Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

No description available.

Although a number of negative consequences of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) have been identified, research has shown that some survivors of CSA are fairly resilient and do not demonstrate these negative outcomes. The current study examined differences between sexually abused and non-abused children on a number of emotional and behavioral dimensions and on achievement. In addition, the role of factors such as intelligence, abuse severity, gender, history of previous psychological interventions and number of foster homes on outcomes in a group of 117 children between the ages of 7 and 16 with sexual abuse histories and 80 controls who did not have a reported history of sexual abuse was examined. Results suggested that children with CSA histories were rated by their caregivers as exhibiting significantly more overall behavior problems than children without CSA histories. CSA history was not found to be significantly associated with self reported depressive symptoms and there was not a significant relationship between gender and caregiver reported behavior problems. However, consistent with expectations, CSA history was significantly associated with intelligence and higher levels of intelligence being predictive of better functioning in a number of areas. Similarly, CSA history was significantly associated with achievement and as expected, higher levels of intelligence were significantly associated with higher overall achievement. Number of foster care placements, abuse severity, history of previous psychological treatment and age at time of testing were generally not found to be significantly associated with resilience.

This study investigated the utility of positive peer reporting to improve placement outcomes in foster care settings. Rejected children are likely to exhibit disruptive behavior problems due to frequent negative interactions with their peers, augmenting an already unstable environment in foster care. Researchers have found positive peer reporting to be successful in increasing social status and positive interactions and reducing negative interactions. Utilizing a multiple baseline with reversal elements, this study examined the effects of positive peer reporting on the positive and negative interactions of socially rejected children in foster care settings. Results supported previous literature with the first participant's positive interactions increasing from a mean of 16.67% in baseline to 55.63% during treatment; this was the final phase after a placement change. The second participant's positive interactions increased from a baseline average of 8.6% to a mean of 52.67% after positive peer reporting was implemented. Percentages reversed to near-baseline levels when treatment conditions were removed, averaging 21.5%. Fading procedures returned positive interactions to 41.39%, and these levels maintained across the final baseline, averaging 40%.

The aim of this study was to understand the contact between foster homes and social workers, by doing a comparison of the social workers and the foster homes experiences of the cooperation that is between them. We started from three main questions to get an answer to our aim, how the foster homes and the social workers experience the organization of the foster care in the Social Service as an impact of the cooperation, what does the foster homes and the social workers experience as a important fact of a successful placement and finally, how does the foster homes and the social workers experience the supporting and controlling contact that is between them. To get our results we based our study on interviews whit four foster homes and whit four social workers. The analysis was based on one theoretical perspective, Skaus (2007) analytical approach for power and help. As a conclusion we have found out, that the organization of the Social Service has significance for the contact between social workers and foster homes. The social workers and the foster homes have different opinions of how the Social Service should be organized, so that the contact should be as good as possible. The social workers saw the ground work as an important fact for the placement to be successful. Both social workers and foster homes saw the confidence between them, as an important fact for the placement to be successful. All four foster homes and two of the social workers saw the controlling part of the contact as a good and necessary thing. The other two of the social workers saw the controlling part as a complicated assignment.  The social workers saw the controlling part as an inadequate thing in the foster care today. Both foster homes and social workers experience that the supporting contact between them are working well.

