Development within development: The needs of children in one nation’s race to first world status Julie Cooper Altman, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, U.S.A. Fulbright Scholar, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad Presented at Social Work Social Development 2012 Stockholm, Sweden 11 July 2012
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Development within development: The needs of children in one nation’s race to first world status Julie Cooper Altman, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Adelphi.
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Development within development: The needs of children in one nation’s race
to first world status
Julie Cooper Altman, Ph.D.Associate Professor, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, U.S.A.Fulbright Scholar, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad
Presented at Social Work Social Development 2012Stockholm, Sweden11 July 2012
Children, Poverty, Marginalization and Risks
Capacity to learn, grow, develop influenced by a plethora of factors:– Biological– Psychological– Familial– Social – Cultural– Environmental
Study Question
What are the context and norms in which children in one high-risk Trinidadian community are reared?
Study Data - Beetham Community
Extensive review of literature (Cambridge, 2003)
Prolonged community engagement Multiple interviews with parents (n=28) Multiple interviews with children (n=42) Multiple interviews with parenting experts (n=12) Semi-structured community observation Focus groups
Data Analysis
Qualitative data and field notes were transcribed, coded and analyzed using the constant comparative method
Quantitative data were coded and analyzed using SPSS
Study Findings – Risk Factors (1)
Risk factors children regularly exposed to:
– Witnessing violence and criminal activity
– Poverty
– Low educational attainment among family members
– Unsafe and toxic living environments
Study Findings – Risk Factors (2)
Child abuse and neglect
Community stigma
Discrimination and social exclusion
Inadequate educational resources
Study Findings - Risk Factors (3)
– Increasing lack of adults able to fill child-rearing roles; erosion of child-shifting norm
– Rising crime rate / community distrust / social isolation
– Dearth of positive socialization experiences
The intersection of child development and social development
Children’s needs are greater; require more, not less, discipline and nurturing
Parents’ anxiety and confusion lead to inappropriate use of fewer alternatives, poor role modeling, fear
Community norms and supports are changing rapidly
Increasing view that corporal punishment is not child abuse