From Fear and Distrust to Trust and Collaboration: Exploring Transitions in the Quality of Relationships in the Encounters Between Immigrant Parents and Child Welfare Services

Abstract

AbstractThis article examines the characteristics of transitions in the quality of relationships from fear and distrust to trust and collaboration in the encounters between immigrant parents and child welfare services and explores what these changes demonstrate about trust and collaboration within such contexts. The study draws on empirical data from interviews with ten immigrant parents who have experience with the Norwegian Child Welfare Services due to allegations of child abuse and/or neglect. The findings show that the transition from fear and distrust to trust and collaborative relations does not evolve in clearly defined phases but rather unfolds as a complex cyclical process. This process appears to involve fear, distrust, and uncooperative behavior as a point of departure but can, in some cases, develop into trusting and collaborative relations with disruption and restoration during the process. The characteristics of the transitions seem to demonstrate that parents can engage in trusting and collaborative relations amid institutional distrust, fear, and vulnerability, if they experience the encounter as meaningful. The turning points in this regard include the following: (1) parents’ experience of positive interactions and relational trust with child welfare professionals and (2) defining moments in the subsequent intervention process, including parents’ awareness that the intervention will not lead to child removal and/or the positive impacts of therapeutic intervention measures like parental training courses, counseling, and financial support.