Child Welfare - Science topic

The study aimed at exploring, confirming, and validating the factor structure of sibling attachment inventory (SAI) within the Indian cultural context. The hypothesis posits that SAI will show reliable sibling attachment measures, evaluating its psychometric properties with 250 students enrolled in Class XI within govt and private schools, selected...

Although support for same-sex marriage has grown in Japan, discussions on its legalisation have been slow in the Japanese parliament. To contribute to a more meaningful discussion on this issue, this study uses corpus-driven and corpus-based methods to explore how issues surrounding same-sex marriage are represented in media discourse. It compares...

This article discusses contact and interaction between children, siblings and parents after a care order. We have collected and analyzed audio recordings of discussions between child welfare employees in Norway. In these meetings, the employees discuss and decide the extent and organization of visits and contact between parents and children under p...

Education levels in Burkina Faso, especially among women, remain low despite efforts made by government authorities and development partners to implement priority area 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This situation presents difficulties for women in terms of their being economically and socially empowered. At the same time, the infan...

Background and Aims Digital media have become a fundamental aspect of daily life for children and adolescents, influencing cognitive, emotional, and social development. The present work explores the dual nature of digital media use, identifying both positive and negative impacts on well-being and development. Methods A comprehensive review of exis...

Zusammenfassung Unser Artikel untersucht die langfristigen Auswirkungen der Schließungen von Kindertageseinrichtungen (Kitas) während der COVID-19 Pandemie sowie die kurzfristigen Auswirkungen von aktuellen Kitasch- ließungen auf unterschiedliche Dimensionen kindlicher Lebensqualität. Informationen zu Schließungen während der Pandemie stammen aus d...

Background: Adolescent mental health challenges are on the rise globally, and Norway is no exception. Wildlife activities (WAs) have been increasingly promoted as a potential measure to improve adolescent well-being. However, there is limited research on the extent of adolescent participation in these activities and its association with mental dist...

Saving the children is once again on the sociopolitical docket, and the legislature has an opportunity to enact legislation that might actually save children. A pertinent child welfare concern shared by psychologists, child advocates, and the Federal Government today is an increasing youth mental health crisis and overwhelming evidence that social...

Afghanistan, beset by prolonged conflict and adversities, has endured a significant socio-economic hardship that has overwhelmingly compelled families to make ends meet. To make that occur, they rely on their underage children to work in different capacities to be the family's breadwinners. This study navigates the intricacies between elementary sc...

In this paper, we identify major paradoxes that have emerged from randomized controlled trials and longitudinal studies of diverse groups of young children with identified disabilities and risk conditions. We concentrate on the first three years of life because these coincide with a period of rapid changes in brain structure and function as well as...

This baseline study aimed to assess the knowledge, information sources, and needs of adolescent boys and girls regarding puberty and menstruation. The study was conducted in selected schools before establishing school health clubs. The objective was to gather information that would inform the development of puberty education programs tailored to th...

Adolescence is a critical period for identity formation and psychological adjustment, where parenting styles play a fundamental role in shaping socialization and emotional development. The present study analyzed the relationships of parenting styles with the Big Five personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stab...

Well-being is crucial for understanding adolescent health and quality of life and is related to positive physical, emotional, and social indicators. This systematic review developed from PRISMA criteria sought to identify and evaluate instruments in Latin America to measure hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in adolescents. A total of 1737 articles...

The study focused on exploring teachers’ experiences in implementing the Zimbabwe School Health Policy in Early Childhood Development (ECD) classes. It sought to determine barriers and drivers for adopting good healthy habits. The Social Ecological model provided guidance for the research. Nine ECD teachers with direct experience implementing the p...

The study aimed to examine health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a group of unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) and to investigate associations between HRQoL and potential risk and protective factors. The sample includes 79 URMs aged 15 to 20 (83.3% male; 80% response rate) who responded to the KIDSCREEN-27 as a measure of HRQoL. URMs reported...

Longstanding turnover of residential childcare workers (RCW) poses an important challenge to safeguarding the wellbeing of maltreated children and youth internationally. RCW instability results in negative impacts on children and youth in residential placement and is indicative of the threats posed by residential care work to RCW themselves. A bett...

