Marianna L. Colvin’s research while affiliated with Florida Atlantic University and other places

The mission of the U.S. child welfare system is to protect children from maltreatment and promote safety, permanency, and well-being through a range of services and interventions. However, the processes by which current child protection practices are implemented may impinge on the rights of families and children. We argue that approaches or solutions should be centered on fostering equitable, just outcomes for families and children affected by the child welfare system. Toward that goal, we provide an initial conceptualization of justice-centered child welfare practice that integrates a human, constitutional, and socio-legal rights approach for child welfare systems of the future.

Guardians ad Litem (GALs) are volunteer child advocates in the state of Florida and are largely considered as playing a critical role in the child welfare system. However, there has been limited research on their role and relationship with youth in care. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine GALs’ perspectives on their relationships with youth in the foster care system. This cross-sectional study included 555 GALs from the state of Florida in which volunteers were specifically asked to respond to an internet survey with a number of open-ended questions about their relationships with youth and how relationships developed with youth in foster care. Emergent themes related to the process of relationship building, as well as factors that influence their relationships with youth and strategies for building relationships were identified. Implications and recommendations for future research with child advocates and youth in foster care, training and support of advocates, and child welfare practice and policy are discussed.

Unfortunately, the retention rate of foster parents is low, and multiple challenges exist for agencies in maintaining long-term foster parents. Research examining perceptions of recruiting and licensing foster parents may provide some insight into supporting future foster parent recruitment and training for child welfare professionals. This study utilized administrative data from the state of Florida to examine and compare the perspectives of foster parents and child welfare workers regarding the recruitment and licensing of foster homes. This cross-sectional administrative survey included a total of 1,249 foster parents and child welfare workers in the state of Florida. Descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to examine the perspectives of foster parents and child welfare workers across multiple questions related to the need for foster homes and recruitment and licensing processes. Results indicate that caseworkers and foster parents in this sample generally held different perspectives across most of the questions related to the need for foster homes, recruitment and licensing practices. Implications for recruiting and licensing foster homes and the need for consistent and accurate messaging to both foster parents and child welfare workers are discussed. More research is needed to explore recruitment and licensing processes, particularly research-supported strategies that have not been well-tested among foster care samples.

The purpose of this paper is to (1) examine global human rights disparities that were acutely revealed or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and (2) explore ways that the identification of disparities and lessons learned during the pandemic offer opportunities for social work education. The article begins with an overview of global human rights in the categories of gender, children, race/ethnicity, environment, and socioeconomic status. The use of an intersectionality framework is then suggested as one lens for examining lessons learned during the pandemic to improve our global preparation and response. We do not want to wait for the next crisis to find populations with the same human rights vulnerability.

Social workers interact in a multitude of settings and likely encounter individuals with body image issues rendering it important to understand the way social workers approach and intervene around body image. This article presents a scoping review to systematically identify and summarize recent literature around body image in the social work literature. Objectives of the current review include a description of the extent, study characteristics, and topical areas of focus among articles meeting inclusion criteria with the intent to identify knowledge gaps and inform directions for future research. A total of 23 articles met inclusion criteria for review. Findings reveal a concentration of conceptual articles compared with empirical studies and a predominance of a psychodynamic lens. Limitations in sample populations and study designs supporting the evidence base for body image in the social work literature were also evident. Considerations for further research and implications for practice and education are discussed.

Youth involved in the child welfare system and specifically those in foster care disproportionately experience concerns related to their psychosocial needs compared to youth who are not in care; consequently, assessment of those needs and referral to appropriate services is critical. The purpose of this study was to examine whether needs (i.e. behaviors) of youth involved in the child welfare and foster care systems and organizational culture and climate are associated with caseworkers’ recommendations for services, considering youth and caregiver report, as well as other individual and family factors. The sample came from Wave 2 of the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being II and weighted data were used for the analyses (n = 462). Logistic regression was used to analyze factors, such as youth behavior and organizational culture and climate, that predict a referral for various youth services for youth who experienced maltreatment and remained in home or were placed in foster care. Results indicate that youth behavior was most likely to predict referral services, as well as other youth characteristics, but organizational culture and climate of agencies did not influence referral recommendations. These findings highlight the need for more research examining the decision-making and assessment practices of child welfare caseworkers and use of appropriate assessments for youth involved in the child welfare system.

The aim of this study was to understand perceptions among social work students regarding international/global practice, policy in the social work curriculum and international field internship experiences in their degree programmes. A survey of Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work students was conducted in two social work programmes in the Southeastern United States ( n = 218). The analysis showed that the students expressed consistent recognition that global content matters, yet there was an observed discrepancy between recognition of the relevance of global content and its expected impact on students’ own future direct practice. They also perceived limited opportunities to engage in international learning experiences during their academic programmes. Results are discussed with implications for further research, social work education and curriculum development.