Perceptions and Responses of Adolescents and Youth in the Spanish Protection System to Bullying and Gender-Based Bullying Situations, and Their Relationship with the Training Received

BackgroundIndividuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) are at risk of having adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), especially those with child protection and/or justice system involvement. The complex relationship between FASD and psychosocial vulnerabilities in the affected individual is an important clinical risk factor for comorbidity. This study (1) explored the ACEs and associated stressors in individuals with FASD; (2) investigated the association between ACEs and negative outcomes, i.e., justice/child protection system involvement; and (3) examined the relationship between ACEs and comorbid conditions such as mood and neurodevelopmental disorders.MethodsData were collected retrospectively via file review from diagnostic clinics in Western Australia. Life adversity was coded using a standardised ACEs questionnaire. A total of 211 participants (72% males) with FASD with a mean age of 11 years (range = 2–21) were included in the final sample. 70% of the total sample had been involved with the child protection system and 40% had trouble with the law.ResultsExposure to drinking/substance misuse at home (70%) and domestic violence (52%) were the two most common ACEs across the total sample. In the entire cohort, 39% had four or more ACEs, indicating higher risks of poor health outcomes. Additional stressors recorded were disengagement from school (43%), transiency (19%), victims of bullying (12%), traumatic brain injury (9%) and homelessness (5%). ACEs such as drinking/substance misuse at home, emotional neglect and physical neglect were positively associated with child protection system involvement. Additionally, exposure to domestic violence was positively correlated with justice system involvement. Higher rates of life adversity in this clinical population were associated with an increased number of comorbidities. Specifically, those with FASD who had comorbidities such as attachment disorder, substance use disorder, and PTSD also reported higher ACEs scores.ConclusionACEs were common in this clinical population. Increased ACEs in this sample were associated with increased comorbidities and involvement with the child protection and/or justice system. This highlights that prevention, intervention and early diagnosis of FASD are important for at risk children to reduce the negative effects of ACEs.

Parents with intellectual disabilities in the child protection system

This study fills existing knowledge gaps by examining the links between Child Protection System (CPS) notifications and Criminal Justice System (CJS) contacts into young adulthood, with consideration of both lifetime Mental Health (MH) system contacts and the characteristics of CPS contacts (including Out-Of-Home Care [OOHC]). We utilised state-wide longitudinal linked administrative data for all individuals registered as born in Queensland, Australia in 1990 ( N = 45,153; 48.6% female). Data include all CPS notifications (including maltreatment types) and periods of OOHC (0–17 years, inclusive), all official offending contacts from age 10 to 24 years (police cautions, proven offences in court, detention/incarceration), and MH contacts between ages 4/5 to 23/24 years. Findings extend understanding of the complexity of CPS–CJS links. While many CPS-involved individuals remain free of CJS involvement, findings elucidate especially high-risk features of child maltreatment experiences, namely adolescent and persistent maltreatment, neglect, OOHC experienced ≥10 years of age, and comorbid CPS and MH contact. Though the CPS–CJS link was especially pronounced for youth offending, increased risk for adult-onset offending was also evident. Results support cross-sector holistic care for maltreated individuals, trauma-informed responses within detention and correctional practices, and increased intervention and support for adolescents in OOHC. These results provide a reminder that intervention should occur early in a problematic pathway, and not simply early in a life course.

Lebanon’s fledgling child protection (CP) system has been criticised for being fragmented and overly crisis-driven to the detriment of the children served. This article conceptualises Lebanon’s ‘pluralistic’ model and is the first to examine the contentious government reforms which have taken place since 2014. Drawing on 54 semi-structured stakeholder interviews, we examine how the state has wrested power from religious authorities, introduced national CP practice standards, and increased supervision of non-governmental services. This paper argues that these reforms have moved Lebanon further towards an integrated, legalistic and procedural CP approach. However, unresolved challenges remain to reconcile the competing roles, interests and capabilities of the state, the non-governmental sector, and religious authorities under one cohesive framework. This paper recommends strengthening support for the non-governmental sector, improving inclusion of community-based protection mechanisms, and reengagement with religious family courts to better meet the needs of children. The study not only has important implications for the development of Lebanon’s protection system but also for the theories and practice debates surrounding system building in low and middle-income countries and the Middle-East and North African region.

