‘We're Like One, Big, Dysfunctional Family’: Struggling to Define the Role of Residential Child Care Workers

Fowler, Nadine

doi:10.1177/2349301120160108

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…For instance, a study in the UK found evidence of “family-like” relationships in residential care, where children used familial words such as “mother” or “father” and “brothers” or “sisters” to refer to care staff and fellow housemates, respectively (Kendrick, 2013). Fowler (2015) explored care relationships between caregivers and children in Scotland and found that caregivers struggled to describe their role as both professionals and parental figures.…”

Section: Conceptualizing Family In Out-of-home Carementioning

confidence: 99%

Constructing the Meaning of “Family” in the Context of Out-of-Home Care: An Exploratory Study on Residential Care Leavers in Harare, Zimbabwe

Gwenzi

2018

Emerging Adulthood

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Care leavers’ family lives are not well-documented in Global South literature. The West has seen an increase in studies focusing on the family concept. This article focuses on the concept of “family” and family membership from the perspective of care leavers. Data from semistructured interviews and “family lists” with 30 care leavers (aged 18–25) from Zimbabwe are presented. The findings suggest that although there is evidence of heteronormative definitions of “family” and ideas of “family” as biological, new definitions are coming up in the developing world. Some participants acknowledge nonbiological definitions of family based on connectivity, co-residence, affective practices, family contact, and other forms of family display in the context of out-of-home care. The Zimbabwean cultural influence is highlighted as a factor in care leavers’ constructions of “family” especially during the emerging adulthood stage. Practical implications for social policy, those working with care leavers, and wider society are discussed.

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Section: Conceptualizing Family In Out-of-home Carementioning

confidence: 99%

Constructing the Meaning of “Family” in the Context of Out-of-Home Care: An Exploratory Study on Residential Care Leavers in Harare, Zimbabwe

Gwenzi

2018

Emerging Adulthood

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“…Providing a family-like environment, sense of normality, and stability are prioritised in the day-to-day life of Children’s House. Consistent with social constructions of family (Kendrick, 2013; Fowler, 2016; Gwenzi, 2020), everyday routines represent family-like practices, supporting relationship-building and ‘notions of relatedness’ (Kendrick, 2013: 79). An explicitly loving ethos and demonstrably affectionate relationships appear to have liberated staff from some anxieties reported by professionals in other residential contexts (Brown, Winter and Carr, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Foster care is often considered preferable to group care, partly because, in the ‘normality’ of the family context, children’s relationships with foster carers are presumed to be fundamentally different from those with residential staff who may be experiencing tension between their professional and parental roles (Fowler, 2016) in the more ‘institutional’ setting (Kendrick, 2013: 77). Some have noted a prevailing culture of risk aversion and associated fear, which shapes the daily practice of residential childcare workers, stifling expressions of warmth and affection (Brown, Winter and Carr, 2018) and creating professional distance and ambivalence (Kendrick, 2013), causing some staff to eschew affection, physical contact or emotional depth in favour of a neutral professional approach (Brown, Winter and Carr, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interrupting a cycle of placement instability with short-term residential care: Trauma-informed family-like relational practice in one specialist unit

MacDonald,

Gillespie

2023

Adoption & Fostering

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Continuous caring relationships are crucial to the wellbeing of children living in out-of-home care, with the family environment of long-term foster care usually the preferred placement for achieving relational permanence. Some children, however, experience a cycle of instability with the impact of placement disruption exacerbating emotional and behavioural difficulties and thereby undermining subsequent foster relationships. This paper reports on a service evaluation of a residential facility specialising in short-term placements for children who have experienced disruption, with the aim of interrupting the cycle of placement instability. Overview of 34 children’s placement trajectories show that most were enabled to re-enter foster care and of those who are now aged over 18 years ( n = 29), over half ( n = 16) remained in family placements until adulthood. For four children, detailed individualised assessment indicated residential care as the most appropriate option for avoiding future disruption. The paper gives cause for optimism that relationships in the residential setting have the potential to build emotional resilience and capacity for connection. There is paucity of information on how residential staff achieve these relationships in practice. Focus groups and interviews with ten staff and managers illuminate relational practices in the residential setting that are simultaneously family-like and trauma-informed.

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‘We're Like One, Big, Dysfunctional Family’: Struggling to Define the Role of Residential Child Care Workers

Cited by 2 publications

References 8 publications

Constructing the Meaning of “Family” in the Context of Out-of-Home Care: An Exploratory Study on Residential Care Leavers in Harare, Zimbabwe

Constructing the Meaning of “Family” in the Context of Out-of-Home Care: An Exploratory Study on Residential Care Leavers in Harare, Zimbabwe

Interrupting a cycle of placement instability with short-term residential care: Trauma-informed family-like relational practice in one specialist unit

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