Living on the Edge: Innovative Research on Leaving Care and Transitions to Adulthood

Front Cover
Half-title
Series information
Title page
Copyright information
Table of contents
List of figures and tables
Notes on contributors
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction: Moving towards the edge
	Introduction
	Balancing on the edge to ensure relevant knowledge for the future
	The global network behind this publication
	From the middle towards the edges: overview of the book
		Part I: Groups of care- leavers living on the edge
		Part II: Methods of care- leaving research
		Part III: Theory and conceptualisation of leaving care
	From the edges into the future
	Notes
PART I Groups of care-leavers living on the edge
	1 Unaccompanied migrant youth leaving care in Spain: how their journeys differ from those of other care-leavers
		Introduction
			Study’s research questions
		Method
			Participants
			Instruments
				Semi-structured interview
			Procedure
			Data analysis
		Results
			Psychosocial adaptation
			Profiles and pathways into adulthood of care-leavers in aftercare services
		Discussion
			Self-esteem and wellbeing
			Independent living skills
			Unaccompanied migrant young people’s backgrounds and profiles
			Predicting psychosocial adaptation
		Limitations
		Conclusion
		Note
		References
	2 ‘The question is: will the street leave us?’ Care-leavers with a street-connected past
		Introduction
		Research context: street-connected children and youth in Bolivia
		Methodology
			Participants
			Data collection and analysis
			Ethical issues
		Findings
			Factor 2: There is no aftercare support
			Factor 3: The lack of family or social support
			Factor 4: Their social network is still based on their street-connected peers
			Factor 5: Their street marks hinder their social reintegration
		Discussion and conclusion
		References
	3 Care-leavers’ reflections on resilience processes acquired while living on the street prior to coming into residential care in South Africa
		Introduction
		Context and review of literature
		Theoretical lens
		Methodology
		Findings
			Building a safe, collaborative family
			Networking people for resources
			Reflective learning and life lessons
		Discussion
		Practice implications
		Limitations
		Conclusion
		References
	4 LGBTQIA+ foster-care-leavers: creating equitable and affirming systems of care
		LGBTQIA+ youth in foster care
		Shifting from risk to resilience
		Theoretical frameworks and perspectives
			Minority stress theory
			Life course theory
			Resilience theory
			Anti-oppressive practice perspective
		Structural approaches to protecting and supporting LGBTQIA+ youth
			Research and evaluation
			Policies and guidelines
			Sexual orientation, gender identity and expression data collection
			Mandated training
			Universally safe, inclusive and affirming resources and environments
		Critical approaches for working with LGBTQIA+ care leavers
			Strengths and empowerment-based practices
			Building and enhancing supportive networks
			Trauma-informed care
			Positive youth development
		Conclusion
		References
PART II Methods of care-leaving research
	5 Institutional ethnography: linking the individual and the institutional in care-leaving research
		Introduction
		About institutional ethnography
			Introduction to the studies
				The Norwegian context
				The two studies
		Study 1: Analysing social workers’ discretionary judgement about aftercare
			The experience
			Identifying institutional processes
			Investigating institutional processes
		Study 2: Analysing the experience of disabled care-leavers
			The experience
			Identifying institutional processes
			Investigating institutional processes
				The mandate: policy on aftercare support
				Models of disability
		How institutional ethnography benefits the two studies
		References
	6 Methodological issues when interviewing disabled care-leavers: lessons learned from South Africa, Norway and Northern Ireland
		Introduction
		Positioning disability
		Methodological approach: bringing three studies together
		The impact of country context
		Categorisation of disabled care-leavers and the impact on recruitment
		Designing an inclusive research approach
		Responding to fieldwork challenges
		Conclusion
		Note
		References
	7 Trauma-informed research with young people transitioning from care: balancing methodological rigour with participatory and empowering practice
		Introduction
		Recruitment and sampling difficulties in research with care-leavers
		Participatory and empowering, trauma-informed methodologies
		The adaptive participation model
			Resource mapping
			Time
			Staff
			Funding
			Participants
			Modes of inquiry: ‘introspective’ or ‘extrospective’ questioning
			Audience and influence
		Discussion and conclusion
		References
	8 Care foundations: making care central in research with care-experienced people
		Considering a ‘caring’ view in the research process
		Considering care during research design
		Reflections on the advantages and challenges of insider researcher: considerations for others
		How caring approaches can address and ensure meaningful participant involvement
		Conclusion
		Note
		References
PART III Theory and conceptualisation of leaving care
	9 Stability in residential out-of-home care in Australia: how can we understand it?
		Introduction
		Previous operationalisation of stability in out-of-home care
		Connections between stability/instability and outcomes
		Methodology
		Sampling and data collection
		Data analysis
			Who are the participants?
		Novel findings
			Staff consistency
			Co-resident stability
			Casual staff
			Safety
			Ongoing staff contact
			Training and supervision
		Discussion and practice implications
		Limitations of the research
		Conclusion
		References
	10 Living an unstable life: exploring facets of instability in the lives of care-leavers in Denmark
		Introduction
		Instability as a circumstance in life
		Facets of instability
			Adapting to an unstable life
			Instability as an uncontrollable circumstance in life
			Seeking to stabilise an unstable life
		Conclusion
		References
	11 Understanding the risk of suicide among care-leavers: the potential contribution of theories
		Introduction
		Background: care-leavers’ risk of adverse experiences in early adulthood
		Theories of suicide and their links to care-leavers
		Joiner’s Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide
		Approach
		Examples from empirical leaving-care studies and the link to the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide
			Thwarted belongingness
			Perceived burdensomeness
			Acquired capability
		Socio-ecological perspective
		Conclusion
		References
	12 Getting by and getting ahead in Australia: a conceptual approach to examining the individual impact of informal social capital on care-leaver transitions
		Introduction
		Study foundation and conceptual framework
			Youth to adulthood transition
			A typology of care-leaver resilience
			Concepts of social capital and social support
			Developmental and environmental resources
			Integration of concepts to achieve the study’s aim
		Methodology
		Introductory description of each case
			Trudy and Peter
			John and Amy
			Leroy and Helen
		Findings: the role of informal social capital
			Accessing developmental and environmental resources
			Social relationships
			Emotional and behavioural development, social relationships and health
			Family-like relationships and identity
			Specific self-care and independent living skills, income and identity
			Housing, family relationships, identity
			Emotional and behavioural development and social presentation
			Themes
			Theme 1: Informal social capital and social support are valuable to all care-leavers
			Theme 2: Informal adult support is crucial for care-leavers
		Getting by and getting ahead
		Conclusion
		References
Conclusion: Going over the edge
	Introduction
	Groups of care-leavers
	Research methods
	Theories of leaving care
		Blind spots as ‘edgy’ starting points: critical reflections on well-established frameworks and concepts
		‘On the edge’ of concepts: reconceptualisation of theoretical framework by proposing new aspects
		‘Over the edge’: extension of theoretical understanding of care-leavers’ experiences to strengthen the value and impact of research
	Reaching into the future
	Conclusion
Index