Manufacturing ghost fathers: The paradox of father presence and absence in child welfare

Child and Family Social Work

Volumn 14, Issue 1, 2009, Pages 25-34

  Brown, Leslie ^a,b   Callahan, Marilyn ^e   Strega, Susan ^b   Walmsley, Christopher ^c   Dominelli, Lena ^d  

^a Faculty of Human and Social Development

^b UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA   (Canada)

^c THOMPSON RIVERS UNIVERSITY   (Canada)

^d DURHAM UNIVERSITY   (United Kingdom)

^e STN CSC ^*

Author keywords

Child welfare; Fathers

Indexed keywords

EID: 58149328768     PISSN: 13567500     EISSN: 13652206     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2206.2008.00578.x     Document Type: Article

References (71)

1. Adair, V. (2002) Branded with infamy: inscriptions of poverty and class in the United States. Signs, 27, 451 471.
2. Akin, B. Gregoire, T. (1997) Parents' views on child welfare's response to addiction. Families in Society, 78, 393 404.
3. Bancroft, L. Silverman, J. (2002) The Batterer as Parent. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
4. Blackstock, C., Clarke, S., Cullen, J., D'Hondt, J. Formsma, J. (2004) Keeping the Promise: The Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Lived Experience of First Nations Children and Youth. First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, Ottawa, Canada.
5. Brown, L., Strega, S., Callahan, M., Dominelli, L. Walmsley, C. (2008) Anti-oppressive child protection: approaches to practice. In : Engaging Fathers in Child Welfare (eds S. Strega J. Carriere). Fernwood Press, Halifax in press)
6. Bunting, L. McAuley, C. (2004) Research review: teenage pregnancy and parenthood: the role of fathers. Child and Family Social Work, 9, 295 303.
7. Cabrera, N., Tamis-LeMonda, C., Bradley, R., Hofferth, S. Lamb, M. (2000) Fatherhood in the 21st century. Child Development, 71, 127 136.
8. Callahan, M., Field, B., Hubberstey, C. Wharf, B. (1998) Best Practice in Child Welfare: Perspectives from Parents, Social Workers and Community Partners. University of Victoria School of Social Work, Victoria, BC.
9. Callahan, M., Brown, L., MacKenzie, P. Whittington, B. (2004) Catch as catch can: grandmothers raising their grandchildren and kinship care policies. Canadian Review of Social Policy, 54, 58 78.
10. Callahan, M., Rutman, D., Strega, S. Dominelli, L. (2005) Looking promising: contradictions and challenges for young mothers in care. In : Unbecoming Mothers: Women Living Apart from their Children (ed. D. Gustafson pp. 185 208. Haworth Press, Binghamton, NY.
11. Cassano, M., Adrian, M., Veits, G. Zeman, J. (2006) The inclusion of fathers in the empirical investigation of child psychopathology: an update. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 35, 583 589.
12. Cavanaugh, K., Dobash, R.E. Dobash, R.P. (2007) The murder of children by fathers in the context of child abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 31, 731 746.
13. Chambers, D. (2000) Representations of familialism in the British popular media. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 3, 194 214.
14. Christie, A. (1998) Is social work a 'non-traditional' occupation for me British Journal of Social Work, 28, 491 510.
15. Coohey, C. (2006) Physically abusive fathers and risk assessment. Child Abuse and Neglect, 30, 467 480.
16. Daniel, B. Taylor, J. (1999) The rhetoric versus the reality: a critical perspective on practice with fathers in child care and protective work. Child and Family Social Work, 4, 209 220.
17. Daniel, B. Taylor, J. (2001) Engaging with Fathers: Practice Issues for Health and Social Care. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London.
18. DeLuccie, M. (1995) Mothers as gatekeepers: a model of maternal mediators of father involvement. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60, 277 292.
19. Dominelli, L., Strega, S., Callahan, M. Rutman, D. (2005) Endangered children: the state as failed parent and grandparent. British Journal of Social Work, 35, 1123 1144.
