Professor Dorota Iwaniec - Child Welfare Policy and Practice: Issues and Lessons Emerging from Current Research

For centuries, societies have relied upon residential care settings to provide homes for children, and for much of that period a debate has raged over whether such settings are appropriate places for children to be raised. In recent years this debate has taken on an international dimension as human rights policies have called into question the legitimacy of residential care of children. Unfortunately, the ideological fervor that usually accompanies such discussions prevents a more nuanced understanding of the reasons that countries continue to make use of residential care.

Residential Care of Children: Comparative Perspectives fills major gaps in knowledge about residential care and is intended to inform debates within and between nations about the appropriate use of such institutions. Eleven country-specific chapters, written by child welfare experts from around the world, provide an in-depth understanding of the historical development of residential care, the current state of affairs, and predictions for the future. Chapters describe how residential care is defined in each country, how it has evolved over time, factors that have contributed to the observed pattern of development of residential care, and potential concerns for the future. An integrative chapter presents a critical cross-national perspective, identifying common themes and analyzing underlying factors. Seeking to explain rather than cast judgment, Residential Care of Children: Comparative Perspectives will be fruitful reading for policymakers, program administrators, advocates, practitioners, and scholars interested in creating better services for vulnerable children and youth.

Features

features chapters by distinguished contributors from a wide range of countries, from Ireland to Romania to Botswana
brings insights about other countries' approaches to the tricky matter of residential care, helping US social workers and policymakers see how things are done elsewhere
provides a wealth of readable historical information along with solid facts about each country's child welfare system
addresses current international debate about the use of residential care and shows the debate to be too simplistic

"This is an excellent collection of country case studies of residential care of children, largely in the advanced industrialized countries, their commonalities, and disparities. It provides a splendid picture of what has been the dominant form of child welfare and out-of-home care in these countries and a beginning discussion of the factors that shaped these developments."--Sheila B. Kamerman, DSW Compton Foundation Centennial Professor of Social Work and Co-Director, Institute for Child and Family Policy at Columbia University and Co-Director of the Cross-National Studies Research Program

"Residential Care of Children provides a very unique contribution to the international literature about out-of-home care for children. Even though residential care for children has been criticized by practitioners, scientists, and policy makers, it remains to be a major service provision for children who are at risk throughout the world. Certainly this volume will stimulate continued scholarship that will provide more answers to the ongoing questions about providing safe and effective care to some of the world's most vulnerable children."--Ronald W. Thompson, Ph.D., Director, Boys Town National Research Institute for Child and Family Studies

"Mark Courtney, Dorota Iwaniec, and their collaborators have compiled a significant contribution to the history, science and politics of residential care viewed in cross-national perspective. This impressive collection sheds light on a much discussed, but rarely rigorously studied sector of child, youth, and family services: residential care and treatment for vulnerable children. Those who plan, implement, and evaluate out-of-home care services will find much of practical value here, as well as important contextual and programmatic information on the place and purpose of residential services in varied national settings. Taken together, one hopes these insights will inform a new generation of applied research on this neglected arena of child welfare."--James K. Whittaker, Ph.D., Charles O. Cressey Endowed Professor Emeritus, University of Washington School

Features

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