Current and foster youth regularly lack adequate mental health support before, during, and after leaving the foster care system. Research on mental health care with foster youth rarely relies on the direct experiences and recommendations of those with lived and professional experience in child welfare. The current community-based participatory acti...

The widespread use of the Internet among teenagers has raised concerns about cyberbullying and its impact on adolescent well-being. This study examined the association between cyberbullying victimization and suicide attempts among adolescents in high-income and low/middle-income countries. Data from six countries (Singapore, China, Iran, Indonesia,...

As a response to the substantial health problems and unmet needs among children in out-of-home care, a comprehensive health assessment was piloted in a Norwegian region, as the first of its kind in Norway. The current study is a follow-up of service use among children who received the assessment, designed to investigate the relationship between ser...

The study adopts the Social Ecology Model to measure left-behind children’s well-being and examines the microsystem context, which most significantly influences left-behind children’s well-being. For the study, a multistage random sampling technique was used to choose four hundred eighty left-behind children aged 10 to 16 in Sichuan province, China...

Artificial wombs represent a transformative frontier in medical technology, offering unprecedented possibilities in neonatal care and human reproduction. Known scientifically as ectogenesis, artificial womb technology aims to create a controlled, external environment that mimics the conditions of a natural womb, enabling fetal development outside a...

Contact arrangements in child protection can often create conflicts and distress. This is an area the Norwegian Child Welfare Services (CWSs) have paid greater attention to in recent years, to a large degree due to several recent decisions made by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the early 2020s and Norway’s Supreme Court in March 2020,...

Background: Creating safe environments for children is vital for human development. This study examined stakeholders' views on child safety and protection Ghana. Methods: We collected qualitative data from 16 communities in eight districts. We used an inductive approach to identify common themes. Findings: Pre-burial wake ceremonies, parental socio...

There is a lack of evidence-based programs to support the prevention of child behavior problems designed specifically for foster and kinship caregivers from historically minoritized groups. Drawing on existing best-practice recommendations for tailoring interventions to new cultural and social contexts, this study evaluates initial evidence of the...

Existing research has highlighted the prevalence, racial/ethnic disproportionality, and effects of Child Protective Services (CPS) contact among children and their parents. However, less is known about the distribution of processes through which children become exposed to CPS. In this paper, we examine how pathways into CPS contact change over the...

Street children in India are among the most vulnerable members of society, often living in harsh conditions with little to no support. They struggle daily with hunger, lack of shelter, and the absence of a protective environment. Many face abuse, exploitation, and exclusion from education and healthcare-basic rights that every child deserves. Despi...

Exam stress among high school students is a growing concern in the global educational landscape, with parental pressure emerging as a significant contributing factor. This review examines how varying parental expectations influence students’ academic stress, anxiety, and overall mental health during exam periods. While moderate parental support and...

Unplanned pregnancy among adolescents is a complex issue influenced by limited access to reproductive health education and adolescent-friendly contraceptive services. This phenomenon has multidimensional impacts, including increased risk of health complications, school dropout, and social stigma that hinders adolescent well-being. The role of midwi...

For youth involved in foster care, maltreatment poses enormous challenges to healthy development. The involvement of kin and fictive kin in children’s lives has been shown to be a protective factor following maltreatment and may therefore aid in youth’s strength development. The present study investigated the association between kin and fictive kin...

Introduction Psychological well-being refers to a mental state that allows an individual to achieve their full potential, be productive and innovative in their work, and manage everyday stressors. This study aims to assess university students’ psychological well-being by examining its associations with demographic factors such as gender, only child...

Assessing a parent's ability to provide a safe and nurturing environment for their children is a challenging task for child welfare workers. Given the complex and indefinite nature of parenting, decision-makers often rely on subjective criteria in their evaluations. In Study 1 (N = 49), we examined the variability among child welfare professionals...

For youth in the child welfare system, relationships can be a catalyst for change and resilience. Child welfare workers are responsible for caring for youth, ensuring their permanency, and—wherever possible—maintaining relationships between youth and their families. Unfortunately, not all youth feel supported during their time in out‐of‐home care (...

