A New Approach to Professional Child Care: Introducing the Authentic Warmth dimension Sean Cameron (with Andy Constable and Colin Maginn, who are lurking.

A New Approach to Professional Child Care: Introducing the

Authentic Warmth dimension

Sean Cameron (with Andy Constable and Colin Maginn, who are lurking somewhere in the

audience)

Living Psychology

***Our objectives for this workshop:

We would like to-

• Provide an overview of the background, theory and rationale underpinning our work with children and young people who are in public care.

• Show how the ‘Pillars of Parenting’ can offer a set of principles to guide professional childcare practice.

• Offer a model of adaptive emotional development which can enable carers to understand and support children in public care.

• Discuss some of the implications of what we believe is a promising new approach to residential and foster childcare.

***Rejection and exclusion

Social RejectionBaumeister (2005) compared the brain’s response to rejection with its reaction to physical injury. “ .. social rejection is a bit like getting knocked on the head with a brick.”

• Parental rejection When attempting to understand the emotional, adjustment and attainment difficulties of children and young people in public care, a conceptual shift is required, namely that they are part of the much larger population of children in our society who have all shared negative life experiences, the common factor being parental rejection (Rohner 2004 & Rohner et al 2004).

Attunement occurs when the parent

is aware of his or her own

feelings and sensations, and at the same time

recognises how the child is

responding and can communicate

this awareness back to the child.

Waldsax, A. (2004). ‘Parenting’. In: K.N. Dwivedi and P.B. Harper, (eds.) Promoting the Emotional Well-being of Children and Adolescents and Preventing their Mental Ill Health. London: Kingsley.

Some dimensions of EMPATHY

1. Demonstrating that you can see the other person’s point of view.

2. Accepting the feelings which accompany this point of view.

3. Adopting the other person’s perspective.

4. Identifying directly (where appropriate) with the experience the other person is describing.

Capacitytochange

Age 02 05 08 15 30

Changes in brain capacity to change with respect to age (after Rohner, 2000)

***Parenting style

High level of parental control/ management and expectations for

learning and behaviour

Low level of sensitivity to and interest in child

Low level parental control/ management and expectations for learning and behaviour

High level of sensitivity to and interest in child

Positive psychological

control

Negative psychological

control

From Parenting Styles in Childcare, Baumrind, 1991 & 1993Plus Authentic Warmth, Cameron & Maginn, 2005

***An Enabling Parenting Style

Authoritative parenting• Warmth and understanding towards child• High level of involvement with the child.• Rules and discipline applied fairly and

with a clear explanation/ rationale provided.

N.b. Only authoritative parenting is likely to lead to healthy and socially desirable child development.

***The Pillars of Parenting

1. Primary care & protection

2. Secure attachment

3. Positive Self-perception

4. Emotional competence

5. Self-management skills

6. Resilience

7. A sense of belonging

8. Personal and personal responsibility

Approaches to living with and working with traumatised Approaches to living with and working with traumatised children and young peoplechildren and young people

Three phases of support and managementThree phases of support and management--

•• StabilisationStabilisation (e.g.providing a safe physical and (e.g.providing a safe physical and psychological environment). psychological environment).

•• IntegrationIntegration (processing the trauma e.g. putting (processing the trauma e.g. putting the past in its place).the past in its place).

•• Adaptation Adaptation (re(re--establishing social connectedness, personal establishing social connectedness, personal •• efficacy and rediscovering the joy of living).efficacy and rediscovering the joy of living).

Reference source:Reference source:Cairns, K (2002) Cairns, K (2002) Attachment, Trauma and Resilience: therapeutic caring Attachment, Trauma and Resilience: therapeutic caring for childrenfor children London British Association for Adoption and Fostering London British Association for Adoption and Fostering

Post-traumatic growth

PTSD as a continuum of adaptive behaviour rather than a distinctly abnormal reaction.Three broad areas for positive change and growth:

• Perception of self– Acknowledgement of vulnerability and appreciation

of integral strength.• Relationships with others

– Development of compassion, empathy and altruism.• Philosophy of life

– Valuing and appreciation of everyday life

Reference source: Linley, A. (2000) Transforming psychology: the example of trauma. The Psychologist, 13(7) 353-355

***So, what’s different about this approach,then?

• It is based on the psychological needs of children

• It is underpinned by psychological theory and research

• It can generate good practice for understanding and meeting the often-complex needs of children in care

• It does introduce a new professional dimension into residential and foster care.

NW Commissioners and Care Providers Conference 2008

Haydock Park

May 20th 2008