in addition to clinical practice and research implications.

The presence of poverty, unemployment and children been infected or affected by HIV/Aids contributed to a high level of children in need of care and protection (Patel, 2005:165) and forced communities to came up with a ways of addressing this increasing need of alternative care. Cluster foster care schemes were one of the initiatives that were started spontaneously by community members to address need for more alternative care options (Colby-Newton, 2006:18). This form of alternative care was also included with the proclamation of the Children’s Act, 38 of 2005 and the Children’s Amendment Act, Act 41 of 2007 (Matthias, 2010:172-176). Although cluster foster care schemes are acknowledge and practice as a form of alternative care for children in need of care and protection the operationalising thereof remain a grey area. In an unpublished study by Taback and Associates, it was suggested that further research should be conducted regarding elements that need to be included in the operationalising of cluster foster care schemes (Taback and Associates, 2010:4). The above form the motivation for this study and also provide the basis for the formulation of the research question namely: “What are the operational elements necessary for the operationalising of cluster foster care schemes?” Following from the research problem and research question, the goal for this research was to explore and describe the present functioning of cluster foster care schemes in order to identify operational elements to be documented in a guideline for service providers and social workers. The researcher made use of qualitative research approach to explore and describe the participants’ perception on the research problem. This research endeavour firstly falls in the ambit of the phenomenology research design, which aimed to describe the conscious experience of the everyday life of the participants, which were in this study the managers of cluster foster care schemes as well as foster parents that provide foster care as part of a cluster foster care scheme. In addition to this the researcher also opted to include the exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design, which guided the exploration, description and contextualising of the views of the participants on elements needed to operationalise cluster foster care schemes. In order to achieve the above the researcher the researcher decided to make use of an intervention research model by Rothman and Thomas (1994:3-51), namely the “Intervention Develop and Design” framework (IDD framework). In this study the researcher only used phases one to phase four and certain steps of the IDD framework to develop the operational guidelines for the operationalising of cluster foster care schemes. In concluding the report of the study, the researcher provided summaries of and conclusions related to the background rational; research questions; goals and task objective of the study; the research methodology implemented; the empirical findings and literature consulted; and the developed operational guidelines. He concluded the document with recommendation related to the research process and methodology employed; research findings; and recommendation for further research on the research topic. / Social Work / D. Soc.Sc. (Social Work)

No description available.

Although much has been written in the field of family history since Phillipe Aires' Centuries of Childhood (1962), the study of foster care in its various forms has received less attention. Themes concerning orphans and foster children do, however, appear guite often in literature and dramatic works. Two academic articles from Iceland and Brazil respectively discuss historical material relating to foster children and orphans in the 19th century. Themes from these articles, about the role of kin and neighbours in foster care, and the use of orphans to meet labour shortages, are discussed as background to the B.C. study. The constitutional-legal framework and social welfare policies adopted in British Columbia in the 1900-1930 period were under Anglo-American influence, with influences from Ontario being most direct. B.C. established some level of economic security for women and children with the establishment of women's pensions in 1920 and in 1927 the B.C. Survey of Child Welfare made recommendations for supervised foster care, that is, foster care subsidized by government and supervised by social workers. Although the legislation mandated "approved foster homes" as early as 1901, and envisaged temporary placement with children's aid societies (CAS) until such homes could be found, the annual reports and discharge summaries of the CASs, and the records of the Superintendent of Neglected Children show that this option was largely ignored. Not until overcrowding and medical crises forced the issue did CASs turn to foster care as an option. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

M.A. (Social Work) / The purpose of this study was to integrate existing scientific knowledge into a parent-training programme for adoptive parents. The viability of such a programme was investigated in the light of the viewpoint of many authors that the increasing responsibility of parenthood creates an increasing need for parent-training programmes. The purpose of this study was formulated as follows: i) to broaden the insight and knowledge of adoptive parents with regard to specific matters pertaining to adoption; ii) to support adoptive parents in their child-rearing task by stimulating the development of more insigt into the developmental phases, with special emphasis on those factors pertaining to the development of the self-image and identity formation, as well as the genealogy, of the adoptive child; iii) through the application of insight and knowledge gained through the programme, to assist their adoptive children in the development of a positive self-image and identity; iv) - to enhance a positive self-image of the parent; - to enhance the parent-child relationship; and - to aim at better family relationships as a result of the above, through enhancing satisfactory and effective role fulfillment of the parent; v) to enhance primary prevention in the hope that the emotional and social maladaptation of the adoptive child may be avoided. In order to fulfill these purposes, a conceptual framework was developed to generate questions and formulate hypotheses. The Resiarch Development and Utilization model of Edwin Thomas was utilized as research design for the development of the programme. In the third phase of Thomas' model i.e. the evaluation phase, provision is made for the utilization of evaluative research methodology for the evaluation of the relevant social technology. Thomas' model further provides for the utilization of experimental and quasi-experimental designs for the evaluation of social technology. In additioh, this researcher used programme evaluation as experimental design, as well as an exploratory-formulative or hypotheses-developmental design. Three correlation hypotheses were formulated predicting the relationship between the parent-training programme for adoptive parents (the independent variable) and the role...