Aim: This study examines the relationship between bullying experiences, self-concept, and psychological distress among adolescents. Methodology: A correlational research design was employed, with 250 adolescents recruited from private schools and colleges using a homogeneous purposive sampling technique. The age range of the adolescents was 13 to 1...

Online gaming addiction is a growing concern among adolescents, affecting their academic performance, emotional well-being, and social interactions. This paper explores the experiences of two high-achieving students who developed gaming addiction, leading to academic decline, emotional distress, and withdrawal from family and friends. The case seri...

Resumen Este estudio explora cómo los padres mexicanos y centroamericanos narran y viven sus experiencias en un tribunal de tutela y bienestar de menores en California. Basado en observaciones etnográficas de las interacciones de estos padres en el tribunal y de entrevistas con ellos y con los profesionales del tribunal con quienes trabajaban, yo s...

Background/Objectives: Adequate sleep is critical for adolescents’ physical and mental health. However, academic demands and lifestyle habits lead to insufficient sleep among many adolescents. This study examined the relationship between sleep patterns and general characteristics, health behaviors, and mental health among South Korean adolescents....

Background: Menstrual cycle disorders are common problems among adolescent girls and are associated with reproductive health issues. Factors such as Body Mass Index (BMI) and stress are believed to influence menstrual irregularities. This study aims to examine the relationship between BMI, stress, and menstrual cycle irregularities as a preventive...

Objective: To construct a classified evaluation model of middle school students’ physical health based on biomechanical parameters and to achieve accurate intervention of adolescents’ physical health through biomechanically informed strategies. Methods: Cluster sampling was used to select 1261 male students’ physical health samples from eight junio...

Postpartum depression (PPD) poses significant risks to both maternal and child health, yet it remains underdiagnosed and undertreated, particularly in developing countries like Bangladesh. Factors such as hormonal changes, lack of communal support and socioeconomic stressors primarily contribute to its prevalence. Despite advancements in research,...

Rising public concern about comprehensive child and adolescent well-being has led to the development of school-based interventions with the potential for high-reaching and effective support. While some interventions have shown effectiveness, limited understanding exists regarding how social inequalities are considered and evidenced in such interven...

Objectives: Adolescents often experience mental health and identity issues, which are worsened by weak communication with parents. This study aims to develop the E-KOMET (Electronic Communication between Parents and Children) module to enhance parent-teen communication, supporting Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 on mental well-being. Theoretic...

Background/Objectives: In recent years, despite growing awareness of child poverty in Japan, research examining its impact on the daily lives of children and their families within schools and communities remains limited. This study aims to clarify the extent of child poverty and associated issues in A City, Tokyo, through qualitative research condu...

Abstract: This study investigated the trajectory of maternal depression changes from childbirth until the child reaches six years of age and identified key factors influencing these trajectories by incorporating child, parent, and family dynamics. A total of 1,030 cases were analyzed using data from the Korean Child Panel conducted by the Korea Ins...

Existing models of health literacy have included a limited perspective of children and adolescents. We conducted a meta-ethnography to develop a child- and adolescent-centered conceptualization of health literacy. We dually screened 3564 abstracts, 205 full texts, assessed the 40 included studies’ methodological limitations, and considered 25 data-...

The Child Abuse Information Management System is a research designed to create a platform where issues related to child abuse complaints will be domicile and attended to by human right activists and law enforcement agents in Nigeria as result of rising cases in child abuse. The computerized system will keep tracks of all the suspicious incidents of...

This study examined family factors (i.e., parenting style and relationship quality) at the beginning of the pandemic that predicted profiles of family communication about COVID-19 6 months later, as well as communication profile differences in child well-being. Parents (N = 1,025, 66% female, 33.8% male, 0.1% nonbinary) of children aged 5–17 years...

2025). Enhancing adolescent well-being in the digital age: exploring the interplay of parental and peer relationships with gender as a moderating variabel. Jurnal Konseling dan Pendidikan. 13(1), 80-88. https://doi. ABSTRACT The internet has become essential to people of all ages, particularly teenagers, to access information, education, and entert...

