bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
At Play in the Fields of Missiology: Quincentennial Faces of Mission in the Films of Popular Culture
Authors: Presler Titus Leonard
Published: March 2013

The 500th anniversary of the arrival of Columbus in the Americas, which coincided with the arrival of the Christian gospel, prompted the issuing of several films in which Christian mission features prominently: The Mission, Black Robe, and At Play in the Fields of the Lord. Rather than stereotyping either missionaries or indigenous peoples, the films offer complex and penetrating analyses that help to raise the level of popular perception and discussion of the missionary enterprise. They highlight the unique role missionaries have played in the interaction of Westerners with primal cultures. While widely criticized, missionaries may be American culture's best foil for exploring cross-cultural encounters.
Proverbial, Intrinsic, and Dynamic Authorities: A Case Study on Scripture and Mission in the Dioceses of Mount Kenya East and Kirinyaga
Authors: Kings Graham
Published: March 2013

What concepts of authority lie behind different uses of Scripture? This article considers the uses of Scripture in three sermons of Bishop David Gitari and in student litanies and drama. It contrasts the proverbial authority illustrated by Kenyatta's use of the story of Naboth with the intrinsic and dynamic authorities behind the prophetic sermons of the bishop and the creative work of the students.
Understanding and Relating to the Three Cultures of Cross-Cultural Ministry in Russia
Authors: Menconi Margo Lyn
Published: March 2013

When missionaries or church workers enter a new culture with the gospel, they actually have three cultures to deal with: their own native culture, the culture of the target people, and also biblical or “kingdom” culture. We need to understand all three in order to communicate faithfully our message to the people we aim to reach for Christ.

In this paper, I make a sample comparison between Russian culture and that of the United States and of Scripture, using Carolyn Ryffel's adaptation (1994) of one of Geert Hofstede's “Dimensions of Culture” continuums (1991, 1986, 1984) as a framework. The purpose of this paper is to encourage the reconsideration of the place of each of these three cultures in our missionary activities and the making of conscious, informed decisions about our approach to mission in regard to them.
Principles of the Christian Approach to an African-Based Islamic Society
Authors: Gilliland Dean S.
Published: March 2013

The people called Isawa are an aberration of Islam living in various communities in northern Nigeria. The question for religionists is whether they are traditional African with a Muslim orientation or Muslim of the “folk” variety. Because of their loyalty to Isa, whom they consider a more worthy prophet than Muhammad, they have, by choice, separated themselves from Muslims. Christians need to understand the history of the Isawa and not make claims that they are an expression of incipient Christianity because of their attachment to Isa. The Isawa must be seen in light of their own practices, beliefs, and self-definition. The Christian approach must be relational rather than confrontative.
Christs in the Night: The Missiological Challenge of Andean Catholicism
Authors: Cadorette Curt
Published: March 2013

This article analyzes the social and religious life of a small town in the south of Peru. Focusing on the celebration of Holy Week, it studies how particular socioeconomic and cultural groups employ Catholic ritual to articulate their self-understanding, both socio-politically and religiously. The essay uses concepts drawn from the social sciences to help elucidate the theological and missiological challenges one faces in a conflictive social environment.
Walk Humbly with Your God! Notes on a Spirituality for Missionaries with Migrants
Authors: Campese Gioacchino
Published: March 2013

This article proposes a relevant and tentative spirituality for missionaries who work with migrants in a world which is characterized by the phenomenon of human mobility. This spirituality is founded on four pillars: the human drama of migrations; a critique of the absolutization of the monastic spiritual tradition; the retrieval of the biblical tradition of the migrant God, the God of the tent; and a concrete commitment to the option of the poor. It is best described by the prophet Micah's famous imperative to “walk humbly with your God” (6:8): a spirituality for the journey inviting us to follow a migrant God together with a migrant people toward the dream of the reign.
Religious Community in a Cuban Refugee Camp: Bringing Order Out of Chaos
Authors: Payne William P.
Published: March 2013

An authentic religious community may function as a stabilizing and ordering device for people living in a refugee camp. This article examines this phenomenon in a Cuban refugee camp. The Cuban refugees described left one social structure but were not incorporated into a new one. After a prolonged period of liminality, hopelessness, aggression, and self-destructive behavior characterized the general population. Religious community countered the destructive aspects of the liminal experience by giving participating refugees an informal social structure and a sense of hope. Victor Turner's concept of ritual process serves as an interpretive model. The findings of this study have important missiological implications for those who work with refugees or other displaced populations.
The Galilee Theme in Matthew: Transforming Mission through Marginality
Authors: Hertig Paul
Published: March 2013

