scholarly journals With Laura: Attachment and the Healing Potential of Substitute Caregivers within Cross-Cultural Child Welfare Practice

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 43-59
Author(s):  
Denise Brend ◽  
Kara Fletcher ◽  
Jennifer Nutton
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Attachment Styles ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Secure Attachment ◽  
Treatment Needs ◽  
Aboriginal Children

Secure attachment has been consistently associated with positive outcomes for children. The complex and intergenerational trauma resulting from colonialism that Aboriginal people in Canada have suffered may threaten the development of secure attachment. Using a case example drawn from social work practice, this paper proposes that Aboriginal children who are insecurely attached and traumatized present particular treatment needs. There is little prior research addressing the treatment needs of insecurely attached Aboriginal children in out-of-home care. Further, in provincial and territorial child welfare agencies Aboriginal children are overwhelmingly in the substitute care of non-Aboriginal caregivers. This paper looks to attachment theory for a treatment approach within these cross-cultural relationships. Attachment theory has shown that the attachment styles of children can be reliably predicted at a rate of 75 percent by looking to those of their caregivers. Additionally, children have been shown to be capable of developing multiple attachment styles in response to the attachment styles of the adults with whom they are in caregiving relationships. Thus, given the stronginfluence of caregiver attachment on the attachment styles of children, it is compelling to look at the potential impact of the attachment styles of substitute caregivers on the children in their care. This paper proposes that in provincial or territorial child welfare it may be necessary to promote substitute caregivers who are securely attached and to acknowledge the context of trauma within which these children and caregivers are striving for well-being.

Effects of Attachment Styles on the Experience of Equity in Heterosexual Couples Relationships

2003 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 298-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ina Grau ◽  
Jörg Doll
Keyword(s):  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Attachment Style ◽  
Intimate Relationships ◽  
Attachment Styles ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
The Other ◽  
Heterosexual Couples ◽  
Secure Attachment ◽  
Dependent Variables ◽  
Equity Ratio

Abstract. Employing one correlational and two experimental studies, this paper examines the influence of attachment styles (secure, anxious, avoidant) on a person’s experience of equity in intimate relationships. While one experimental study employed a priming technique to stimulate the different attachment styles, the other involved vignettes describing fictitious characters with typical attachment styles. As the specific hypotheses about the single equity components have been developed on the basis of the attachment theory, the equity ratio itself and the four equity components (own outcome, own input, partner’s outcome, partner’s input) are analyzed as dependent variables. While partners with a secure attachment style tend to describe their relationship as equitable (i.e., they give and take extensively), partners who feel anxious about their relationship generally see themselves as being in an inequitable, disadvantaged position (i.e., they receive little from their partner). The hypothesis that avoidant partners would feel advantaged as they were less committed was only supported by the correlational study. Against expectations, the results of both experiments indicate that avoidant partners generally see themselves (or see avoidant vignettes) as being treated equitably, but that there is less emotional exchange than is the case with secure partners. Avoidant partners give and take less than secure ones.

scholarly journals Child Protective Services and University-Based Partnerships: A Participatory Action-Based Model for Creating and Sharing Knowledge

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 118-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randall L. Waechter ◽  
Christine Wekerle ◽  
Bruce Leslie ◽  
Deborah Goodman ◽  
Nadine Wathen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Research Impact ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
University Partnerships ◽  
Key Factor

This paper presents one model for building and sustaining a research partnership between researchers and professional staff in child protection (CPS) agencies. The Maltreatment and Adolescent Pathways (MAP) study was designed to assess the health and well-being of the population of adolescents involved in the child welfare system of a major urban area. The study involved the collaboration between university based researchers and a range of child welfare staff, from administration to front-line workers. A key factor supporting collaboration was reciprocity with expertise, with CPS practitioner knowledge yielding intervention-relevant study queries and constructs, and researcher knowledge on health content and best practices yielding tailored training opportunities and increased climate for knowledge uptake. The MAP study combined a Participatory Action Research (PAR) model with a traditional, scientific positivist model, including the scientific elements of standardized measures, explicit evaluation of the participatory process, and research impact on the community members. This study: 1) provides information on the process of creating effective researcher-CPC agency partnerships, 2) considers key ethics issues, such as the participant’s reactivity to research of child welfare- involved clients, and 3) examines the implications of implanting a PAR approach in research with Aboriginal CPS agencies, as per the required use of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People for future community- university partnerships.