The core of this study is an intensive review of a small sample of Indian foster children, their natural parents, their foster parents and of the services each group receives from a children's aid society. To a considerable extent, this is a test of facts against theoretical knowledge and against common beliefs. It is also an operational study which has been undertaken in response to a specific need, and with the hope of finding some procedures for remedial action. The research material is drawn from thirty-one sets of three kinds of files, and the returns from twenty-four questionnaires which were mailed to the foster parent group with covering letters. Data were also secured from a questionnaire which was pretested in an interview with one foster mother who had several Indian children; from consultations with social workers and other experienced people; and from personal knowledge gained by working with the groups involved. A preliminary review of Indians in British Columbia, historically and currently, throws light on the special problems of Indians here characterized as "marginality", "anomie" and prejudice. The study is, then, directed to three primary questions relating to: (1) planning foster placement for the Indian child; (2) the adequacy of the service offered to the Indian children, their parents and foster parents; and (3) the equipment of the social worker who handles Indian cases. The research also throws light upon eight other related queries, which were formulated in the course of the enquiry. On the basis of the evidence from the aggregate material, a number of procedures are proposed, both for improved service in planning for the Indian foster child, and for helping the agency and its workers who are responsible for his care. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study makes an analysis of those situations in which children of mentally ill parents were taken into non-ward care by the Children's Aid Society of Vancouver, B.C., in the years 1957 to 1959. The purpose of the study is to determine the characteristics of the families to whom this service was given, what factors influenced planning, the significance of the factor of mental illness, and whether the plan achieved its stated purpose. In the twenty-four family cases studied, there was a combined total of fifty-six children. Only thirty-six of these children were taken into non-ward care. The majority of families included two parents in the home, and in these instances the parents made greater use of their own resources. The major factor necessitating the use of non-ward care was found to be the hospitalization of the mother for psychiatric treatment. Planning for the care of the children was significantly influenced by emergency referrals, which gave little time to caseworkers to assess the family situation prior to placement of the child. Twenty-nine children were returned to their parents. Twenty-two of these were returned within six months. Most of these families were unknown to the Children's Aid Society prior to the request for non-ward care and showed considerable parental capability. Seven children were either made wards or were placed for adoption. In these instances the parents revealed recurring social dysfunction and parental incapacity. Their children remained in non-ward care for longer periods of time than the first group before a future plan was made. The results of the study are discussed with reference to non-ward care policy of the Children's Aid Society and to basic child welfare concepts. Some reference is made to non-ward care and temporary ward care legislation of other provinces. Some assessment is made about non-ward care. Non-ward care was found to be an invaluable service to families, but this resource must be used judiciously or grave damage to the child and the child-parent relationship may result. Implications of the study are discussed with reference to (a) the caseworker and practice, (b) community planning, and (c) non-ward care theory. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study is concerned with the social workers ways of communicating with children in foster placement and related situations. It examines what, exactly, is communicated to the child by the social worker, operating within Agency policy and structure; and the effect that this communication has on the child's ability to respond to placement as treatment. It is concerned, also, with the various methods by which the child's needs are communicated to the social worker; and the ways in which the worker responds to those needs, with special emphasis on when, how, and why the social worker communicates directly with the child. The study proceeds from a review of some of the recent literature on semantics as well as recent child welfare literature. This is supplemented by material gathered from interviews with twelve professionally-trained social workers, currently employed in child welfare work in and near Vancouver, and illustrated with brief summaries of six cases from their practice. The workers were interviewed with the purpose of ascertaining from them: what they judged to be the more effective ways they had found of communicating with children; their definition of the use they make of direct communication with children, indirect communication through parents or foster parents, and of joint interviewing; what they see as their particular contribution to the child in the placement situation; and some of the difficulties they encounter in performing their work. The results point up the differences between children and adults, and the effects of these differences on methods of communication. They emphasize the treatment aspect of placement, and the importance of structure, plan, and clear definition of treatment goals in order to enable the worker to channel her communications, both to the child and on behalf of the child, toward establishing hope and confidence in the possible achievement of those goals. It indicates a need for further study of communication and casework, with some implications for further refining the definition of the scope and limits of the casework method. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate