Self-injury in a residential treatment population of children and adolescents

Objectives. The aim of this study was to describe the relationship between child-abuse and self-injury among children and adolescents living in a residential treatment center in a large urban area. ^ Methods. A retrospective study was conducted through a chart review of the residents who were placed at the center from 2003-2006. A total of 35 cases (with at least one documented incident of self-injury during placement at the residential treatment center) were age/gender matched with 35 controls (without at least one documented incident of self-injury during placement at the residential treatment center). ^ Results. In this study, the case subjects were far more likely to be victims of sexual abuse than were the controls (74.3% vs. 25.7%, respectively). Self-harm was found to be 9.5 times as frequent in the group that was exposed to sexual abuse in the source population (OR = 9.500 with a 95% CI = 2.292, 84.111). The difference was statistically significant (McNemar's test, x2 = 12.190 with 1 df. The two-tailed P value equals 0.0005). ^ Conclusion. These findings suggest that school-age and early-adolescent children who have a history of sexual abuse may engage in a variety of self-harming behaviors. Clinicians should consider a history of sexual abuse when working with self-harming children. ^

Exploring the Benefits of a Parent Partner Mentoring Program in Child Welfare

Parent partner mentoring programs are an innovative strategy for child welfare agencies to engage families in case planning and service delivery. These programs recruit and train parents who have been involved in the system and have successfully resolved identified child abuse or neglect issues to work with families with current open cases in the child welfare system. Parent partner mentors can provide social and emotional support, advocacy, and practical advice for navigating this challenging system. Insofar as parent partners share similar experiences, and cultural and socioeconomic characteristics of families, they may be more successful in engaging families and building trusting supportive relationships. The current study presents qualitative data from interviews and case studies of families who were matched with a parent partner in a large county in a Midwestern state. Interviews with families, parent partner mentors, child welfare agency staff, and community partners and providers suggest that parent partner programs may be just as beneficial for parent partner mentors as they are for families being mentored. These programs can build professional skills, help improve self-esteem, provide an avenue for social support, and may potentially prevent recidivism. Parent Partner programs also provide a mechanism for amplifying family voice at all levels of the agency.

Can Public Child Welfare Help to Prevent Child Maltreatment? Promising Findings from Los Angeles

This article describes promising findings from the Los Angeles County Prevention Initiative Demonstration Project, a systems change approach to developing relationships between public child welfare, allied public agencies, and community-based networks that offer family-centered services, economic assistance and capacity building to support all kinds of families. It describes the conceptual underpinnings and unique structure of the initiative, the evaluation methods used to assess results, and a pattern of promising results.

Beyond Bullying: Transforming the Culture of Peer Abuse

Bullying needs to be understood and positioned as a form of child abuse – peer abuse. For too many people, bullying is a benign term. This article will include information collected from a wide-range of researchers and discussions with over 50,000 students that I have facilitated during the past twenty years. The content will focus on new morbidities related to bullying such as depression and suicide, obesity, eating disorders, food allergies, juvenile diabetes, truancy, and substance and alcohol abuse. Making a cultural change in our society will require identified Change Agents, along with recommendations for collaboration, policies, projects and legislation.

Processos e significados da experiência de pais, mães ou cuidador primário de crianças abusadas sexualmente

Introdução - O abuso sexual de crianças constitui um problema de saúde pública, com aproximadamente 73 milhões de casos de meninos e 150 milhões de meninas registrados anualmente no mundo. O abuso sexual gera consequências negativas e condutas de risco que contribuem com algumas das principais causas de morte, doença e deficiência nas vítimas do abuso. Pais ou cuidadores primários são fundamentais no processo de orientação e de cuidado das crianças abusadas, no sentido de prevenir as consequências cognitivas, comportamentais e emocionais evidenciadas no futuro dessas crianças. Entretanto, as habilidades das famílias de cuidadores para lidar com a problemática ainda são insuficientes. Objetivo - Descrever os processos e significados da experiência vivida pelos pais ou cuidadores primários de crianças abusadas sexualmente. Método - Os dados empíricos foram tratados utilizando-se o Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo (DSC), fundamentado na Teoria das Representações Sociais, que viabiliza a emergência das representações sociais por meio da construção dos discursos coletivos obtidos de depoimentos de um grupo específico. Foram avaliados 60 pais ou cuidadores primários não estupradores, que responderam à cinco situações-problema, cada uma com questões correspondentes, residentes nos municípios de Cajicá e Tabio de Bogotá, Colômbia. O processamento e a análise dos dados foram realizados no sofware Qualiquantisoft, associado à metodologia do DSC. Resultados - Na primeira situação-problema, que aborda o porquê do silêncio do filho sobre o abuso, os entrevistados enfatizaram que é fundamental o relacionamento pais e filhos (45,7 por cento , n = 43), bem como melhorar o papel de pais por meio da escuta, do diálogo e do confiar, dedicando mais tempo às crianças; também acham que o silêncio se deve ao medo por parte das crianças e a ameaças e intimidação por parte do abusador, Na situação-problema 2, relativa à identificação do abuso sexual como problema real, o significado atribuído configura cadeias que se repetem por transmissão intergeracional (26,9 por cento , n = 21). Na situação-problema 3, o que fazer no futuro, 53,3 por cento dos entrevistados (n = 32) acham que a criança está comprometida comportamentalmente e enfatizam a homossexualidade com perda da identidade como consequência da violência sexual. Na situação-problema 4, que enfatiza o papel da rede social quanto ao cuidado da criança, os entrevistados acreditam que a solução é dar proteção (29,1 por cento ; n = 32), com ações que visem a afastar a criança do ambiente agressor, dar orientação, apoio e segurança à criança e à família. A quinta situação-problema que diz respeito ao cuidado das crianças abusadas; 34,26 por cento dos entrevistados (n = 37) enfatizam o apoio e a ajuda com a interveniência da rede de apoio social e afetivo. Conclusão - Para os pais ou cuidadores primários de crianças abusadas sexualmente, os significados se expressam como afetivo, coragem, superação, não ter medo e saber reconhecer as falhas dos pais. Em função dos resultados, que identificam posturas tradicionais dos respondentes, recomenda-se programas inovadores com um alto componente educativo, onde se contextualize o abuso sexual por meio de situações reais em escolas, delegacias, nas famílias e na comunidade, com interveniência das redes de apoio social; enfatiza-se igualmente a necessidade de formação mais humanizada dos profissionais de apoio social.

Crossing Blurred Lines: A Training Program to Train Teachers in Appropriate Sexual Boundaries

Boundaries between students and teachers were once clearly defined. Students only interacted with their teachers at school. Currently, however, boundaries are becoming increasingly unclear. As technology advances, students have more venues to interact with their teachers. In addition, teachers are asked to take on more roles in their students' lives. A significant number of teachers and students engage in inappropriate relationships and the possible damage to students is high. Unfortunately, current training programs do not adequately address how teachers can maintain appropriate boundaries with their charges. This paper outlines a proposal for a new training program to fill this gap. This program utilizes training techniques that have been shown to be useful for adult learners as it helps teachers establish and maintain boundaries as well as incorporating elements of effective prevention programs.

Clinical Implications for Working with Gay Men A Self Psychological Treatment Approach.

Specific training for conducting psychotherapy with gay men is limited for psychologists, particularly when using a Self Psychology theoretical orientation (Robertson, 1996). In fact, psychologists often are faced with conflicting and contradictory points of view that mirror society's condemnation of homosexuality (Robertson, 1996). This paper is written from a self-psychological perspective to address the lack of a constructive body of literature that explains the unique treatment needs which impact gay men. Estimates of the prevalence of male homosexuality have generated considerable debate. A common assumption is that there are homosexual and non-homosexual men. However, scientists have long been aware that sexual responsiveness to others of the same sex, like most human traits, is continuously distributed in the population (Michaels, 1996). Still the presumption exists that such traits are stable within each man over time (Michaels, 1996). Conflating same-sex sexual experiences with a categorization of the man as homosexual is problematic, in that defining sexuality solely on the basis of experience excludes people who fantasize about sex with others of the same sex but never have sexual contact. Thus, most modern conceptions of sexual orientation consider personal identification, sexual behavior, and sexual fantasy (McWhirter, Sanders & Reinisch, 1990). Gay men's mental health can only be understood in the context of homosexuality throughout history, since religious and moral objections to sexual attraction between men have existed for centuries. Men who desired other men were regarded as sinful and depraved if not ill or abnormal, and same sex contacts were not distinguished from lewd behaviors (Weeks, 1989). Although most people, regardless of sexual orientation, have experienced some feelings of personal rejection, rarely do heterosexuals become targets for disapproval based on the nature of their attractions and behaviors relative to the same and to the other sex. For lesbians, bisexuals, and gay men, however, homosexuality becomes the focus of aspects of themselves that make them feel hated and hateful (Isay, 1989). While gay men and lesbians are often considered together because of the same-sex nature of their relationships and the similar issues that they may experience in their treatment within society, there are many issues where they might be best studied separately. Issues involving with health, parenthood, sexuality and perceived roles and status in society, for example, are often related more to gender than to any shared concept of a 'gay and lesbian community'. Many issues surrounding lesbians and lesbian culture will have more to do with women's issues, and some issues involving with gay men will have more to do with the gay male subculture and with masculinity. The author of this paper has limited experience in working with lesbian and bisexual individuals, and although it is likely that some of the concepts articulated in this paper could translate to working with lesbian and bisexual individuals, further research is indicated to examine the beneficence of utilizing a Self Psychological orientation in psychotherapy with lesbian women and bisexual individuals. This paper presents an overview of the literature including historical treatments of homosexuality, the history of Self Psychology, key principles in Self Psychology, research on Self Psychology, identity development models for gay men, and Self Psychological perspectives on identity development related to gay men. The literature review is followed by a section on treatment implications for psychologists seeking to treat gay men, including case vignettes based on work from my own practice. I have preserved the anonymity of clients by changing demographics, and rearranging and combining presenting issues and historical backgrounds among the case examples.

