This thesis concerns young people in the Midlands area of the United Kingdom and the services they receive from children’s rights workers and social workers. Previous research has highlighted difficulties in the implementation of local advocacy for young people in the ‘care system’ but has not explored in detail the impact of relationships between these young people and their professional workers and of differing approaches to the work. This is a qualitative study, based primarily on semi-structured interviews with twenty young people, their rights workers and their social workers. The young people ranged in age from twelve to twenty and most had been in residential or foster care. The study aimed to explore the participants’ views and experiences of social work and advocacy with young people, the professionals’ approaches to the work and their attitudes to, and relationships with, young people. Relational theory, particularly from ethics of care feminist scholarship, has been used to examine the concepts of care and rights in the principles and practice of the professional workers. The study found that young people wanted professional workers who cared about them as individuals and who focused on the process of the work, but they were also concerned about the consequences of rights work. The study suggests that rights workers had a strong care ethic in their individual work with young people, whilst social workers were concerned about managing young people’s care rather than engaging with them individually. The rights workers faced a number of dilemmas in upholding rights principles in practice. The study concludes that polarised principles of rights and care in practice could be unhelpful to work with young people. Consideration of elements of a care ethic alongside rights in both social work and children’s rights work could lead to a more unified discourse that would benefit practice with young people. This would entail a more sophisticated understanding of advocacy and bring care back into social workers’ individual work with young people.

This study, undertaken from a feminist and children’s rights perspective, emerged from the growing body of literature on children’s experiences of domestic abuse, the challenges of childhood studies and the opportunities arising out of the changed socio-political landscape of Scotland since devolution. It examines, with children and young people experiencing domestic abuse, their own solutions to improve help for children and young people, their perspectives on real and tokenistic participation in Scotland’s policy-making and, their self-defined ethical and participatory standards to make sustained participation possible. Combining innovation in methodology and co-production of new knowledge with children and young people, the researcher contributes the three E’s of Enjoyment, Empowerment and Emancipation to ethical principles focussing on safety, and recommends a new ethical approach to consent that recognises children’s agency in their own lives and in deciding their own best interests. A Participatory Action Research Process over five years with 9 of the 48 young people, resulted in young people themselves becoming change agents to begin to tackle the issues that emerged from the wider study’s qualitative first part, also action-orientated through children’s political activism. For example, the lack of help, awareness and stigma attached to domestic abuse was tackled through their production of a public online awareness raising campaign and film; their critique of the previously most revered of services, Women's Aid specialist support, resulted in a multi-million fund and their analysis became the conditions of grant; the lack of respect for and inclusion of young people in policy-making they challenged through defining their terms of engagement which are explored here, sanctioned and legitimised by their emerging 'critical friendship' with Ministers. Unusually the young people participating in the study made a significant impact on Scotland’s domestic abuse policy and practice, as well as repositioning children and young people in the democratic process.

Eyewitnesses‘ descriptions of suspects often refer to distinctive facial features, such as tattoos or scars, and the police have to decide how best to create fair lineups in these circumstances. This issue, despite its importance, has attracted insufficient attention in the eyewitness identification literature. Informed by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act code of practice and current police practice, I conducted an empirical evaluation of the different lineup techniques that investigators currently use for suspects with distinctive features. To ensure that a suspect does not stand out because of his distinctive feature, and also to extract more information from the eyewitness, the police either replicate the distinctive feature across all foils in the lineup or conceal the distinctive feature on the face of the suspect. These techniques were tested either in a crossover recognition-memory paradigm (Study 1), or in a lineup-identification paradigm (Studies 2, 3, and 4), either in computer-based laboratory experiments or real-world field experiments using both target-present and target-absent lineups. The results showed that replication is a better technique than concealment. Compared to concealment, replication increases target identifications in target present lineups—in some cases by decreasing foil identifications in target-absent lineups. The hybrid-similarity (HS) model of face recognition was used to assess whether it could be applied in this domain. Across seven experiments (Studies 1, 2, and 3) and three paradigms, the HS model was able to model the qualitative pattern of results. The purpose of this experimental work was to demonstrate the importance of constructing fair lineups for people with distinctive features and to provide results that will have practical implications for legal contexts and will improve our understanding of face recognition and recognition memory in general.