Supervisory neglect: Critical questions regarding child supervision and protection system responses

Letter to the editor

IntroductionGendered practices of working life create gender inequalities through horizontal and vertical gender segregation in work, which may lead to inequalities in health between women and men. Gender equality could therefore be a key element of health equity in working life. Our aim was to analyze what gender (in)equality means for the employees at a woman-dominated workplace and discuss possible implications for health experiences.MethodsAll caregiving staff at two workplaces in elder care within a municipality in the north of Sweden were invited to participate in the study. Forty-five employees participated, 38 women and 7 men. Seven focus group discussions were performed and led by a moderator. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the focus groups.ResultsWe identified two themes. "Advocating gender equality in principle" showed how gender (in)equality was seen as a structural issue not connected to the individual health experiences. "Justifying inequality with individualism" showed how the caregivers focused on personalities and interests as a justification of gender inequalities in work division. The justification of gender inequality resulted in a gendered work division which may be related to health inequalities between women and men. Gender inequalities in work division were primarily understood in terms of personality and interests and not in terms of gender.ConclusionThe health experience of the participants was affected by gender (in)equality in terms of a gendered work division. However, the participants did not see the gendered work division as a gender equality issue. Gender perspectives are needed to improve the health of the employees at the workplaces through shifting from individual to structural solutions. A healthy-setting approach considering gender relations is needed to achieve gender equality and fairness in health status between women and men.

This chapter outlines Ecuador’s child protection systems. Ecuador’s signing of the Convention of the Rights of the Child in 1989 was the result of a long struggle to institutionalize and legislate children’s rights in the country. There have been important improvements in terms of the availability of a comprehensive public child protection system. However, ongoing political, economic, institutional, and legislative upheaval in the country poses difficulties to the implementation of the rights of children. As such, this chapter explores difficulties in the implementation of the National Decentralized Comprehensive Child Protection System. In particular, it highlights how Ecuador is suffering from deep structural socio-economic, regional, ethnic, and gender inequality.

Introduction This research focuses on concepts of sexual diversity, gender perspective and curriculum; showing whether or not are they present in the undergraduate Occupational Therapy training, at the University of Magallanes, Chile. Objective To know the existence and manifestations of gender and sexual diversity perspectives in the occupational therapy curriculum. Method Mixed study, with descriptive scope and feminist design with gender perspective, where data is collected from official documents (curriculum and subject programs) and from the experiences and stories of students and teachers. Results Whit respect to the curriculum of the Occupational Therapy degree 2020, it is possible to observe the preferential use of masculine, the inexistence of typographic strategies, splitting, or other alternative strategies. In relation to the use of inclusive language in the degree programs, a total of 23 subject programs were reviewed, in which it can be seen that there is a majority effort to be inclusive, being the most used strategies the use of neutral expressions and impersonal forms. Regarding to the perceptions of teachers and students on the inclusion of gender and sexual diversity perspectives in the hidden curriculum of the occupational therapy degree and classroom strategies, it was evidenced that both groups recognized the importance of these approaches for a more equitable learning. Conclusion An evolution is observed over time, with more inclusive practices, being necessary even more development.

ABSTRACTThe Nordic countries have often been depicted as progressive societies regarding sexual diversity and gender equality. These progressive changes in sexual minority issues, however, have not brought about radical changes in educational policies in addressing gender and sexual equality in schools. Both compulsory and upper secondary education often lack coherent protection of queer students. The same applies to specific policies on queer issues within the education system; they are hidden in the depths of many national curricula. In fact, a discrepancy exists in broader social policies supporting equality based on sexual orientation in the educational context. The main objective of this article is to investigate this discrepancy and justify it. In doing so, we will discuss in detail the educational policies and practices on sexualities currently operating in the Nordic area, particularly in Finland and Iceland. We analyse curricula documents, legislation, research reports, and other data from our own research projects, including ethnographic interviews, observation data, survey data, and written material.