20. Dubeau, D. (2003) Portraits of Fathers. Occasional paper. Vanier Institute of the Family, Ottawa, Canada.
21. Dumbrill, G. (2003) Child welfare: AOP's nemesis? In : Emerging Perspectives on Anti-Oppressive Practice (ed. W. Shera pp. 101 120. Canadian Scholars Press, Toronto, Canada.
22. Dumbrill, G. (2006) Parental experience of child protection intervention: a qualitative study. Child Abuse and Neglect, 30, 27 37.
23. Dumbrill, G. Maiter, S. (1997) Consumer centred child protection services. Paper presented at the 74th Annual Orthopsychiatry Conference, Toronto.
24. Eichler, M. McCall, M. (1993) Clarifying the legal dimensions of fatherhood. Canadian Journal of Family Law, 11, 197 232.
25. Farrant, F. (2006) Out for Good: Resettlement Needs of Young Men in Prison. Howard League for Penal Reform, London.
26. Ferguson, H. Hogan, F. (2004) Strengthening Families through Fathers: Developing Policy and Practice in Relation to Vulnerable Fathers and Their Families. Waterford Institute of Technology, Centre for Social and Family Research, Waterford, Ireland.
27. Fleming, L. Tobin, D. (2005) Popular child-rearing books: where is daddy? Psychology of Men and Masculinity, 6, 18 24.
28. Haney, L. March, M. (2003) Married fathers and caring daddies: welfare reform and the discursive politics of paternity. Social Problems, 50, 461 481.
29. Humphreys, C. (1999) Avoidance and confrontation: social work practice in relation to domestic violence and child abuse. Child and Family Social Work, 4, 77 87. 113.
30. Krane, J. (2003) What's Mother Got to Do with It? Protecting Children from Sexual Abuse. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada.
31. Krane, J. Davies, L. (2000) Mothering and child protection: rethinking risk assessment. Child and Family Social Work, 5, 35 45.
32. Kufeldt, K. McKenzie, B. (2003) Child Welfare: Connecting Research, Policy and Practice. Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Waterloo, Canada.
33. Lamb, M. (2004) The Role of the Father in Child Development, 4th edn. Wiley and Sons, New York.
34. Landsman, M. Hartley, C. (2007) Attributing responsibility for child maltreatment when domestic violence is present. Child Abuse and Neglect, 31, 445 461.
35. McGuffey, C.S. (2005) Engendering trauma: race, class and gender reaffirmation after child sexual abuse. Gender and Society, 19, 621 643.
36. Mann, M. (2005) Indian Registration: Unrecognized and Unstated Paternity. Status of Women Canada, Ottawa, Canada.
37. Marks, L. Palkovitz, R. (2004) American fatherhood types: the good, the bad, and the uninterested. Fathering, 2, 113 129.
38. Mayer, M., Dufour, S., Lavergne, C., Girard, M. Trocme, N. (2003) Comparing parental characteristics regarding child neglect: an analysis of cases retained by child protection services in Quebec. Paper presented at Child and Youth Health 3rd World Congress, Vancouver, BC.
39. Miller, D. (1997) Adolescents fathers: what we know and what we need to know. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 14, 55 69.
40. Munro, E. (1998) Improving social workers' knowledge base in child protection work. British Journal of Social Work, 28, 89 105.
41. O'Hagan, K. (1997) The problem of engaging men in child protection work. British Journal of Social Work, 27, 25 42.
42. O'Hagan, K. Dillenberger, K. (1995) The Abuse of Women within Childcare Work. Open University Press, Buckingham.
43. Peled, E. (2000) Parenting by men who abuse women: issues and dilemmas. British Journal of Social Work, 30, 25 36.
44. Pleck, E. (2004) Two dimensions of fatherhood: a history of the good dad-bad dad complex. In : The Role of the Father in Child Development, 4th edn (ed. M. Lamb pp. 32 57. Wiley and Sons, New York.
45. Province of British Columbia (1996) The Risk Assessment Model for Child Protection in British Columbia. Ministry for Children and Families, Victoria, BC.
46. Quinton, D., Pollock, S. Anderson, P. (2002) The Transition to Fatherhood in Young Men: Influences on Commitment. Bristol University, Bristol.