This thesis sets out to attack beliefs that caring is women's work, to examine the reasons for the resistance to changing conventions about sex roles and health work and, in view of coming changes in British demographic and socio-economic structures, to urge people to consider the question, who cares for us? The paradox of men caring makes its impact precisely because of the history and culture of women caring. The force of the image is as great as the contrast which makes it: men look like misfits in the caring role because women have been typecast for it. It is the extraordinary contrast of men carers and nurses talking about their caring feelings that forces the paradox. In this study, the men and women nurses and carers who were interviewed discuss their feelings as the very reason for their caring work, including emotion work and dirty work. The thesis argues that the men and women share the same caring values but their caring roles are conflicted by beliefs about sexual identity. Men's caring act is culturally constructed whereas women's caring act is directed by biological and cultural beliefs that help to perpetuate women's structured dependency in caring roles. The feminisation of caring designates the swamp of unthinking about women, feelings and bodies that breeds wrong beliefs about health work and sex roles and subverts the moral order of caring values. This is feminist methodology, characterised by being reflexive, political and experimental. The resulting exploratory study combines qualitive fieldwork with theoretical inquiry. It is a deconstuction of sex roles and health work, exploring the feminisation of caring through the language of care and the history of nursing, the difficulties with current social theory that genders caring and ignores feelings, most importantly, the stories of men and women nurses and carers who talk about their caring feelings, their work and their beliefs about caring sex roles, and finally the context of caring in the UK today. In conclusion, current beliefs about sex roles and health work undermine the moral order of caring values at a time when the task of caring for elderly people is increasing. What is required is the political will to begin the public debate on who should care for vulnerable kith and kin and who should pay for the work to be done?

The purpose of this study is to illustrate the extent to which colonial welfare ideas and practices shaped social welfare in Malaysia, with particular reference to child welfare services. In particular, the study explores the scope in which social welfare services was established and developed by the colonial government, the degree of the colonial government's intervention in child welfare services, and the guidelines used by the colonial officials to resolve child welfare issues during the period of 1946-1957. Midgley's Social Welfare Models considers the role of diffusion of colonial welfare ideas and practices, and the residual conception in the approach to welfare within the context of colonialism. The study has employed archival materials on British colonial administration in Malaya kept in the UK National Archive and the Malaysian National Archive to illuminate Midgley's Social Welfare Model. Interviews with Malaysian ex-welfare officers who had personal experience of working at the Department of Social Work (OSW) during the British colonial period were also carried out. The study indicates that, as a contribution to historical and sociological knowledge, children welfare services in Malaya were first organized for immigrant labourers to ensure a regular and reliable supply of healthy workforce. This denotes that the focus of the colonial government was on the exploitation of Malaya's economy, and social welfare issues were peripheral. This standpoint taken by the British colonial government has indeed conformed to the abovementioned welfare model. The study has also revealed that during the period of 1946-1957, the British made efforts to provide welfare for the people of Malaya with the establishment of DSW in 1946. However, the DSW faced complexity of handling welfare issues, such as children welfare, within a multiethnic society because of the different cultures, values and beliefs that existed. The study also suggests that the needs of Europeans and key workers were the prime concerns of the colonial government for their commercial interests. The study has shown that ideas on welfare from the host country were instituted, although, on some occasions, the government made attempts to adapt these ideas to suit the local circumstances. The study concludes that Malayan welfare policy enacted by the British colonial officials followed British welfare ideas and accepted the role of voluntary bodies in the provision of welfare to children. Thus, the government took a residual approach to welfare in which welfare services were provided for the needy and the government played a minimalist role in welfare provision. Although the colonial government contributed to the development of child welfare services in Malaya during the period of 1946-1957, the implementation of the services did. not follow any specific welfare model and no definite child welfare policy was particularly drawn up for Malaya.