Understanding the factors that shape adolescent psychological well-being is crucial, yet the roles of parenting behaviors and birth order remain largely unexplored within the Ethiopian context. This study investigated these influences among 504 adolescents (60.7% female, 39.3% male; mean age = 17.08 years, SD = 1.17), selected through stratified si...

Policies and regulations have the potential to shape the dynamics of digital transformations, preventing negative health outcomes and creating healthier and safer digital environments. To gain insight into how countries are approaching safety in digital environments for children and adolescents, the Digital Transformations for Health‐Lab (DTH‐Lab)...

Background Intestinal failure (IF) is a broad term encompassing various conditions that hinder the body’s ability to absorb nutrients for growth and maintenance. These conditions can significantly affect child’s well-being, leading to physical limitations, psychological distress, and social isolation. We aimed to evaluate the available data on heal...

Purpose A significant portion of child welfare cases in Canada involve domestic violence (DV). This study illuminates survivors experiences with child welfare services (CWS) in safeguarding themselves and their children from DV. Methods Employing narrative analysis, this work draws on in-depth interviews with 16 diverse women who endured near leth...

Increasing the availability and readiness of basic emergency obstetric and newborn care (BEmONC) services is essential for improving maternal and neonatal health. However, little is known about any progress made in the availability and readiness of BEmONC services in Bangladesh. Using nationally representative data from the Bangladesh Health Facili...

In utero exposure to income shocks has a lasting effect on child well-being. In an agricultural economy, fluctuations in rainfall directly affect household income. In this paper, we investigate the short- and long-run impact of pre-pregnancy, prenatal, and early-life exposure to fluctuations in rainfall on height for a sample of 2290 children in ru...

Youth in foster care are more likely than their peers to require mental health supports to promote their well-being, and this level of need has likely been heightened by individual, familial, system-level, and societal factors arising during the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes have simultaneously produced a shortage in the supply of available comm...

Introduction: Child welfare clinics (CWCs) provide a platform for health practitioners to communicate with caregivers and provide growth monitoring, childhood immunization, health education, and other health promotion services. This study described factors influencing caregivers’ attendance at CWC in the Godokpe Community in Ho. Methodology: This i...

Background Menstrual pain can significantly impact adolescents’ well-being and functioning. Despite the prevalence of adolescent menstrual pain, information about adolescents’ experiences seeking treatment is limited. Objectives We examined retrospective reports of help-seeking in adolescence among menstruators to better understand perceptions and...

The issue of child custody (Hadhanah) following divorce in Indonesia remains a critical legal concern, particularly in ensuring children's welfare. Indonesian regulations, including Law No. 1 of 1974 and the Compilation of Islamic Law (KHI), govern custody based on the child’s age and impose an obligation on parents to provide financial support. Ho...

Background Adolescence is a critical developmental period marked by significant mental and physical health changes. This longitudinal study examines the relationship between online communication and health from age 15 to 17, focusing on mental health indicators (depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and body image) and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF)....

Adolescent well-being is a multifaceted construct embedded in family, school, and peer socialization contexts. By adopting a social-psychological perspective we examined associations between three sources of support (parents, teachers, and peers) and specific components of subjective well-being (cognitive, affective, global, and domain-specific), t...

The preceding birth interval is the time between a child's birth and the conception of the next child, is essential for maternal and child well-being. Short birth intervals can lead to maternal nutritional depletion, inadequate prenatal care, and increased risks of preterm birth and low birth weight, all of which can negatively impact child surviva...

Due to harmful narratives within child welfare and child protection services and systems, mothers in contact with these services who aim to meet the symbolic representation of the ‘ideal mother’ frequently find themselves being portrayed as the ‘bad mother’, even when their referral is ‘non-traditional’ (i.e., not specifically due to their perceive...

Study Design A systematic literature review and consensus using Delphi method. Objective This review aims to provide an overview on Chiari malformation in pediatric patients, highlighting the specific clinical manifestations and surgical treatment options. Summary of Background Chiari malformation in children presents a real difficulty to the gen...

