An Exploratory Typology for Understanding Family-Relationship Issues in Kinship-Care Placements

Datos Bibliográficos

ID13024366
AutoresAmilie Dorval (Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, autor de correspondencia), Sonia Hélie (Centre Jeunesse de Quebec), Marie-Andrée Poirier (Université de Montréal)
Año2024
Volumen14
Número3
Páginas41-41
Fecha de publicación2024-03-15
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaSocieties (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2075-4698 • E-ISSN: 2075-4698
EditorialMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/soc14030041
OpenAlexW4392857791
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas2
Referencias citadas13

Family relationships are a distinctive feature of kinship-care placements, but very few studies have examined how the dynamics of these relationships affect the placement experience. This article does explore these dynamics and identifies some possible patterns, as experienced and reported by parents of children placed in kinship care. The findings presented here come from a qualitative study employing a life-story methodology, in which nine parents were interviewed on two occasions each. All of them had experienced the permanent placement of at least one of their children with a member of their extended family, under the direction of a government child-protection agency. Drawing from significant themes in parental narratives, particularly that of relationships, we analyzed and delineated three distinct profiles. In the first profile, a family solidarity was present between the parents and the kinship caregivers before the placement and was maintained during the placement. In the second, the parents struggled to keep their place in their children’s lives, thus experiencing conflicts both with the kinship caregivers and with the child-protection agency. In the third profile, the dynamics of the current relationship between both biological parents influenced the other family relationships of the parent who was interviewed

Exploratory research · Kinship · Kinship care · Sociology · Typology · Anthropology · Child Welfare and Adoption · Family and Disability Support Research · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Psychology