<p>本研究主要在探討將多元性別與社會正義單元融入諮商心理訓練之實踐經驗。研究分為兩部分：研究一聚焦於探討融入多元性別單元之影響，課程包含講座、閱讀與討論及性別自傳撰寫等活動。研究參與者為48名諮商心理科系研究生。課程後進行焦點團體訪談，並針對逐字稿與性別自傳進行主題分析。結果顯示五大主題：從衝擊到理解、反思自身性別經驗、肯定多元性別訓練的重要性、整合性別觀點與專業能力、及其他複雜感受。研究二在多元性別單元基礎上增加社會正義倡導訓練，課程除了講座外，包括反思校園性別不友善現象及設計倡導方案。研究參與者為30名諮商心理科系研究生，共完成八項性別正義方案並提交建議書給學校行政單位。課程後之焦點團體訪談逐字稿與性別自傳之主題分析包括四大經驗：性別偏見的覺察與覺醒、理解並體會多元性別者受壓迫經驗、提升性別相關知能、倡導行動中的體會。整體而言，兩個研究顯示多元性別單元對研究生具正面影響，加上社會正義訓練進一步強化其能動性，促使將所學轉化為行動。最後，針對未來在諮商心理訓練中納入多元性別與社會正義提出相關建議。</p><p>This study aimed to explore the experiences and practices of integrating modules on gender and sexual diversity, along with social justice advocacy, into master’s level counseling psychology training courses. This approach aligns with current trends in academic literature and ethical guidelines in the counseling psychology field, which emphasize the importance of enhancing future counseling professionals’ gender sensitivity and equity awareness, especially on topics related to LGBTQIA+ (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other) clients. To achieve this goal, adopting a social justice stance to advocate for vulnerable clients who have experienced oppression at both the interpersonal and systemic level regarding their gender, and sexual orientations or identities is crucial, as these clients often lack access to resources and the power to express their opinions and needs, which are essential for promoting their psychological well-being. An emerging consensus among researchers and practitioners suggests that counseling psychology training should include components that address gender and sexual diversity, as well as social justice advocacy. Past research in Taiwan has typically focused only on integrating gender and sexual diversity into counseling training without incorporating social justice advocacy. To address this gap, the authors conducted two studies to evaluate the effectiveness of training that combines these two components. Study One examined the impact of integrating a Gender and Sexual Diversity Module into two counseling courses. Class activities included guest lectures, literature reading and discussions, and gender autobiographical writing. Participants comprised 48 graduate students enrolled in “Counseling Theories” and “Counseling Practicum” courses in a counseling psychology department at a university. Following the completion of all activities, the participants were divided into five focus groups for interviews. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed alongside the participants’ gender autobiographies using thematic analysis. The results identified five major themes in the participants’ experiences: (1) From Impact to Understanding, (2) Reflecting on Personal Gender Experiences, (3) Affirming the Importance of Gender and Sexual Diversity Training, (4) Integrating a Gender Perspective into the Counseling Profession, and (5) Experiencing Mixed Feelings. Study Two expanded on the first by incorporating a Social Justice Advocacy Module. In addition to guest lectures, a four-week activity series was introduced into the class activities. These activities guided students to reflect on and examine the friendliness of current gender and LGBTQ practices on campus and then to design advocacy projects to present to school administrative executives. This study involved 30 graduate students enrolled in “Counseling Theories” and “Counseling Practicum” courses, also recruited from the same university department. After completing the activities and implementing the advocacy projects, focus group interviews were conducted and verbatim transcripts were analyzed along with participants’ reflections on their gender autobiographies. Thematic analysis revealed four major themes: (1) Raising Awareness and of Gender Prejudice, (2) Understanding and Empathizing with the Oppressed Experiences of Sexual Minorities, (3) Enhancing Gender-Related Competencies, and (4) Learning Through Advocacy Actions. Overall, the findings of these two studies suggest that integrating gender and sexual diversity modules into counseling courses can positively impact graduate students in counseling psychology. Furthermore, the addition of the Social Justice Advocacy Module can enhance students’ sense of agency, enabling them to translate their knowledge into practical actions, an ability urgently needed by counseling psychology practitioners. Even when advocacy outcomes may not fully meet expectations, learning experiences are nonetheless highly valuable for students. Finally, this study proposes recommendations for incorporating gender and sexual diversity and social justice advocacy modules into future counseling psychology training programs.</p>