Matthew introduces and concludes the ministry of Jesus in Galilee. This article interprets the term “Galilee” to signal a key missiological theme in the Gospel of Matthew, namely that God accepts the rejected ones of the world and commissions them as God's change agents in the world. Galilee, with its open relations to the wider world, portrays the inclusive nature of Jesus' mission and of Matthew's Gospel. Through the term “Galilee,” Matthew transforms marginality from a curse to a blessing and demonstrates that mission from the margins has the potential to transform the world.
Gospel and Culture: The WCC Project
Authors: Hiebert Paul G.
Published: March 2013

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has launched a major study project on the gospel and cultures resulting in the formation of study groups around the world and the publication of 15 study pamphlets that discuss how the gospel relates to different cultures. This article reviews the contents of these pamphlets around the themes of the gospel and cultural pluralism and the church and social pluralism. In evaluating these materials, it is noted that the tension between gospel and culture, revelation and hearing, divine and human is central to the Christian Faith. The WCC debate on the relationship of the gospel to cultures and the church to the world is an attempt to move ahead and chart a mission course for the twenty-first century.
A Model for Analysis of Incarnational Ministry in Post-Christendom Lands
Authors: Bjork David
Published: March 2013

Why are Western Protestant missionaries who work in areas of the world where Christian churches date back many centuries so ineffective? Is it really necessary and unavoidable that we be seen as members of sectarian and cultist groups by the post-Christendom peoples we seek to win for Christ? This article considers the ways in which our missional paradigm and ministry methods combine to shape the way we are perceived by others. Based on lessons learned from years of ministry in France, it provides conceptual glasses through which we may discover new perspectives on the incarnation of the gospel in countries marked by Christendom.
Conversion Revisited: Present Understanding of a Classic Missionary Motive
Authors: Spindler Marc R.
Published: March 2013

While mission scholars have become reluctant to address the problem of conversion to Christianity, historians and cultural anthropologists are increasingly devoting case studies and general theories to this topic. They emphasize the social dimensions of conversion, basically interpreted as a progress towards modernity. The present article makes a case for a renewed commitment to a genuine missiological approach of Christian conversion in its personal and ecclesial reality.
Networking, Civil Society, and the NGO: A New Model for Ecumenical Mission
Authors: Skreslet Stanley H.
Published: March 2013

A new model for ecumenical mission has emerged in the 1990s based on the metaphor of networking, the concept of civil society, and the institutional form of the non-governmental organization (NGO). The constituent elements of this approach to mission and a few contexts (local and global) in which it is already in evidence are described. The model is then evaluated and suggestions are made for how this conceptual tool might best be applied.
The Return of the Fourth “R” to Education: Relationships
Authors: Chinchen Delbert
Published: March 2013

Two philosophies of education—the collective and the individualistic systems—are in contention wherever modern schools are found in collective societies. The Western style of teaching and relating to students places the collectively oriented student at a distinct disadvantage. Tradition informs collective students that it is impossible to succeed in life independently. These students find it necessary to link up with the teacher through a personal relationship in order to succeed in the classroom.

A secure learning atmosphere is provided for the collective student when the teacher matches his or her relationship style with the student's. This article provides the missionary teacher with insights into this collective relationship style and suggestions for its implementation along with a warning of the potential danger of this relationship's degenerating into a form of paternalism.
Reflections from a “Fly-in Missionary”
Authors: Crawford John R.
Published: March 2013

The idea of short-term mission service and the facility of jet travel have changed the face of Christian missions. This article seeks to examine the long-term value and spiritual strength of short-term (three months or less) mission work. Originally sketched out when the author was on a “fly-in mission,” teaching for three months in a seminary in Zambia, it seeks to probe the issues involved in such efforts. It examines Paul's missionary tactics in context and his own cultural preparation. A variety of modern short-term missions is discussed, with caveats and conditions. It is my hope that this article will stimulate further discussion of the work and witness of “fly-in missionaries.”
Theology in Song: Ethiopia's Tesfaye Gabbiso
Authors: Balisky Lila W.
Published: March 2013

Thousands of indigenous songs have emanated from a deep wellspring of spirituality within Ethiopia during the past 30 to 40 years. Theological and church educators should be encouraged to acknowledge and examine this body of oral theology as being very significant in effectively communicating to the hearts and minds of the broad Christian public. This article examines the songs of one prominent Ethiopian soloist, Tesfaye Gabbiso, and encourages further inquiry into and appreciation for the songs of the people and the power of song in Christian formation, especially in a society with a predominantly oral orientation to life.
“Mutual Exchange of Energies” Mission in Cross-Cultural Perspective An African Point of View
Authors: Okoye James Chukwuma
Published: March 2013