The aim of this thesis was to provide a better understanding of the needs of spider monkeys (genus: Ateles) kept in zoological parks in order to provide an appropriate environment, which enhances the physical and emotional wellbeing of the individuals. This series of studies adopted primarily a physiological approach that entailed measuring cortisol in urine samples collected over a seven year period to assess the impact of a variety of social and environmental conditions. My studies also involved behavioural observations and a questionnaire study to collect information from other zoological parks that maintain groups of spider monkeys. In order to address the aims of my research I first validated an enzyme immunoassay for urinary cortisol which allowed for the activity of the HPA axis to be measured to assess the physiological stress responses in spider monkeys. The first study assessed the impact of visitors on spider monkeys by comparing levels of urinary cortisol collected with visitor numbers and I found an increase in visitor numbers was associated with an increase in cortisol. This was the first time the physiological impact of visitors was investigated and supports behavioural researcher that visitors adversely impact on primates in zoos. The second study I carried out involved a questionnaires to investigate frequency, direction and intensity of aggression in zoo-housed spider monkeys in 55 other zoos around the world. The pattern of aggressions reported indicated severe and lethal aggression was relatively frequent among captive spider monkeys. Adult males were the most frequent actors of aggression and sub adult males were the most frequent targets, contradicting reports from wild spider monkeys. This aggression could be a condition of the management of spider monkeys in the zoos whereby males and normally transferred between zoos contradicting reports from the wild spider monkeys in which females would emigrate on reaching maturity. Next I investigated aggression, reproductive and separation stressors in the spider monkeys housed at Chester Zoo over a seven year period and measured their effects via changes in urinary cortisol prior to, at and following each event. Aggression had the largest effect, with targets and bystanders having the highest levels of cortisol on the day of aggression for severe and lethal aggression, respectively. When examining the reproductive events, cortisol levels were significantly elevated in the mother the week prior to and the day or birth, but were highest for bystander females on the day of birth. In the case of separations, cortisol was elevated when an individual was separated for longer than 24 hours for separations and less than 24 hours for reintroductions. Finally I investigated the replacement of the breeding male in the spider monkeys at Chester Zoo. Although a significant behavioural effect was identified in the adult females, there was little evidence of an increase in urinary cortisol among them. In addition, there were no instances of aggression between the adult males and the juvenile male in the group. Overall conclusions from this study indicate that the group of spider monkeys did demonstrate a varying stress response to a variety of social and environmental stressors associated with elevated cortisol levels and behavioural changes. However, there was no evidence of long term chronic stressors which are normally associated with poor welfare. This indicated that the environmental provided for this particular group of zoo-housed spider monkeys generally allowed for the individuals within the group to cope and adapt. In light these findings the study also makes a number of recommendations regarding the enclosure design, relocated of individuals and the gradual introduction of spider monkeys in zoos. The findings of this study are important as it contributes to our understanding of the physiological responses to stressors in a zoo environment and therefore has implications for animal management. It also identifies potential species specific requirements for the spider monkey that should be considered.

The lion-tailed macaque (Macaca silenus) is endangered due to habitat destruction with less than 3500 individuals remaining in isolated fragments of South-West India. Lion-tailed macaques do not reproduce readily in captivity and captive breeding may be relied upon for future conservation. Poor welfare can have negative effects on reproduction so it is important that lion-tailed macaque welfare is examined in captive groups. The aims of this thesis were to understand certain aspects of lion-tailed macaque welfare (behaviour and HPA physiology) in captive populations, with the view to making suggestions for management to promote the species' welfare and reproduction. Behaviour (188 hours), urine (n=133) and faecal samples (n=294) were collected from 38 lion-tailed macaques housed in four groups at the North of England Zoological Society (Chester Zoo), Bristol Zoological Gardens, Assiniboine Park Zoo and San Diego Wild Animal Park. The study successfully developed and validated assays to detect cortisol in lion-tailed macaque urine and faeces. The assays were then subsequently used to explore behaviour and HPA activity in these endangered primates. The institution in which the individuals were housed and basic life history parameters (age and sex) were explored to further understand the interplay between behaviour and physiology. Social relationships were assessed by measuring proximity (inter-individual distances and time spent in "arms-reach"). Finally the effect of visitors on behaviour, HPA activity and enclosure use was explored. There was significant variation between institutions in behaviour and HPA activity but not proximity. The age of lion-tailed macaques modified their behaviour, but not their HPA activity or proximity. The sex of lion-tailed macaques did not modify behaviour, HPA activity or proximity. The effect of visitors on lion-tailed macaques in the current study is not clear and confirms previous research on the visitor effect on captive primates. It can be concluded from this research that lion-tailed macaques are sensitive to the environment in which they are housed, indicating factors which may have negative effects on their captive breeding rates and ability to cope with habitat fragmentation for population's in-situ. The study has highlighted the need for each captive and wild group of lion-tailed macaques to be considered and monitored separately with regard to welfare and breeding.