The present study makes an exhaustive review of the conditions and challenges faced by society to transform the school into a truly inclusive, coeducational, and democratic space. It proposes a theoretical model, of a bottom-up nature, to achieve gender equality in the school environment, giving special importance to teacher training. This study evaluates the training in gender equality and coeducation that students with degrees related to teaching are receiving. An analysis is conducted of the presence of attitudes that support the gender/sex system and the identification of relevant female references in a sample of 452 students in the Degree in Primary Education or the University Master’s Degree in Teacher Training for Compulsory Secondary Education, Upper Secondary Education, Vocational Training, and Language Teaching (MUPES). For the collection of information, an ad hoc questionnaire was used that contemplates formative and cultural aspects, together with the Inventory of Ambivalent Sexism (ASI), the Attitudes of Heterosexuals toward Homosexuals (HATH), and the Women in History (WH) scales. Among the main results, the important lack of training in aspects related to gender equality and coeducation, as well as a general lack of knowledge of historical female references, stands out. It can be concluded that, at present, teacher training is still in the early stages of the proposed model.

The focus of this article is on how a ‘‘gender perspective’’ becomes lifted to the headlines as a solution to an organizational problem. The purpose of this article is to problematize how a gender perspective was employed in the everyday practices of an occupational health project in a Swedish municipality. The project’s stated aim was to construct and implement a new model for occupational health, targeting the municipality’s employees, and gender equality was seen as one means of reducing sick leave among the staff. Our focus was the participants’ perceptions of their participation and their reflections on the content and practices of the program. The information was gathered from focus-group interviews with participants in a management training program (MTP) and a rehabilitation program (RP) and from documents produced within the project. Drawing from feminist writings on gender subtexts defined as a set of concealed power based processes (re)producing gender distinctions in organizations, we have explored how power structures are created based on socially constructed differences. Our results demonstrate how gender knowledge could reproduce inequality and hierarchical distinctions between people in different positions in working life. Keywords: Gender subtext; gender perspective; occupational health project; abstract worker; identification (Published: 4 June 2014) Citation: Vulnerable Groups & Inclusion. http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/vgi.v5.23261

Recent advances in sexual equality and diversity have not been able to mitigate the serious problem of discrimination suffered by sexual minorities. The most serious cases involve violence and physical or psychological aggression towards sexual orientations that differ from the heterosexual norm. This research analyses the dimensions of the personality and the moral disengagement mechanisms related to homophobia and the predictive value they have for hostile attitudes towards sexual diversity. The sample was made up of 849 university students between 18 and 24 years of age. The instruments used were the Modern Homophobia Scale (MHS), the Mechanisms of Moral Disengagement Scale (MMDS), and the reduced version of the Neo Personality Inventory—Reduced Version (NEO-FFI). The results show the involvement of moral disengagement in homophobia. It highlights evidence of subtle intimidatory behaviour patterns of rejection towards homosexuality. Furthermore, the low levels in the dimensions of a friendly personality and openness to experiences can be seen to predict homophobic behaviour. Thus, young people fall back on diverse mechanisms of moral disengagement to justify harmful attitudes towards the LGTBI collective. The results of the research are particularly relevant and useful for setting up programmes aimed at preventing and mitigating this serious problem of sexual discrimination.

Protective supervision: An inquiry into the relationship between child welfare and the court system