Coercion within parent/child relationships can have lasting effects on the behavior of children. The Family Safety/Applied Behavior Analysis Initiative at the University of South Florida is part of a statewide project designed to serve foster parents and the children in the foster care system, has developed a training program entitled .Parenting Tools for Positive Behavior Change.. To date, the effectiveness of the parenting course has been evaluated in two ways. First, parents have been tested in role-play situations before and after training, and have shown improvements in their use of positive parenting skills. Second, frequency of foster home placement disruptions has been evaluated. The Preliminary results suggest that the parenting course was successful in decreasing the costs associated with placement disruptions, as well as reducing the number decreasing the costs associated with placement disruptions, as well as reducing the number of restrictive placements. Despite the promising results thus far, research has not been conducted to determine whether the parenting course reduces coercion in interactions between parents and children. The present study sought to demonstrate the effectiveness of .Parenting Tools for Positive Behavior Change. training course on the use of positive parenting tools within the context of authentic environments (i.e., within home settings) using parents and biological children. Although all parent participants. appropriate responding improved during the course of the study, results appeared more dramatic for some parents over others. In general, the parent participants seemed to do better in decreasing coercive responses with their child.s appropriate behaviors than their child.s inappropriate behaviors. Overall, affect on the parent.s coercive responses to their children.s behaviors was not as dramatic as the affect on their increase in responding appropriately to their child.s appropriate behaviors. It seems that the increase in more appropriate responses does not necessarily mean that this will also result in dramatic reductions in coercive responses by the parents.

Both novels expose the "fake idea" that Aboriginal people in Canada can freely choose their identities. The dominant discourse forces a choice on them: assimilate or vanish. Those who refuse the choice face harsh racism. In April Raintree, April assimilates and her sister commits suicide; both "choices" forced on them by racism. In Slash, the hero realizes that it is crucial to retain his identity as an Okanagan person rather than to exhaust himself as an activist. Both novels end with a baby who will be raised in the traditions of his culture. Activism is seen as a dangerous choice for those too young to understand their identity.

<p>Syftet med vår studie var att få en inblick i hur familjehemsföräldrar ser på sitt uppdrag utifrån följande frågeställningar:</p><ul><li>Vilka motiv och förväntningar finns till att vilja bli familjehem?</li><li>Hur har uppdraget som familjehem påverkat relationerna i familjen?</li><li>Har familjehemmen avlastning eller behov av det?</li><li>Vilken syn har familjehemmen på handledning?</li><li>Hur resonerar familjehemmen kring den ekonomiska ersättningen?</li></ul><p>Studien genomfördes med utgångspunkt i kvalitativa intervjuer, där vi tillsammans intervjuade 9 olika familjehem knutna till Kristianstads kommun. I 7 av intervjuerna medverkade båda familjehemsföräldrarna, i 2 intervjuer medverkade den ena familjehemsföräldern; sammanlagt 16 respondenter.</p><p>Intervjuerna transkriberades, analyserades och presenterades sedan på två olika sätt. Utifrån meningskategorisering presenterades resultatet dels i idealtyper samt tematiskt utifrån citat.</p><p>Familjehemsföräldrarna i vår studie har en samsyn som par i hur de ser på sitt uppdrag, och att de arbetar väl tillsammans. I vår studie fann vi 5 olika idealtyper, som illustrerar hur de ser på olika frågor. Många av familjehemmen ansåg att uppdraget som familjehem hade blivit ett sätt att leva, en livsstil. Det fanns även familjehem som såg uppdraget som en profession, där de placerade barnen samtidigt var en del i familjen. Familjehemmen i vår studie hade åtagit sig uppdraget som familjehem med anledning av personlig erfarenhet och kontakt med andra familjehem i sin närhet. Familjehemmen var överens om att behovet av handledning var störst i början av ett uppdrag. Synen på avlastning skilde sig åt mellan familjehemmen. Familjehemmen såg det som en självklarhet att få ekonomisk ersättning för sitt uppdrag.</p> / <p>The purpose of our study was to investigate how foster-parents regard their task based on the following:</p><ul><li>Which motives and expectations do foster-parents have to become a foster-home?</li><li>How does the task as foster-home influence the relations of the family?</li><li>Do the foster-homes have any need of alleviance from their task? </li><li>Do the foster-homes have any need of guidance in their task?</li><li>How do foster-parents think regarding the financial part of their task?</li></ul><p>The study was carried out from the basis of qualitative interviews, in which we together interviewed 9 different foster-homes connected to the council of Kristianstad. In 7 of the interviews, both foster-parents participated, in 2 interviews one of the foster-parents participated; in total 16 responders. The interviews were transcribed, analysed and thereafter presented in two different ways. From coding categories, the result was presented both in idealtypes and thematically from quotes.</p><p>The foster-parents in our study appear to have a common view as couples in how they regard their task, and that they work well together. In our study we found 5 different idealtypes, who illustrate how they regard various issues. The foster-homes felt that their task had become a way of living, a life style. There were also foster-homes that viewed their task as a profession, where the placed children at the same time were a part of the family.</p><p>The foster-homes in our study had taken on the task as foster-home because of personal experiences and contact with other foster-homes in their vicinity. Regarding their view of guidance, the foster-parents agreed that they were in need of guidance mostly in the beginning of a task. The opinions are somewhat varied among foster-parents, regarding alliviance. The foster-parents think that the financial part of their task comes natural.</p>