In the new context of mission, all have bread to give and to receive. Mission becomes a “mutual exchange of energies” ( AG:19) among churches and groups. The growth of missionary consciousness in the “Third Church” is outlined, and the possible contribution of this church, particularly the church of Africa, is detailed. For the first time in centuries, the gospel is being transmitted without its Western cultural embodiment, making more urgent the demand that the church become truly catholic, identified with no particular culture. The heart of mission is shown to be a humble and transforming dialogue of experiences of God and the Christ.
Ethnicity and Placement: Beginning the Debate
Authors: Small John
Published: March 2013

This article is based on an interview with John Small by Guest Editor Beverley Prevatt Goldstein during the Fourth International Conference of Caribbean and International Social Work Educators, which took place in Jamaica in July 1999.

Small played a key role in the recruitment of black carers, which, with its focus on the importance of identity, contributed to the radical shift in the ideological base of British social work practice from the early 1980s. After a brief introduction by the Editor, he reflects on these issues, both in the light of the pioneering work carried out by black activists at that time and the challenges for those engaged in family placement work today. In conclusion, Prevatt Goldstein comments on the interview and the relevance of Small's position in the 21st Century.
The Strengths of Black Families: Appropriate Placements for All
Authors: Parvez Stephen
Published: March 2013

The strengths which black families bring to substitute parenting have rarely been explored in detail in British social work research literature. A recent study on the permanent placement of black children in substitute families provided the opportunity to interview a number of black foster carers. Stephen Parvez Rashid reports on six black foster carers and identifies their strengths in helping the children in their care to settle in their new families, deal with issues of racism and identity and retain contact with their birth families. He concludes with a brief account of the foster carers' support networks and their evaluation of their efforts to provide sustained care for the children.
Research Review: Transracial Placements: A Commentary on a New Adult Outcome Study
Authors: Rushton Alan , Minnis Helen
Published: March 2013

The publication of a new follow-up study of a transracial sample deserves special attention because the volume of longitudinal research in this field is fairly small. Alan Rushton and Helen Minnis provide a critical review of a recent North American paper by Brooks and Barth, and consider the quality of the evidence presented, the methodological limitations, what can be safely concluded from the study and the implications that can be drawn for practice in the UK. The reviewers conclude that the nature of these placements, the loss to follow-up and weakness of some of the measures inevitably restrict drawing firm conclusions, and readers should be aware that the researchers may have presented an over-optimistic view of placement outcome. However, the study broadly confirms the findings derived from other transracial samples that placement matching for race may not be the strongest predictor of outcome and that transracial placements do not necessarily preclude the achievement of a secure ethnic identity.
A Legitimate Choice and Voice: The Experience of Adult Adoptees Who have Chosen Not to Search for their Biological Families
Authors: Roche Heather , Perlesz Amaryll
Published: March 2013

Although the phenomenon of searching for biological parentage by adoptees has been well documented over the last decade, limited attention has been paid to the experience of those people who decide not to search. Heather Roche and Amaryll Perlesz present the findings from an Australian pilot project in which the experiences of three mature non-searching, adult adoptees were explored in depth. The findings indicate that the decision to search or not to search reflects an ongoing developmental life process congruent with the social and familial context of the adoptee. Loyalty to their adoptive family, comfort with and commitment to birth parents, the co-existence of a strong ethic of reciprocity, and an ethic of self-discovery and belief in a spiritual connectedness with a ‘bigger Other’ emerged as the most predominant reasons for not searching for their biological roots.

The narration of their adoption stories had a very positive impact on the participants in this study. The paper concludes that there is a need for further in-depth, qualitative studies of this sort to witness and honour the adoption experience regardless of ‘search’ status.
Adoption with Contact: A Study of Adoptive Parents and the Impact of Continuing Contact with Families of Origin
Authors: Sykes Margaret
Published: March 2013

Adoption practice in the 1990s has seen a substantial increase in adoptive families where there continues to be contact with families of origin. This study by Margaret Sykes, based on postal questionnaire responses from 30 adoptive parents in 17 families, followed up by interviews with 15 adopters in nine families, considers adoptive families at least two years after placement, and aims to enhance our understanding of the meaning of these contact experiences for adoptive parents. The analysis of the narratives from the interviews has considered 1) the impact on parenthood, exploring themes of control, entitlement to parent, communication, bonding and ownership, and 2) the relationships between adoptive and birth parents, examining themes of fear, anger and blame, competition and empathy. The findings suggest that the passage of time and a greater sense of control assist in establishing confidence, while adopters develop a more empathic view towards birth mothers. This has emotional costs to the adoptive mother. The study suggests that contact is more likely to be sustained where adoptive parents are able to develop a coherence in their understanding of their own past experiences. The implications for practice are discussed
Intercountry Adoption: Global Trade or Global Gift?
Authors: Triseliotis John
Published: March 2013

