Effect of Parental Visitation on Babies in Foster Care: An Exploratory Study of Babies’ Reactions before, during, and after Mediatized Parental Visitations
Type de matériel :
4
The issue of preserving the parent-child relationship when the child is in foster care raises numerous questions for researchers and practitioners. This question is all the more relevant since it concerns babies for whom the issue of constructing bonds may be more pressing. Many studies (mainly Anglo-Saxon) tend to support parental visitation in such contexts, yet their methodological soundness and their interpretations of data have been challenged. This paper is based on a study that performed a follow-up before, during, and after the parental visit to the babies. It measured social relational withdrawal behavior (understood as a defensive strategy for the baby to manage the changes in interactions) before, during, and after the visit. These observations are put in parallel with the sensitivity of the parent during the visit and with the evaluation of the child’s behaviors in the foster home. The data thus collected suggest the existence of three profiles of babies’ reactions. Certain children benefit from the visits, others present negative reactions to them, and some have no reaction at all. The data also point to the effect of the parental sensitivity, of the duration of the placement, and of the frequency of visitations. In its conclusion, this paper discusses these findings in relationship to the existing literature and suggests paths for future research on this topic.
Réseaux sociaux