Canadian Journal of Family and Youth (CJFY)
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Correlates of Help-Seeking Behaviour in Adolescents Experiencing a Recent Negative Life Event
No full textThis study examines the psychological factors associated with formal and informal help-seeking behaviour after a recent negative life event in adolescents 14-17 years old. A sample of 126 adolescents attending secondary schools completed the Life Events Questionnaire (Newcomb), the Beck Depression Inventory, the Temperament and Character Inventory (Cloninger) and the Impulsivity Scale (Barratt). The results indicate that informal help-seeking is more frequent than formal. The factors associated with seeking help from the informal network (friends, parents, siblings, relatives) after the life event were the female gender, living in an intact nuclear family, and reward dependence. Formal help seeking is associated with having sought help from the mother and cognitive impulsivity. Recommendations for increasing adolescents’ help-seeking behaviour are suggested
Daughters of Single Fathers: Working as a Team
No full textIn this paper, we consider the perspectives of daughters of single fathers as they reflect on their experiences and relationships with their fathers. The paper provides an opportunity to consider an under-represented group in the literature on single parent families. Three themes emerge from the qualitative research design: parental expectations and involvement, household tasks, and family relationships. We consider these themes in light of the work done by Bronte-Tinkew et al (2010) and Risman (1986) regarding the involvement and support of single fathers in the lives of their children. We conclude by providing suggestions for teachers and other professionals regarding single fathers and their daughters
Challenges of the Visible Minority Families: Cultural Sensitivity to the Rescue
No full textThis paper not only attempts to outline in one location the many barriers faced by visible minority families in their attempt to integrate into Canadian Society, but it also seeks to offer the development of a new approach to the solution of the problem of Cultural Sensitivity. On the premise that education is transformational, programs like Global education, Multicultural Education, Intercultural Education, Antiracist Education, and Diversity Education have been instituted in Canadian schools. Unfortunately these programs have had serious problems and have been severely criticized in their implementation even by their supporters. They all have different focuses and agendas that do not strike at the core of the problems nascent to majority/minority dynamics in Canada. The ultimate goal of these programs, presumed to be able to attain cross-cultural competence, has left many wondering how effective these programs have been. McChesney (1996) wondered if there was hope for cultural studies. The problems of the visible minority immigrant families have seemed persistent. The frustrations of the younger generation of visible minority families continue to be bewildering. This writer feels it is time to change course
Intervention of Hope: Sustaining Caregivers of Children with FASD through Therapeutic Psychoeducational Camps
No full textParents, whether adoptive, foster or biological, raising alcohol-affected children contend with the exhaustion of the care taking role. This article is a summary of the qualitative phase of a mixed-method study investigated the effect that attendance at a therapeutic caregiver-involved camp, Whitecrow Village Camp, had on caregivers of children with FASD. In the qualitative phase, eighteen caregivers completed semi-structured interviews. Eight major content categories were identified in the data and five metathemes emerged under the overarching metatheme of a Life-Changing Experience: Providing Hope. Analysis of the data suggests that attendance at Whitecrow Village Camp had a positive influence on the coping behaviour of caregivers of children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)
No Safe Place to Go - LGBTQ Youth Homelessness in Canada: Reviewing the Literature
No full textLesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth are overrepresented in the homeless youth population in North America. This review brings together the literature on the topic of LGBTQ youth homelessness and provides a comprehensive overview of the unique needs of this population, as well as gaps and barriers to support. The review culminates in recommendations for support services and further research on this topic. This review should be particularly useful for youth shelter and service providers, and policy makers to respond to the needs of this population and to enhance knowledge in this area more broadly
The “Parentification” Phenomenon as Applied to Adolescents Living Through Parental Military Deployments