In this article, based on a paper given in Oslo, Norway in May 1999, John Triseliotis contends that a significant part of intercountry adoption lacks legal, moral or professional legitimacy. Since the end of World War II it has evolved from being a predominantly humanitarian response to natural calamities and the destruction caused by wars, to becoming a quest for children for those wishing to create a family or expand one. In the process of doing so a part of intercountry adoption has become a trade in children, with scant regard paid to children's rights as set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The 1993 Hague Convention has made good progress towards international regulation but much more needs to be done to stop the major abuses. Finally, the proposition is put forward for all forms of adoption to be practised eventually on the basis of the gift relationship.
Men as Foster Carers: A Neglected Resource?
Authors: Gilligan Robbie
Published: March 2013

In this paper, Robbie Gilligan sets out to highlight questions about the role and experiences of men as foster carers in fostering couples.1 The sparse literature relevant to the topic is reviewed; some of the therapeutic and practical reasons for the significance of the man's role in foster care are considered; findings from a small exploratory study of male foster carers and their role are presented; and certain policy implications arising are discussed. The author has been a foster carer himself.
Searching, Reunion and Transracial Adoption
Authors: Kirton Derek , Feast Julia , Howe David
Published: March 2013

Derek Kirton, Julia Feast and David Howe Report on findings from qualitative interviews with transracially adopted adults, carried out as part of a research project by The Children's Society. Findings show that those adopted transracially shared many experiences with other adopted people, including almost invariably feeling that they have gained from searching and/or reunion. For many transracially adopted people, issues of racial and ethnic identity figured prominently within motivation for searching, but their needs and aspirations in this regard often went unmet. Finally, the implications of the research for family placement work and post-adoption services are considered.
The Rights and Wrongs of Post-Adoption Intermediary Services for Birth Relatives
Authors: Trinder Liz
Published: March 2013

Liz Trinder examines the ethics of post-adoption intermediary services on behalf of the birth relatives of adults who were adopted as children. Intermediary services can be seen as an attempt to equalise the rights to search of birth relatives and adopted people. They also reflect wider beliefs about the importance of genealogical information and openness. By their very nature, however, intermediary services dispense with the informed consent of those who are contacted, may cause upset or harm and potentially breach confidentiality and privacy. Although a recent study indicates that a majority of adopted people find the intermediary services to be acceptable, this article argues that the rights of minorities must be respected and upheld. The apparently neglected Adoption Contact Register is put forward as a better alternative.
Safeguarding Children: Placement Choice and Creating a Vision for Looked after Children in Northern Ireland
Authors: McAuley Colette
Published: March 2013

Three-and-a-half years into the Children (NI) Order 1995, government reports have confirmed that there are serious concerns about the sufficiency of placement within both residential and foster care services. Colette McAuley argues that the ensuing issue of placement choice and its impact upon care planning and child safety needs to be urgently addressed. She calls for regional strategic leadership coupled with resource management and investment to bring about significant changes for looked after children in Northern Ireland.
Ethical Issues in Adoption
Authors: Freundlich Madelyn , Phillips Rena
Published: March 2013

As part of its remit to critically evaluate adoption policy and practice, the Evan B Donaldson Adoption Institute, based in New York, recently held a major international conference on the role of ethics in adoption. In collaboration with former Institute Director Madelyn Freundlich, Rena Phillips reports on some of the conference discussions and debates around four key ethical issues in adoption: secrecy and openness; the role of race, culture and national origin; market forces; and the relationship between adoption and the emerging reproductive technologies. Parallels and differences are drawn between the United States and the UK, and questions are raised as to how ethical standards can be developed and monitored.
Providing a Birth Relative Intermediary Service: The Non-Searching Adopted Person's Perspective
Authors: Smith Janet , Wallace Rose
Published: March 2013

The past decade has seen the continuing development of intermediary services for birth relatives of adopted adults. The Department of Health in London has now published practice guidelines to encourage uniformity and good standards of provision nationally. In the following article Janet Smith and Rose Wallace examine the messages for the provision of intermediary services from the recent Children's Society research study into adopted people's search for identity and reunion. The article focuses particularly on the views and experience of non-searching adopted people who have been contacted on behalf of a birth relative.
Calling for Post-Adoption Monitoring and Support: A Personal Statement
Authors: Challand Kay
Published: March 2013

This is the first of what we hope may become a regular contribution to the journal from people who have been personally involved in an adoptive or foster family.