scholarly journals A cross-cultural East-West appraisal of mental health curricula

2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 55-77
Author(s):  
Peter Szto ◽  
Sara Ashencaen Crabtree ◽  
He Xuesong ◽  
Karen Rolf
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Culturally Congruent ◽  
Schools Of Social Work ◽  
Psychiatric Social Work

This paper considers findings from a cross-cultural project comparing mental health curricula across three schools of social work located in both China, specifically Shanghai, Hong Kong; and finally, Omaha, USA. Chinese philosophies and belief systems are reviewed as they pertain to mental illness and well-being. Additionally, the influence of dominant discourses informing professional practice and the development of indigenous social work practice are considered. Findings indicate that in the Chinese universities mental health social work curricula appears to balance pedagogical approaches towards providing students with up-to-date knowledge on psychopathology and psychiatric social work, while offering significant weighting to traditional philosophies and belief systems. The discussion revolves around the issue of developing Chinese practitioners equipped to work within medicalised, health settings but with sufficient indigenous knowledge to offer culturally congruent practice to local populations.

Cross-Cultural Considerations for Social Work Practice:

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-85
Author(s):  
Paula T. Tanemura Morelli
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Severe Mental Illness ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Mental Illnesses

In the United States, our increasing populations of ethnic and racial minorities suffering with severe mental illnesses require culturally sensitive and culturally appropriate mental health services. The multiple facets of work involving culturally diverse individuals with severe mental illness challenge social work faculty to prepare students with salient, useful knowledge and skills. This teaching module, which utilizes the International Pilot Study of Schizophrenia: Five-year follow-up findings (Leff et al., 1992) is applicable to practice, human behavior in the social environment, and policy courses. The module examines the findings of a large scale, longitudinal study of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia in nine countries. The learning process encourages students to think critically about the cross-cultural applicability of western diagnosis, treatment, and service provision models, to learn more about cultural constructions of illness and well-being, and to explore the nature of systemic and other barriers that prevent individuals with severe mental illness from obtaining services.

Humour styles, personality, and well‐being among Lebanese university students

2004 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahe S. Kazarian ◽  
Rod A. Martin
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Attachment Styles ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Humor Styles ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Individualism And Collectivism ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Differential Relationship ◽  
Related Personality

This research examined the structure and correlates of the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) in Lebanese university students. Four humour factors were found, as in the original Canadian samples: Affiliative, Self‐Enhancing, Aggressive, and Self‐Defeating humour. Scale reliabilities were generally acceptable, and inter‐correlations among the scales were low. Lebanese participants scored lower than Canadians on Affiliative and Self‐Enhancing humour and lower than Belgians on Affiliative and Aggressive humour. As in Canadian and Belgian samples, males reported significantly more use of Aggressive and Self‐Defeating humour than did females. Humour styles correlated differentially, and generally as predicted, with horizontal and vertical individualism and collectivism, attachment styles, perceived health, and psychological well‐being. Overall, the findings support the cross‐cultural stability of the HSQ as well as the differential relationship of these humour styles with culture‐related personality traits and psychological well‐being. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Shaping practice: prescribing assessment

2019 ◽  
pp. 45-62
Author(s):  
Sue White ◽  
Matthew Gibson ◽  
David Wastell ◽  
Patricia Walsh
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Child Welfare ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Inconsistent Parenting ◽  
The Uk

This chapter reviews the use of attachment theory in practice guidance and child welfare policy, focusing on social work in England. In refashioning the role of social workers, the increasing social acceptance of attachment theory, and its concomitant discourse, influenced and guided the UK government's attempt to define and restructure what social work practice was. The attachment story in use offered explanations for how children become harmed by insensitive, unresponsive, and inconsistent parenting. Such ideas fed into the government's agenda for social work practice: namely to assess (needs) and refer (to services) or remove (to prevent harm). Social workers were, therefore, directed to assess parents' capacity to meet the needs of their children from the perspective of attachment theory. Ultimately, attachment theory has become institutionalised into the profession.

