In whose interest? An analysis of exemplary interaction between a family supervisor and a Dutch-Curaçaoan single-mother

Abstract

This article examines the interaction between a single-mother and a family supervisor as part of a child protection intervention in The Netherlands. The case is based on a longitudinal multi-sited ethnographic study of a Dutch-Curaçaoan single-mother family who faces a child protection order. A contextual analysis of the encounter between the mother and the family supervisor shows how child protection interventions occur in practice. It illuminates important power and knowledge asymmetries and reveals communication practices to safeguard interests. The analysis demonstrates the tension of conflicting interests in which the intervention takes place and which emerge from the encounter.Methodologically, the article aims to contribute to a contextual analysis of child protection practices by providing a contextual discourse-analytical framework. It reveals how institutional interests influence child protection interaction and the mother–family supervisor relationship.