In this instance, Kay Challand describes her own unhappy childhood in not just one adoptive household but two. As Kay's story movingly illustrates, a second or even third failure of a family that is meant to be ‘forever’ can be catastrophic. She also shows how outwardly a person may appear successful and materially advantaged, yet inside feel bereft and confused.

Kay makes a plea for children's placement with adopters to be monitored after the order is granted and for the children to have access to support when they need it. The informal and casual nature of Kay's original adoptive placements also highlight the importance of careful assessment, which is worth bearing in mind at a time when agency scrutiny has been criticised by some for being unnecessarily intrusive. Kay is now working for all those involved in the adoption triangle, to improve the system which failed her as a child.
Developing a Post-Adoption Groupwork Service for Non-Consenting Birth Mothers
Authors: Jackson Jenny
Published: March 2013

Jenny Jackson writes about an informal group-work service offered by Support After Adoption for birth mothers whose children have been in care and then adopted. The service described in this article began in 1998 in Nottingham and is now being extended to the Mansfield area. Jackson outlines the background informing the development of this service, including links with other agencies working in this way, the options considered and chosen, and the aims and value base of the service finally offered. She describes the composition and process of the group as it developed and the themes which emerged. Finally, she offers workers' and participants' evaluations of what these birth mothers gained from the group, highlights some of the learning outcomes for Support After Adoption and considers ways in which the team hopes to take this work forward.
Inviting Applicants, Birth Parents and Young People to Attend Adoption Panel: How it Works in Practice
Authors: Pepys Sarah , Dix Jennie
Published: March 2013

Based on their experience as advisers to the Isle of Wight Adoption Panel, Sarah Pepys and Jennie Dix examine the practice of inviting adoption applicants, birth parents and young people to attend adoption panel when their plans or assessments are under consideration. They look at the setting up of a pilot scheme in 1994, which focused on preparing panel members, drawing together procedures and addressing practical problems, and describe subsequent developments and reviews. The authors argue that inviting all parties to share their views leads to better informed panel recommendations and enhanced planning for children for whom adoption is being considered. Mindful of the forthcoming implementation of the Human Rights Act, with its emphasis on fairness and the need to consider each individual's rights, it is timely for adoption agencies to consider how they demonstrate the openness of their practice.
Infant Adoption in England: Policy and Practice at Placement
Authors: Castle Jenny , Beckett Celia , Groothues Christine
Published: March 2013

Following on from their article, ‘Infant adoption in England: a longitudinal account of social and cognitive progress' ( Adoption & Fostering 24:3, 2000), Jenny Castle, Celia Beckett, Christine Groothues and the English and Romanian Adoptees (ERA) study team focus attention on the same group in relation to the policies and practices of social services and voluntary adoption agencies at placement. From interviews with adoptive mothers of a sample of 52 infants, placed between 1989 and 1991, they examine differences between the two sectors regarding issues such as contact, links with family background, openness and post-placement support. The authors also report on adoptive parents' opinions about the provision of pre- and post-adoption services. They conclude that co-operation between social services and voluntary adoption agencies could improve both services.
The White Paper, Adoption: A New Approach: A ‘Curate's Egg’?
Authors: Ball Caroline
Published: March 2013

The Government published its proposals for the partial reform of adoption law in the White Paper, Adoption: A new approach in December 2000. In this article Caroline Ball provides a critique of the proposals in the context of the needs of the adoptive population at the beginning of the 21st Century and the wide-ranging though as yet unrealised reform process of the past decade. The article acknowledges the extent to which the Government's proposals recognise and partially address identified problems in childcare and court procedures for children in the public care who cannot return to their birth families and for whom adoption is the preferred outcome. It also identifies the extent to which the proposals are fundamentally flawed by significant omissions in regard to the identification of problems and the consequential range of necessary reforms.
Early Adversity and Adoptive Solutions
Authors: Clarke Ann , Clarke Alan
Published: March 2013

A belief that early experience has profound influences on later development has been common for hundreds of years, reinforced in the middle of the last century by the early work of John Bowlby. Such views were rapidly transformed by research on the mainly good outcomes for children rescued from severe adversity. Ann and Alan Clarke have researched this field for more than 40 years and sample here some relevant research findings and their implications for current practice. Resilience is built into the human system, but requires a positive social context for its full expression. Adoption is the strongest form of intervention and its usually good outcome challenges other forms of care. Large differences in adoptive practices and a decline in the numbers adopted suggest that dated attitudes are partly responsible for the under-use of adoption.
Trauma Experienced by Children Adopted from Abroad
Authors: Hoksbergen René , van Dijkum Cor
Published: March 2013