No description available.

There are two main foci in this research. The first has to do with police officers' management of psychiatric referrals, using their powers under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act, the second with interprofessional relations between the police and psychiatrists. A Section 136 case is defined so as to include all referrals where a mental health disposal is initiated by the police as opposed to a court or other mental health professional. The research is an attempt to describe police officers involvement with psychiatric referrals and the nature of and reasons behind the decisions they make, and to understand the nature of professional relationships that exist between police officers and psychiatrists in applying this part of the Mental Health Act. The concepts used, and theoretical underpinnings of the research are in the main derived from the sociology of 'mental illness'. Use, has been made of the theory of professional dominance to analyse police action and interaction with psychiatrists. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis have been used. Primacy has not been given to one or other approach, rather an attempt has been made to integrate both, so as to present as full a picture as possible of the issues under investigation. Data was primarily collected by means of interviews with police officers from 11 different police stations in the North East Metropolitan Police area. This was supplemented by the use of participant observation at one police station, interviews with psychiatrists at two hospitals and analysis of police documents and administrative records. The study has been divided into three sections: preparing for and carrying out the research (Chapters 1-4); the analysis and presentation of findings (Chapters 5-8); discussion and implications of the results and re-examining the theory (Chapter 9-10). It was rare for officers to initiate referrals themselves, it was mainly as a response to others that they became involved. Officers were generally unaware that they were responding to a mental health emergency prior to arriving at an incident, and decisions to apprehend were made for policing rather than psychiatric reasons. Officers did not always use Section 136 as an authority for arrest where a psychiatric disposal was subsequently sought. A combination of physical restraint and verbal strategies were used to manage referrals. Officers tended not to treat these differently to other suspects, whilst on the streets, but treated them less punitively than other detainees once at the station. It was found that there was a tendency to exclude other forms of deviancy in identifying mental disorder. Most referrals could have been charged with a criminal offence and officers' reasons for not preferring charges were examined, of which external considerations, (such as the policy of the courts) were found to be important. Police and psychiatrists generally shared the same perceptions about their client group in terms of the latter's appropriateness to be dealt with by the psychiatric services. With the exception of police ability to diagnose mental disorder, there was agreement about the nature of officer's role in relation to Section 136. Interprofessional contact and perceptions of one another were characterised by distance and indifference. At the hospital, psychiatrists assumed a superordinate role over the police officers. However, police officers exercised considerable autonomy over decision making at the police station which acted to threaten the psychiatrists gatekeeping powers.

My research explores the cultural practices and identities of the descendants of an estimated 100,000 children who were despatched to Canada, unaccompanied by their parents, and under the auspices of a number of British charities, between 1869 and the late 1940s. It investigates the relationship between the descendants' individual and collective projects of recovery and commemoration and wider issues of postcolonial nationhood, ethnicity, and culture. It also focuses on the relationships between personal, family, national, and transnational identities, and on the ways in which the so called Home Children are being commemorated in contemporary Canada amongst competing cultural and political agendas. During two extended trips to Canada, I conducted fifty nine in-depth interviews and two group interviews that allowed me to obtain an insight into the identities, experiences and attitudes of the descendants of Home Children. In this thesis I will discuss the findings of this research. I will report on the ways in which personal and wider senses of identity, ethnicity, and nationhood are produced and expressed through the activities of descendants who are attempting to research and recover unknown family histories and places of origin of ancestors.