What We Don't Know Can Hurt Us: Clinical Inference Bias and Constructed Memories of Sexual Abuse.

The false memory/recovered memory debate, research regarding the malleability of memory, and the current lack of methods for validating recovered memories all support the view that heightened care is required of therapists dealing with clients whom they suspect have been sexually abused. The judgmental heuristics that underlie the major clinical inference biases of confirmatory bias, biased covariation, base rate fallacies, and schematic processing errors are all relevant to the processes leading to therapist-client constructions of memories of sexual abuse. Suggestions for minimizing each of these biases are offered. Personal motivations of the client and client suggestibility are factors that may contribute to the construction of memories of sexual abuse, and suggestions for minimizing the impact of these motivations are offered. In conclusion, general suggestions for minimizing the impact of clinical inference biases within the sexual abuse treatment context are summarized.

¿Qué se entiende por fútbol infantil? Críticas al modelo de enseñanza

Esta investigación está basada en el funcionamiento de las ligas de Fútbol Infantil en la ciudad de La Plata, con niños de edades comprendidas entre los 6 a 12 años, entendiendo al Fútbol Infantil como un deporte de ligas altamente competitivas sin tener en cuenta los intereses de los niños en función de la edad, o los contextos políticos y socioeconómicos en los cuales esos niños se desarrollan. El principal punto de observación fue conocer cómo se comportan los chicos en distintas situaciones que se plantean; realizarle críticas a ese Fútbol Infantil, tratando de explicar también lo que se entiende como fútbol dentro de la escuela. Para desarrollar este trabajo decidimos realizar observaciones en distintos clubes de las ligas de Fútbol Infantil de la ciudad de La Plata. Las mismas fueron realizadas durante el año 2013 para el Eje Fútbol de la materia Educación Física 2, correspondiente al segundo año del Profesorado Universitario en Educación Física de la Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Luego utilizamos esas observaciones como insumo para el Trabajo Final de Promoción de la materia Educación Física 2. Del análisis de las observaciones realizadas tomamos para su desarrollo los siguientes aspectos: 1) relación entre el sujeto, sus compañeros, entrenadores y público; 2) aspectos psicológicos de los niños (dentro de un partido de Fútbol Infantil); 3) relación de los niños con los elementos del juego; 4) relación con las reglas. Nuestra investigación es de carácter cualitativo ya que decidimos darle un enfoque en el que se puedan describir las características y la particularidad que tienen las ligas infantiles de fútbol en la ciudad de La Plata 1 . La recolección de datos se realizó en distintos clubes pertenecientes a las ligas 2 . Hicimos distintas observaciones y encuestas a los padres y dirigentes. Además, se tuvieron en cuenta para el análisis las referencias bibliográficas obligatorias de la cátedra, a sugerencia de los docentes. Este tema obtuvo nuestra atención ya que consideramos que el funcionamiento de las ligas no parece ser el adecuado. Por ende el propósito de nuestro trabajo es demostrar esta afirmación por medio de diferentes situaciones que surgieron en las observaciones. También se observó que los adultos tratan como profesionales a los niños, deseando que sus hijos ganen a cualquier costo. Teniendo en cuenta lo planteado anteriormente, entenderíamos a la escuela como uno de los sitios principales donde se pueden practicar varios deportes, entre ellos el fútbol, ya que es masiva la concurrencia de niños de diferentes condiciones socioeconómicas. Una de las críticas que le podríamos dar a esta institución es que no se enseña este deporte ya que se da por sobreentendido que puede ser aprendido en diferentes espacios (plazas, clubes, colonias, etc.) debido a su popularidad y atracción. En el caso de la escuela, la enseñanza está a cargo de profesionales que tienen en cuenta el contexto económico, social y cultural de cada niño; a diferencia de un mero entrenador no profesional que, a pesar de sus conocimientos sobre el deporte, no tiene en cuenta las cuestiones antes mencionadas, que a nuestro entender son de vital importancia. Estas son las cuestiones que se observan según nuestro estudio en las ligas y con las cuales disentimos. Para finalizar consideramos que otros ítems podrían ser desarrollados pero son objeto de investigaciones futuras o de otras disciplinas, como por ejemplo la relación entre padres y niños al tratar que los mismos lleguen a ser profesionales cuando en realidad todavía se encuentran en una etapa de desarrollo, o por qué existe el prejuicio de que lo popular no necesita estudio o preparación dentro de la escuela

