You and me and all of us: The significance of belonging in a continual community of children in long-term care in Norway

Abstract

This paper examines the significance of children’s social lives and communities with other children, particularly for one group of children growing up in a care arrangement combining residential and foster care in Norway. Eight children (aged 11–17) living in care arrangements and three former residents (aged 18–27) participated in individual, paired, or group interviews. In addition, participatory observation at a social gathering of former residents was conducted. Sociocultural perspectives informed the analysis. Three overall stories were categorized: “we do” stories; stories of available communities; and stories of me, you, and us: a storytelling community. These stories highlight particular interconnected aspects of the children’s social lives and communities within their care arrangements, across contexts, and through time. The findings emphasize the significance of consistently belonging to a community of children in care as a source of vital social participation, learning, and development and supportive and lasting relationships among children. The findings also stress the necessity of professional facilitation to enable relationships among children. These findings have implications for the conceptions of children’s needs and developmental well-being while growing up in care and, accordingly, implications for the management of long-term care in terms of providing adequate developmental support and care for children dependent on the state as their overarching carer.