The concept of trauma is relevant for a number of children adopted from abroad. When diagnostic criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are applied to such children, research has shown that quite a few show symptoms consistent with PTSD. René Hoksbergen and Cor van Dijkum argue that adoptive parents and healthcare professionals should be familiar with behavioural and long-lasting difficulties which appear as sequelae of trauma and should be prepared to provide timely and appropriate intervention.
Freeing Order Processes in Northern Ireland: Painfully Slow
Authors: Kelly Greg , McSherry Dominic
Published: March 2013

Greg Kelly and Dominic McSherry describe the timescales involved in achieving freeing orders for 23 children in Northern Ireland between 1996 and 1999. There was delay at all stages in the process. The delays were particularly pronounced in social services and social services/legal services processes. The authors conclude that if adoption is to be made available to more children from state care, current arrangements, including legislation, will need revision and reform.
Resilience and Family Placement: A Lifespan Perspective
Authors: Schofield Gillian
Published: March 2013

Many children who have suffered adverse childhoods of abuse, neglect and loss go on to thrive in family placements. Gillian Schofield argues that this process needs to be documented and understood with the help of developmental theory. She also suggests that there ought to be a lifespan perspective, given that children need a family for life and stable adulthood is inevitably a goal of family placement. In this paper, the concept of resilience is explored and then applied to selected cases from a qualitative study of 40 adults aged 18–30 who grew up in foster care. Connections are also made to attachment theory, since in family placement the role of relationships is an important factor in understanding outcomes. Implications for practice are then discussed.
Narrative and Fantasy in Adoption
Authors: Treacher Amal , Katz Ilan
Published: March 2013

Adoption touches on basic personal and cultural narratives, emotions and fantasies surrounding the self and family. Amal Treacher and ***Ilan Katz explore the narratives of all those involved in the process — both professionals and those with personal investments. They draw on contemporary theory of narrative and psychoanalytic theory of fantasy in order to explore and understand some of the issues arising in adoption. A central contention is that all identity, whether adopted or not, is multifaceted, inherently conflicted and constantly developing. The theoretical and emotional endeavour is to place this view of identity as a central backbone to understanding adoption. The authors argue that many narratives and fantasies function to pass over problematical feelings and fantasies. For example, life story books can silence the difficulties experienced for the adoptee and may not allow space for an exploration of troublesome feelings and fantasies. They contend that maturity is based on the capacity to face up to contradictions and conflict, and to allow for such complex narratives.
Placement Choice in Temporary Foster Care: A Research Study
Authors: Waterhouse Suzette , Brocklesby Edwina
Published: March 2013

This study examined 50 referrals for temporary family placement to assess the extent of choice and matching. The findings, discussed here by Suzette Waterhouse and Edwina Brocklesby, revealed that three-quarters of the placements were made in a crisis-led and unplanned way. Such unplanned placements had negative consequences, particularly in terms of contact, lack of knowledge of the family and a need for a subsequent move.

The lack of a child-centred focus in the process by which children came to be placed was notable. An acute shortage of carers meant that it was increasingly the norm for placements of children to be made outside of carers' approval criteria. In such circumstances carers did not receive compensating support to remedy the placement deficits. The authors conclude that fostering continues in a state of crisis without due recognition of the ***profession-alisation of the service now being offered.
A Service for Children and a Service for the Courts: The Contribution of Guardians Ad Litem in Public Law Proceedings
Authors: Bourton Annie , McCausland Jean
Published: March 2013

From 1 April 2001, guardians ad litem have been renamed children's guardians and operate within the new Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service. In this article Annie Bourton and Jean McCausland outline research undertaken by The Children's Society between 1997 and 1999, which considered the process of investigation by guardians as well as the views of children. A decade after the implementation of the Children Act 1989, the research findings illustrate how this part of the system works and the impact guardians have on children's lives. The child-focused nature of the work from an independent base is seen as crucial.
Adjusting to a Foster Family: Children's Perspectives
Authors: Heptinstall Ellen , Bhopal Kalwant , Brannen Julia
Published: March 2013

Looked after children's adjustment to negative experiences of family life and the move to a foster family have traditionally been approached in terms of resilience in response to adversity and adaptive strategies related to insecure attachment. In the context of a general study about children's experiences of family life, Ellen Heptinstall, Kalwant Bhopal and Julia Brannen add to this psychological approach to children's adaptation by introducing the sociological notion that children actively make sense of their experiences. Case studies highlight the different ways in which children perceive their foster care situation. Comparisons with children living with at least one birth parent show that in some respects looked after children's perspectives of family life reflect their adverse early experiences, while in other ways their interpretation of their situation is based on common perceptions they share with other children.
Mental Health Services for Looked after Children: Implications from Two Studies
Authors: Minnis Helen , Del Priori Christina
Published: March 2013