Syftet med vår studie var att få en inblick i hur familjehemsföräldrar ser på sitt uppdrag utifrån följande frågeställningar: Vilka motiv och förväntningar finns till att vilja bli familjehem? Hur har uppdraget som familjehem påverkat relationerna i familjen? Har familjehemmen avlastning eller behov av det? Vilken syn har familjehemmen på handledning? Hur resonerar familjehemmen kring den ekonomiska ersättningen? Studien genomfördes med utgångspunkt i kvalitativa intervjuer, där vi tillsammans intervjuade 9 olika familjehem knutna till Kristianstads kommun. I 7 av intervjuerna medverkade båda familjehemsföräldrarna, i 2 intervjuer medverkade den ena familjehemsföräldern; sammanlagt 16 respondenter. Intervjuerna transkriberades, analyserades och presenterades sedan på två olika sätt. Utifrån meningskategorisering presenterades resultatet dels i idealtyper samt tematiskt utifrån citat. Familjehemsföräldrarna i vår studie har en samsyn som par i hur de ser på sitt uppdrag, och att de arbetar väl tillsammans. I vår studie fann vi 5 olika idealtyper, som illustrerar hur de ser på olika frågor. Många av familjehemmen ansåg att uppdraget som familjehem hade blivit ett sätt att leva, en livsstil. Det fanns även familjehem som såg uppdraget som en profession, där de placerade barnen samtidigt var en del i familjen. Familjehemmen i vår studie hade åtagit sig uppdraget som familjehem med anledning av personlig erfarenhet och kontakt med andra familjehem i sin närhet. Familjehemmen var överens om att behovet av handledning var störst i början av ett uppdrag. Synen på avlastning skilde sig åt mellan familjehemmen. Familjehemmen såg det som en självklarhet att få ekonomisk ersättning för sitt uppdrag. / The purpose of our study was to investigate how foster-parents regard their task based on the following: Which motives and expectations do foster-parents have to become a foster-home? How does the task as foster-home influence the relations of the family? Do the foster-homes have any need of alleviance from their task? Do the foster-homes have any need of guidance in their task? How do foster-parents think regarding the financial part of their task? The study was carried out from the basis of qualitative interviews, in which we together interviewed 9 different foster-homes connected to the council of Kristianstad. In 7 of the interviews, both foster-parents participated, in 2 interviews one of the foster-parents participated; in total 16 responders. The interviews were transcribed, analysed and thereafter presented in two different ways. From coding categories, the result was presented both in idealtypes and thematically from quotes. The foster-parents in our study appear to have a common view as couples in how they regard their task, and that they work well together. In our study we found 5 different idealtypes, who illustrate how they regard various issues. The foster-homes felt that their task had become a way of living, a life style. There were also foster-homes that viewed their task as a profession, where the placed children at the same time were a part of the family. The foster-homes in our study had taken on the task as foster-home because of personal experiences and contact with other foster-homes in their vicinity. Regarding their view of guidance, the foster-parents agreed that they were in need of guidance mostly in the beginning of a task. The opinions are somewhat varied among foster-parents, regarding alliviance. The foster-parents think that the financial part of their task comes natural.