No full textMany children and adolescents care for their family members in some form during their childhoods, but some take on adult roles and responsibilities beyond what is considered to be developmentally appropriate – a situation known in academic and clinical literature as parentification. Much of the literature on parentification comes from the disciplines of psychology and social work, and focuses on what are perceived to be “normal” or “abnormal” child development trajectories. The psychological literature mostly stresses the negative developmental processes that result from youth being prematurely and/or inappropriately exposed to adult roles and responsibilities. In this paper, we consider the impact of parental deployments on the lives of adolescents growing up in military families on/near a large army base in Canada. We use data from 61 semi-structured interviews conducted in 2009/10—part of a larger mixed methods research project—to assess the adolescents’ experiences of parental deployments in light of the concept of parentification. We depart from previous literature by taking a sociological approach, which shows that while adolescents take on more adult roles during parental deployments, the impact of this situation upon them varies according to their gender, their relationship with their undeployed parent, and their perception of the support they receive from their school. For the most part, adolescents whose parents are deployed experience significant quality of life losses. However, this is not true for every adolescent, and the impact of each loss depends upon the social context in which it occurs
Family Resource Programs: Values, Evidence and Challenge
No full textFamily resource programs are community-based initiatives that offer multidisciplinary services and resources to families with the aim of helping them to maximize their potential. Programs serve individuals who demonstrate a range of needs, and employ personnel who work from a strengths-based, empowerment-promoting perspective. It is believed that adopting such a philosophy will promote the healthy development of the entire family system. The author discusses the historical basis and theoretical underpinnings of current family resource models, and provides a review of current research. Program elements identified as most effective are highlighted, and parents’ preferences and frustrations are discussed. In doing so, critical practical and theoretical challenges are identified, and suggestions regarding essential areas for future inquiry are made
A Contemporary Study with Early School Leavers: Pathways and Social Processes of Leaving High School
No full textThis article provides an account and discussion of research processes used in a contemporary study of early school leaving in Ontario, Canada. The Ontario Early School Leavers Study was conducted in conversation with 193 young people who left school prior to graduating, their educators and parents. The study was informed by a review of international literatures which point to the need for innovative social approaches and youth-attuned methodologies in the study of early school leaving. We present our research processes as informed by this literature and then present new analyses that illustrate critical social processes in early school leaving. The findings present unique data to show three pathways to early leaving and a constellation of risk and protective situations encountered by these young people along the way. Risk situations included the daily social workings of poverty, low socioeconomic status, the need to take on early adult roles, “place”, academic and social disengagement, negative relations with families and/or school personnel, and inflexible or unsupportive school structures. Protective situations were encountered in supportive families; from parents and teachers; in schools that were caring, flexible, and proactive; and in processes of self determination. The perspectives of the young people are discussed in relation to the international literature and the perspectives of 71 parents and educators who participated in the study. Impacts on practices in secondary schools suggest that early school leaving be recognized and treated as a heterogeneous, complex social process occurring at and across the nexus of families, schools, youth cultures and communities
South Asian Canadian Young Men and Women’s Interest Development in Science: Perception of Contextual Influences
No full textThe purpose of this descriptive case study was to examine the contextual and cultural influences on interest development in science for 24 Canadian South Asian young adults. Within this study, aspects pertaining to socialization with respect to self-efficacy and outcome expectations of engaging in the sciences, are consistent with existing formulations on South Asian families. Additionally, the study provides information as to the relationship between South Asian young adults’ cultural identification to contend with decision-making and perceptions of efficacy (individual and collective efficacy). Finally, this study broadens our understanding of how South Asians develop an interest in the sciences and the support of parents and siblings in helping participants prepare for their future. Implications for counselling practice and future research are discussed
Undue Influence as a Family Affair
No full textSiblings sharing responsibility for parent care, and entitlement to parent assets, are sometimes dissatisfied with how their parents’ estates are distributed following a period of care to the parent. Such dissatisfaction can be advanced through legal claims by some siblings that other siblings, during the course of giving care, exerted undue influence over the parent to obtain their assets. The Canadian legal doctrine of undue influence directs attention to what transpired between two parties in the interest of protecting vulnerable people from having to honor arrangements to which they did not truly consent. In these cases, the focus is on the relationship between a sibling as an adult child, and the now deceased care recipient parent. At the same time, these cases reflect expectations and dynamics among siblings relative to each other. In this paper, a family, rather than dyadic, perspective is employed to illuminate elements of undue influence claims that are relevant to the sibling experience of giving care and sharing assets. We thus expand on understandings of dyadic issues addressed by the courts