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The pamphlet presents strategies that can be used to prepare children for a visit with an incarcerated parent. Strategies include having the parent write a letter to the child before the visit and providing the child with specific information about the visit. Additional tips are provided for the caregiver on the day of the visit and during the visit. Caregivers are cautioned to not force a child to express his feelings about the visit.
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The Parenting Wisely intervention is a self-administered, computer-based program that teaches parents and their 9- to 18-year-old children important skills for combating risk factors for substance use and abuse. It uses a risk-focused approach to reduce family conflict and child behavior problems, including stealing, vandalism, defiance of authority, bullying, and poor hygiene. The program is designed to: (1) teach parents effective child supervision and disciplinary skills and increase parental involvement; (2) teach parents and their children communication skills; (3) improve family problem…
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Journal Article This study examined the association between fathers' alcoholism and other risk factors such as parental depression, family conflict, infant temperament, and parent-infant attachment. The quality of parent-infant interactions was hypothesized to be a proximal mediator of the associations among alcoholism and other risk factors and attachment. The participants were 223 families (104 nonalcoholic families and 119 alcoholic families) with 12-month-old infants recruited through birth records. Infants in families with two parents with alcohol problem had significantly higher rates of insecure…
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In Colorado, it is estimated that 15,500 children currently have a parent in prison. A much larger number have experienced the incarceration of a parent at some point in their lives. Serving time in prison does not mean that you have lost your right to make decisions about the care of your children or that your relationships with your children have become any less important. This manual gives parents ways to keep their family together behind the wall as well as help them to understand the importance of dealing with custody issues. (Author abstract, modified).
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The conference summary report synthesizes key aspects of the Prisons to Home project including the state symposium discussions, conference plenary and break-out sessions, and the research papers developed for the conference. The report is not a complete record of the conference presentations, rather, it captures the common themes and salient tensions that emerged and their implications for children, families, and communities. Presented research and the subsequent discussions identified children, families, and former prisoners who have experienced incarceration as a group at high risk for…
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Research findings from a comprehensive search of Internet sites, bibliographies, government sources, and experts were reviewed in preparation for a three-year study about child welfare practices with noncustodial fathers. This report summarizes the literature about trends in family living arrangements, the effects of trends in non-custodial fatherhood on families within the child welfare system, the barriers to father participation in case planning, and innovative practices used to locate and engage fathers in the child welfare case process. Overall, the review found that child welfare…
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Journal Article Despite evidence that father involvement is important for child well-being, few child welfare agencies attempt to engage fathers in the lives of their children. In many cases, fathers are contacted only to provide financial support or to relinquish their parental rights. The George W. Bush administration is promoting national and state fatherhood and marriage initiatives to strengthen families and enhance child development. Although these efforts face some criticisms, the Child Welfare Institute recommends that child welfare workers identify effective fatherhood programs and actively involve…
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Journal Article Children born out of wedlock often suffer due to infrequent and limited interaction with the noncustodial parent. To address this issue, programs have been developed at the federal and state level to improve the access of noncustodial parents (primarily fathers) to their natural children. This article describes an access and visitation program that facilitates the creation of agreements between noncustodial and custodial parents. Findings from a six month demonstration in two counties in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia are reported. In total, more than 100 noncustodial parents participated in…
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Journal Article What are the key factors that influence the health and development of children? Researchers have tried to answer this question for many years by looking at the role of the child's mother, the school, and the neighborhood, among other factors. Until recently, the role of fathers in their children's lives has been mostly overlooked. If the contribution of fathers was studied, the focus was often on white, middle-class families. Few studies in the past have addressed the role of fathers in disadvantaged or at-risk families. When examining the antecedents and effects of child maltreatment, it is…
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Journal Article John O'Donnell conducted this study to increase knowledge about casework practice with biological fathers of children who are in the child welfare system. The study was based on data gathered from caseworkers in two private agencies' kinship foster care programs. As O'Donnell states, "Kinship foster care was considered a particularly opportune child welfare service in which to study practice for two reasons. First, the use of relatives as foster parents for maltreated children has increased significantly in the past decade. In some states, such as Illinois, kinship foster home placements…