Background: Ethiopia faces significant mental health challenges; mental disorders are the leading non-communicable condition, and many adults experience symptoms by age 14–15. We examined structural, institutional, and agentic factors affecting child and adolescent mental well-being in Ethiopia. The aims were to describe the political, economic, so...

Objective This study aims to map and compare existing methodologies for creating happiness and well-being indices and examine their application to paediatric surgical interventions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Design A scoping review methodology was used based on the guidelines published by the Joanna Briggs Institute and the Prefe...

Background Unaccompanied young refugees (UYRs) exhibit elevated levels of mental distress, including posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), depression and anxiety. Despite the considerable psychological burden, UYRs frequently lack access to mental health care (MHC). The factors that contribute to higher rates of treatment utilization among UYR rema...

This study explores what unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) emphasise as important to (re)create a sense of home in foster care over time. Through a longitudinal design consisting of semi-structured, photo-elicitation interviews and by drawing on the concept of homing, we clustered young people’s experiences into three intertwined aspects that con...

Background Ethiopia faces significant mental health challenges; mental disorders are the leading non-communicable condition, and many adults experience symptoms by age 14–15. We examined structural, institutional, and agentic factors affecting child and adolescent mental well-being in Ethiopia. The aims were to describe the political, economic, soc...

Background: Ethiopia faces significant mental health challenges; mental disorders are the leading non-communicable condition, and many adults experience symptoms by age 14–15. We examined structural, institutional, and agentic factors affecting child and adolescent mental well-being in Ethiopia. The aims were to describe the political, economic...

The study investigated the prevalence and determinants of family planning services uptake among women of reproductive age (15 to 49 years) in the Yendi municipality in the northern region of Ghana. A health facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 396 reproductive-aged women, sampled from 6 randomly selected health facilities in the...

School life is an important determinant of adolescents’ subjective well-being. While there is now an extensive literature on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents’ well-being, adolescents’ school experience during the pandemic and how it relates to different dimensions of their subjective well-being has received little attention. This...

Despite evidence that parental communication about COVID-19 can have short-term benefits such as adolescents’ increased health behaviors, less is known about the potential long-term associations between such communication and adolescent adjustment, as well as the family characteristics that facilitate such communication. Moreover, it is important t...

Background Children with severe neurological impairment (SNI) have central nervous system conditions that result in medical complexity and lifelong caregiver assistance. When children with SNI are admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), their parents/families may experience elevated stress due to poor communication with clinicians. M...

There is substantial literature on the effects of abuse on adolescents' well-being but limited research on parental emotional abuse in Pakistan. This study aims to explore the impact of parental emotional abuse on psychological well-being, with cognitive reappraisal as moderator and expressive suppression as mediator, among adolescents in Pakistan....

Background Social capital plays a key role in health outcomes, including oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). With increased digital interactions, online social capital has emerged as a potential determinant of adolescent well-being. This study aimed to explore the relationship between online social capital and OHRQoL among adolescents. Me...

Since 2008, the European Social Network has been at the forefront of efforts to enhance children’s well-being across Europe, working closely with public authorities at both national and European levels. Over the years, we have: Conducted extensive research and published influential reports on child welfare. Hosted key discussions and seminars on b...

In the U.S., the federal government and dozens of cities have invested in home visiting programs intended to be universally available at scale to support caregivers of young children. Evaluations find that participation in these programs reduces maternal mortality, improves maternal mental health, and supports children’s healthy development. Yet, m...

This article explores how emotional abuse (EA) is described and considered in children’s case files in Norwegian child welfare services. The findings show that EA is vaguely and limitedly elaborated on unless the child clearly describe EA. The terminology related to EA is shifting and often translated into the term 'violence', and general rather th...

This study investigates the treatment and role of children in research practices in Indonesia. Using a content analysis of six research-based articles, this study aims to understand the current state of involving children in research in Indonesia. The articles were selected based on three criteria: the focus of child research, the disciplines of re...