Two recent studies by Glasgow researchers have highlighted the high level of emotional and behavioural difficulties experienced by looked after children. One was a survey of children entering the care system (Dimigen et al, 1999) while the other was a randomised controlled trial of a training programme for foster carers. The survey was carried out in Glasgow, while the trial was carried out across another part of the Central Belt of Scotland. Despite their different designs and geographical areas, the two studies came up with complementary results. Helen Minnis and Christina Del Priore synthesise these results in this paper and use them to argue that practitioners need to take a fresh look at mental health services for looked after children and at the assessments which should determine what these children need.
After All These Years: Accessing Care Records
Authors: Kirton Derek , Peltier Erica , Webb Elizabeth
Published: March 2013

While there has been a growing body of research into the experiences of adopted people who approach agencies seeking information or contact with birth relatives, little is known about those formerly in care who access agency records. The findings here, reported by Derek Kirton, Erica Peltier and Elizabeth Webb, derive from a file analysis relating to adults previously in the care of The Children's Society who had sought access to their care records. The aim of the study was to find out more about the care careers of this group and their reasons for contacting the Society. By comparison with their adopted counterparts, those formerly in care tend to access records later in life and are more evenly balanced in terms of gender. The analysis revealed widely divergent careers in care for black and white enquirers respectively, with the former spending longer in care and being much less likely to be in contact, or reunited with their birth families. Implications for practice are then discussed, especially the need to develop post-care services which can help to meet the longer-term identity needs of adults formerly in care.
Birth Fathers' Lives after Adoption
Authors: Clapton Gary
Published: March 2013

While considerable research has been carried out on the experiences of birth mothers in adoption, birth fathers remain a relatively neglected group. As part of an ongoing project to redress the balance, Gary Clapton explores the life course of a group of 30 birth fathers ranging in age from 35 to late 60s. Beginning with the immediate post-adoption period, he traces the men's early feelings of grief and loss, and in a minority of cases, alleged indifference, through to a spectrum of emotions spanning curiosity, concern, regret and ‘connectedness’. Clapton points to similarities with the reported experiences of birth mothers, including a continuing sense of parenthood, and highlights the need to rethink notions of fatherhood. He calls for a greater focus on birth fathers in adoption, not only for their sakes but in the direct interests of the adopted person seeking knowledge of their birth family history.
Contact after Adoption: The Role of Agencies in Making and Supporting Plans
Authors: Neil Elsbeth
Published: March 2013

Using questionnaire data about 168 young, recently adopted children and interview data about 36 children having face-to-face contact, Elsbeth Neil explores how agencies formulate and support post-adoption contact plans. It was found that while most children were planned to have some form of contact, adoption agencies differed in the extent to which this was promoted, especially face-to-face. Agencies seemed to play a leading role in determining whether or not face-to-face contact should occur, and what form it should take. However, for contact to be successful it was important that agencies did not just insist on contact, but that they helped adoptive parents to feel positive about it. There was evidence that some agencies that planned face-to-face contact remained ambivalent about its value, indicated by formal, low-frequency contact meetings that were controlled rather than supported. Such arrangements could convey negative messages about the importance of contact and the capacity of adopters and birth relatives to manage arrangements directly. A more successful model of agency involvement empowered adopters and birth relatives to find a plan that suited them, incorporated positive messages about contact and provided support where necessary.
Making Sense: The use of Theory and Research to Support Foster Care
Authors: Cairns Kate
Published: March 2013

In this article, based on themes from her recent book, Attachment, Trauma and Resilience (BAAF, 2002), Kate Cairns proposes that foster carers and adopters need theories and models drawn from or supported by research in order to make sense of their life with children who have experienced early adversity. A range of ‘great ideas’ are briefly presented and placed in the context of child development. Concepts drawn from attachment theory and affect theory are included, as well as issues of trust, shame and resilience, and ideas arising from research on brain development and traumatic stress.
Foster Carers' Perspectives on Permanence: A Focus Group Study
Authors: Beek Mary , Schofield Gillian
Published: March 2013