¿Qué se entiende por fútbol infantil? Críticas al modelo de enseñanza

Esta investigación está basada en el funcionamiento de las ligas de Fútbol Infantil en la ciudad de La Plata, con niños de edades comprendidas entre los 6 a 12 años, entendiendo al Fútbol Infantil como un deporte de ligas altamente competitivas sin tener en cuenta los intereses de los niños en función de la edad, o los contextos políticos y socioeconómicos en los cuales esos niños se desarrollan. El principal punto de observación fue conocer cómo se comportan los chicos en distintas situaciones que se plantean; realizarle críticas a ese Fútbol Infantil, tratando de explicar también lo que se entiende como fútbol dentro de la escuela. Para desarrollar este trabajo decidimos realizar observaciones en distintos clubes de las ligas de Fútbol Infantil de la ciudad de La Plata. Las mismas fueron realizadas durante el año 2013 para el Eje Fútbol de la materia Educación Física 2, correspondiente al segundo año del Profesorado Universitario en Educación Física de la Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación de la Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Luego utilizamos esas observaciones como insumo para el Trabajo Final de Promoción de la materia Educación Física 2. Del análisis de las observaciones realizadas tomamos para su desarrollo los siguientes aspectos: 1) relación entre el sujeto, sus compañeros, entrenadores y público; 2) aspectos psicológicos de los niños (dentro de un partido de Fútbol Infantil); 3) relación de los niños con los elementos del juego; 4) relación con las reglas. Nuestra investigación es de carácter cualitativo ya que decidimos darle un enfoque en el que se puedan describir las características y la particularidad que tienen las ligas infantiles de fútbol en la ciudad de La Plata 1 . La recolección de datos se realizó en distintos clubes pertenecientes a las ligas 2 . Hicimos distintas observaciones y encuestas a los padres y dirigentes. Además, se tuvieron en cuenta para el análisis las referencias bibliográficas obligatorias de la cátedra, a sugerencia de los docentes. Este tema obtuvo nuestra atención ya que consideramos que el funcionamiento de las ligas no parece ser el adecuado. Por ende el propósito de nuestro trabajo es demostrar esta afirmación por medio de diferentes situaciones que surgieron en las observaciones. También se observó que los adultos tratan como profesionales a los niños, deseando que sus hijos ganen a cualquier costo. Teniendo en cuenta lo planteado anteriormente, entenderíamos a la escuela como uno de los sitios principales donde se pueden practicar varios deportes, entre ellos el fútbol, ya que es masiva la concurrencia de niños de diferentes condiciones socioeconómicas. Una de las críticas que le podríamos dar a esta institución es que no se enseña este deporte ya que se da por sobreentendido que puede ser aprendido en diferentes espacios (plazas, clubes, colonias, etc.) debido a su popularidad y atracción. En el caso de la escuela, la enseñanza está a cargo de profesionales que tienen en cuenta el contexto económico, social y cultural de cada niño; a diferencia de un mero entrenador no profesional que, a pesar de sus conocimientos sobre el deporte, no tiene en cuenta las cuestiones antes mencionadas, que a nuestro entender son de vital importancia. Estas son las cuestiones que se observan según nuestro estudio en las ligas y con las cuales disentimos. Para finalizar consideramos que otros ítems podrían ser desarrollados pero son objeto de investigaciones futuras o de otras disciplinas, como por ejemplo la relación entre padres y niños al tratar que los mismos lleguen a ser profesionales cuando en realidad todavía se encuentran en una etapa de desarrollo, o por qué existe el prejuicio de que lo popular no necesita estudio o preparación dentro de la escuela

Some conditions of child life in England /

Mode of access: Internet.

Alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use by women in the Illinois child welfare system : prevalence - treatment need - impact on children.

"This report represents a joint effort between the Illinois Department of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse (DASA) and Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). The study examined alcohol, tobaccco, and other drug abuse (ATODA) and need for treatment among adults involved with the child welfare system in Illinois. The purpose of the study was to provide data on the relationships between ATODA and child abuse and neglect"--P. iii.

Final report : Illinois Child Fatality Task Force /

Cover title.

Final report to the Illinois General Assembly : addressing the educational and related needs of children and youths who are parents, expectant parents, or survivors of domestic or sexual violence to ensure their ability to stay in school, stay safe, and successfully complete their education.

"June 2010."