This research investigates the relationship between birth order, personality traits, and psychological well-being in adolescents. To categorize birth order, participants are grouped as first-born, middle-born and last-born enabling comparisons of personality characteristics and emotional intelligence. Personality traits are measured using various p...

Son preference remains prevalent in various communities, influencing intra-household resource allocation and potentially affecting child health outcomes. This study examines the impact of maternal son preference on stunting and wasting among children in Indonesia, utilizing data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS) waves 4 and 5. Employing...

Children and adolescents in out‐of‐home care (OHC) represent a diverse population influenced by various family and placement characteristics, which significantly impact their development and long‐term outcomes. However, there is a dearth of research exploring OHC placement characteristics, essential for understanding and supporting this population...

Child welfare is a critical issue worldwide. Countries apply various protective and preventive measures in this area. In this sense, Türkiye started implementing the Consultancy Measure in 2005. The Consultancy Measure ensures that children are supported together with their families by strengthening them. No review study has been found regarding th...

Introduction: Disciplinary practices significantly impact adolescent behavior and mental health. This study aimed to identify discipline profiles reported by Mexican adolescents, examine sociodemographic factors associated with these profiles, and analyze their relationship with mental health outcomes, including depressive symptoms, suicide attempt...

Orphanages as Child Welfare Institutions have a very important role in improving children's education, especially life skills as provisions for facing competition in the world of work. The lack of life skills training received by Muhammadiyah Orphanage children due to limited funds is one of the reasons for providing refrigerator service skills tra...

Child welfare‐involved (CWI) youth have high rates of unaddressed mental health needs, and system‐level barriers (e.g., inadequate coordination between child welfare agencies and other systems designed to serve CWI youth) are one major reason why disparities in mental health services' access continue to persist for CWI youth. This Research Note aim...

Poverty, child protection and rights – a legal analysis According to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, children have the right to a standard of living adequate for their development. The responsibility to realize this lies primarily with parents, but states have a duty to support parents and an ultimate responsibility to protect childre...

KEY POINTS • Custody relinquishment occurs when children enter foster care primarily to receive behavioral health or disability services, not because of maltreatment. While there is no way to know for certain which foster care entries in the study data involve custody relinquishment, the study developed approaches to identify situations that resemb...

Background The present study aimed to investigate associations between leisure activities and well-being, behavioral difficulties, and parental leisure time engagement. Methods A total of 959 adolescents aged 10 to 18 years were included in the present study. We assessed their leisure activities (e.g., family time, meeting friends, screen time, sp...

Abstract This study examines the historical evolution and future potential of School of Social Work in Sri Lanka, focusing on the Sri Lanka School of Social Work and its transformation into the National Institute of Social Development (NISD). The research traces the institution’s development from its inception as a voluntary organization in 1952 to...

Purpose While federal guidelines prioritize family reunification as a goal for youth in foster care, there are exceptions where other permanency outcomes are the case goal. Case goals guide service planning and establish trajectories towards permanency outcomes. However, little is known about factors associated with whether, and under what circumst...

David A. Robertson’s (Norway House Cree) children’s novel The Barren Grounds (2020) intervenes in Canada’s historical and ongoing child welfare systems’ impacts on Indigenous children and youth. This article argues that Indigenous children’s literature could significantly contribute to the ongoing efforts towards reconciliation in Canada. Robertson...

p style="text-align: justify;">The review is focused on results of recent investigations concerned with the problem of psychological well-being and elucidation of main factors of psychological well-being formation in adolescents. Different approaches to the study of the concept of psychological well-being, both domestic and foreign are listed. A ma...

El artículo explora la influencia de las expresiones artísticas en el desarrollo integral de niños y adolescentes, destacando su papel en el crecimiento emocional, social y cognitivo. El objetivo principal es analizar cómo el arte, en sus diversas manifestaciones, fomenta habilidades emocionales y competencias sociales en esta población. La metodol...

This study examines the impact of structured cultural educational activities on various dimensions of student well-being in primary education. Using a randomized controlled trial design, 120 third- and fourth-grade students from Arad County, Romania, were assigned to either an experimental group, which participated in cultural educational activitie...