There is undoubtedly a need to establish a firm legislative, policy and practice basis for adoption. At the same time, it is recognised that a range of permanence options is required to meet the needs of children for whom adoption is not appropriate, not achievable or against their wishes. Although the Prime Minister's Review of Adoption recommended consultation on all aspects of the Adoption and Children Bill, it was not clear whether there would be mechanisms for consulting foster carers who currently offer permanent placements to children. As a result, the Nuffield Foundation funded a series of three focus groups to take place during the Bill's passage through parliament, with a view to contributing to the debate on what might be needed to ensure the effectiveness of the range of permanence options sought by the Government. This paper by Mary Beek and Gillian Schofield is a result of that consultation exercise. However, the richness of the discussions in the groups allowed the authors to go beyond and behind the immediate question of legal options and explore how foster carers view their role in offering children a long-term commitment and a place in their families.
Disability and Adoption: How Unexamined Attitudes Discriminate against Disabled People as Parents
Authors: Wates Michele
Published: March 2013

For many years Michele Wates has been involved in developing peer support and a campaigning network of disabled parents in the UK. She considers that, while disabled children and adoption have been the focus of some debate, the issue of adoption has received far too little attention in relation to disabled adults. This article seeks to redress the balance by looking first at how children with disabled parents are over-represented in the looked after system. The author goes on to discuss the ways in which disabled people are overlooked as potential adoptive parents. In conclusion she outlines the implications for practice regarding both these related areas of concern.
Adoption Reform: Managing Diversity and Delay
Authors: Bell Margaret , Wilson Kate , Crawshaw Marilyn
Published: March 2013

While many aspects of current government policy on adoption are welcome, there is concern that some key issues in the adoption process are not adequately addressed in the Adoption and Children Bill, 2001, and that the use of quantitative targets will not necessarily support the good practice identified. In this article Margaret Bell, Kate Wilson and Marilyn Crawshaw consider, in particular, two areas of difficulty in the selection and preparation process: managing diversity and delay. Their study highlights the need for practitioners to be flexible and open in their approach to shared assessments, and for agencies to have robust formal and informal communication systems which are transparent and accountable to users.
Family Placements from a Chinese Institution
Authors: Beckett Chris , Thoburn June
Published: March 2013

In this article Chris Beckett and June Thoburn look at an innovative fostering project in Shanghai, which places children from a large children's institution. They consider placement outcomes for 220 children placed over a two-year period. A number of variables are discussed which might impact on placement outcomes, including age, gender, level of disability, length of time spent in the institution and age at time of placement. The length of time spent in institutional care and age at placement were found to be predictors of the placements breaking down during the first few years after placement. Younger children moved quickly into foster homes were most likely to settle there successfully. This finding is in accord with other studies that have found that early institutional care can have adverse long-term consequences for development. This pattern, it is suggested, does not necessarily reflect poor physical care within the institution. It may simply be a consequence of the fact that an environment of this kind cannot provide the kinds of relationships which are necessary for optimal development. The authors believe that looking at placement outcomes for projects of this kind provides a valuable opportunity to learn more about children's vulnerabilities and about the kinds of post-placement support which are needed.
An Unexpected Reversal: Charting the Course of International Adoption in Brazil
Authors: Fonseca Claudia
Published: March 2013

During the 1990s there was a dramatic fall in intercountry adoptions of Brazilian children — from over 2,000 per annum at the beginning of the decade to under 400 at the decade's close. On the basis of documentary material, Claudia Fonseca outlines possible reasons for this drop, considering hypotheses linked to the international market of adoptable children, legal restrictions on intercountry adoption imposed by the Brazilian government, and, finally, scandals in the mass media which stigmatise local intermediaries and officials involved in this activity.
Achieving Permanency through Adoption: Following in US Footsteps?
Authors: Selwyn Julie , Sturgess Wendy
Published: March 2013

In the past six years both England and the USA have called for radical overhauls of their adoption systems. These include not only changes to service delivery but also increased monitoring and accountability in order to achieve national child welfare goals. Drawing upon a report examining international adoption policy and practice commissioned by the Cabinet Office for the Prime Minister's review of adoption, Julie Selwyn and Wendy Sturgess compare the problems identified in the two countries' looked after children systems and examine the early impact of the US legislation.
Class Action Litigation: Judicial Reform of Child Welfare Systems in the United States
Authors: Lowry Marcia Robinson , Freundlich Madelyn , Gerstenzang Sarah , Gerstenzang Sarah
Published: March 2013

Marcia Robinson Lowry, Madelyn Freundlich and Sarah Gerstenzang examine the use of class action litigation as a strategy to reform child welfare systems in the United States. They describe the historical roots of the use of class action litigation to reform service systems and the development of this strategy specifically in relation to child welfare systems. They examine the debate about the value of class action litigation as a mechanism for reforming child welfare systems. Finally, the article discusses the typical phases of class action lawsuits against child welfare systems and looks at some of the outcomes of this type of litigation.