47. Radhakrishna, A., Bou-Saada, I., Hunter, W., Catellier, D. Kotch, J. (2001) Are father surrogates a risk factor for child maltreatment? Child Maltreatment, 6, 281 289.
48. Ram, A., Finzi, R. Cohen, O. (2002) The non-custodial parent and his infant. Journal of Divorce and Remarriage, 36, 41 55.
49. Risley-Curtiss, C. Heffernan, K. (2003) Gender biases in child welfare. Affilia, 18, 395 410.
50. Roer-Strier, D., Strier, R., Este, D., Shimoni, R. Clark, D. (2005) Fatherhood and immigration: challenging the deficit theory. Child and Family Social Work, 10, 315 329.
51. Rose, W. (2004) Crimes of color: risk, profiling, and the contemporary racialization of social control. International Journal of Politics, Culture and Society, 16, 179 205.
52. Rutman, D., Strega, S., Callahan, M. Dominelli, L. (2002 Undeserving" mothers? Practitioners' experiences working with young mothers in/from care. Child and Family Social Work, 7, 149 160.
53. Ryan, M. (2000) Working with Fathers. Radcliffe Medical Press, Abingdon, UK.
54. Scott, K. Crooks, C. (2004) Effecting change in maltreating fathers: critical principles for intervention planning. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 11, 95 111.
55. Scourfield, J. (2001) Constructing men in child protection work. Men and Masculinities, 4, 70 89.
56. Scourfield, J. (2003) Gender and Child Protection. Palgrave MacMillan, Houndmills, Basingstoke, UK.
57. Silva, E. Smart, C. (1999) The 'new' practices and politics of family life. In : The 'New' Family? (eds E. Silva C. Smart pp. 1 12. Sage, London.
58. Smart, C. Neale, B. (1999) Family Fragments? Polity Press, Cambridge, UK.
59. Spratt, T. Callan, J. (2004) Parents' views on social work interventions in child welfare cases. British Journal of Social Work, 34, 199 224.
60. Stanley, N. (1997) Domestic violence and child abuse: developing social work practice. Child and Family Social Work, 2, 135 145.
61. Strega, S. (2006) Failure to protect? Child welfare interventions when men beat mothers. In : Cruel But Not Unusual: Violence in Canadian Families (eds R. Alaggia C. Vine pp. 237 266. Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Ottawa.
62. Strega, S. (2007) Anti-oppressive practice in child welfare. In : Doing Anti-oppressive Practice: Building Transformative Politicized Social Work (ed. D. Baines pp. 67 82. Fernwood Publishing, Halifax.
63. Strega, S., Brown, L., Dominelli, L., Walmsley, C. Callahan, M. (2008a) Working with me, working at me: narratives of fathers in child welfare. Journal of Progressive Human Services, 19, in press.
64. Strega, S., Fleet, C., Brown, L., Callahan, M., Dominelli, L. Walmsley, C. (2008b) Connecting father absence and mother blame in child welfare policies and practice. Children and Youth Services Review, 30, 705 716.
65. Sunderland, J. (2006) Parenting' or 'mothering'? The case of modern childcare magazines. Discourse and Society, 17, 503 528.
66. Swift, K. (1995) Manufacturing "Bad Mothers": A Critical Perspective on Child Neglect. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada.
67. Terrisse, B., Roberts, D., Palacia-Quintin, E. MacDonald, B. (1998) Effects of parenting practices and socioeconomic status on child development. Revue Suisse de Psychologie, 57, 114 123.
68. Trotter, J. (1997) The failure of social work researchers, teachers and practitioners to acknowledge or engage non-abusing fathers: a preliminary discussion. Social Work Education, 16, 63 76.
69. Tsui, M. Cheung, F. (2004) Gone with the wind: the impacts of managerialism on human services. British Journal of Social Work, 34, 437 442.
70. Walmsley, C., Brown, L., Callahan, M., Strega, S. Dominelli, L. (2006) Where's Waldo? Fathering in the BSW curriculum. Paper presented at the Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work Conference, Toronto, Ontario.
71. Weinman, M., Buzi, R. Smith, P. (2005) Addressing risk behaviours, service needs and mental health issues in programs for young fathers. Families in Society, 86, 261 266.