scholarly journals Styles of attachment determined by the slovak version of sembu

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Rozvadský Gugová
Keyword(s):  
Cluster Analysis ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Attachment Styles ◽  
Parental Behavior ◽  
Behavioral Patterns ◽  
Secure Attachment ◽  
Mothers And Fathers ◽  
Parental Behaviour ◽  
Standard Procedures ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Introduction: The theory of attachment is widely recognized (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978). This theory is based on four basic types of relationships. The sEMBU questionnaire does not focus on the relationships but parental behavior, however, parental behavior is the presentation of the relationship. Our goal was to determine the types of attachment and to obtain information about secure attachment by using cluster analysis. Methods: sEMBU primarily finds out about three basic patterns used in parental behaviour - rejection, emotional warmth and overprotection. We used the 23-item s(short)-EMBU which previously demonstrated to be satisfactory on the samples of students from Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Italy, East-Germany, and Sweden (Arrindell et al., 2001). The Slovak translation of the original sEMBU was published in 2007 (Poliaková, Mojžišová, & Hašto, 2007). Since relationships are closely related to rejection, emotional warmth and overprotection, we tried to find behavioral patterns based on Bowlby’s attachment theory. We did not use standard procedures. Using cluster analysis, we also sorted the sample into four groups based on the presupposed attachment styles. Results: Overprotection (father) has the highest share for classification and differentiation in the cluster. Emotional warmth (mother) has the highest share for classification and differentiation in the cluster. We expected to find out that the secure type of attachment prevails over avoidance both in mothers and fathers. Conclusions: Our results surprised us; in the case of mothers, secure attachment did not occur at all. We suggest to continue in the research of the Slovak version of sEMBU focused on the types of attachment, especially on the secure type of attachment.

An Aetiology of Recognition

2021 ◽  
pp. 195-223
Author(s):  
A. E Denham
Keyword(s):  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Moral Experience ◽  
Private Sphere ◽  
Secure Attachment ◽  
Moral Obligations ◽  
Moral Competence ◽  
Psychological Capacity ◽  
The World ◽  
Complex Architecture

This chapter explores the suggestion that early attachment underpins the human capacity for empathy, and that empathy, in turn, is a condition of moral competence. We are disposed by nature to seek intimacy with our human conspecifics: the securely attached child learns that, whatever perils the world may hold, his well-being is shielded within the private sphere of personal intimacy. But why should secure attachment also favour—as it does—recognition of moral obligations towards those with whom we have no special standing and share no personal destiny—recognition that the claims of persons as such merit our attention and regard? One answer to this question looks beyond the fact of secure attachment to a further psychological capacity, our capacity for empathy: secure attachment promotes susceptibility to empathy, and an appropriate susceptibility to empathy is a condition of basic moral competence. The chapter proposes that the deeper and more persisting significance of empathy to morality can be understood from a developmental perspective. Looking to mentalization-based attachment theory allows us to understand how empathic mirroring enters into our earliest intimate, interactions with other persons, securing our default commitment to recognizing their reality as bound up with our own. In this way, empathy constitutes one of the natural foundations on which the more complex architecture of moral experience is constructed. Attachment theory helps us to understand the indispensable role empathy plays at the beginning of the circuitous road to virtue.

Structures of Discourse: Some Implications for Teachers of Aboriginal Children

1994 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 27-32
Author(s):  
Ruth Gledhill
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Cultural Communication ◽  
Cross Cultural Communication ◽  
Aboriginal Children

The English language differs from others both in the patterns and the sociolinguistic conventions of its discourse. This paper uses forms of greeting as a specific reference as to how cross cultural communication can break down when Aboriginal people and English speakers interact.

scholarly journals The Future of Social Work in Child Welfare

10.18060/88 ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 156-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacquelyn McCroskey
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Child Welfare ◽  
Work Practice ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Work Practice ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Quarter Century ◽  
Focus On Results ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Perceptions And Expectations

Child welfare has been a volatile and dynamic field of social work practice where policy and practice are continually shaped by attitudes, perceptions and expectations. New developments likely to shift the current balance in the field of child welfare over the next quarter century include: focus on results and performance measures, focus on child and family well-being, and increasing attention to evidence based practice.

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