University of Groningen
Towards a safe home
Vischer, Anne-Fleur Walwilaja Klaaske
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Publication date:
2019
Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database
Citation for published version (APA):
Vischer, A-F. W. K. (2019). Towards a safe home: A study on the assessment of parenting among families
in complex problem situations with infants and toddlers to achieve family preservation and permanency.
Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.
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Stellingen
Propositions accompanying this dissertation
Towards a safe home
A study on the assessment of parenting among families in complex problem situations with infants and toddlers
to achieve family preservation and permanency.
1. Evidence on the inadequacy of current parenting-assessment practices in the context of permanency planning and the potential harm suffered by children and parents as a result, stress the need for improvements in the field (this dissertation).
2. In order to support parents towards ‘good enough’ parenting, more than good enough support needs to be provided (this dissertation).
3. It needs to be recognized that conducting parenting evaluations is a highly specialized task. A sufficient parenting-assessment practice requires at least the use and development of expertise on multiple levels and provision of an intervention that is intensive, flexible, and organized as teamwork (this dissertation).
4. A sense of connection between parents aiming for family preservation and professionals seems key in achieving positive changes in parenting. Humanity, respectfulness, availability, responsiveness, and good communication skills are characteristics of professionals that promote a sense of connection, and are therefore essential (this dissertation). 5. The program provided by the Expertise Center (part of GGZ Drenthe) may have great potential to fulfil a very complex task in child protection thereby supporting a vulnerable target population in pursuing family preservation, preventing unnecessary caregiver changes, and providing permanency for infants and toddlers.
6. The AMBIANCE is a very valuable instrument for clinical assessment of parenting, for both treatment and decision-making purposes, and is highly informative in evaluation research on interventions targeting the quality of the ability to parent.
7. Implementation of decision-making theory in practice is likely to promote the quality of clinical decision-making (explicit, careful, transparent, timely), which is expected to improve rates of permanency after reunification (this dissertation).
8. If the premise that consent of parents with the out-of-home placement of a child is indeed positively related to placement stability, it is of paramount importance that this is acknowledged within the child protection field, and that relevant support for parents (e.g., in coming to an understanding and accepting of the situation, including trauma counseling if needed) is provided in order to promote permanency for the child (this dissertation).
9. One third of the studied trajectories at the Expertise Center were considered to be ‘successful’, one third to be ‘moderate successful’, and one third to be ‘unsuccessful’ when applying our assessment method (this dissertation). 10. Completing a dissertation is usually considered as a finish, but it is rather a start. The words of this dissertation need
to lead to actions in order to make an actual difference in the parenting-assessment practice (this dissertation). 11. Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making PhD plans (adapted from John Lennon).
