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Social Sciences
Special Issues
Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care
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Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "Childhood and Youth Studies".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 February 2025) | Viewed by 3706

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Hilde Anette Aamodt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Service Organization and Innovation in Social Work and Child Protection, Department of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, NO-0130 Oslo, Norway
Interests: parenting; power; child welfare; social work; care order; system theory; Niklas Luhmann
Prof. Dr. Nicole Hennum

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Social Work, Child Welfare and Social Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, NO-0130 Oslo, Norway
Interests: childhood; parenting; migration; social classes; power; gender; social work; child protection

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Assessments and decisions related to visitation and contact between children in public care and their parents and siblings have crucial consequences for children and their families. However, limited research exists on this topic. In this Special Issue, we welcome contributions that illuminate, and offer new knowledge to, this field of research. We welcome both theoretical and empirical contributions.

Key questions for this Special Issue include, but not limited to, the following: How do employees and executive authorities assess and justify the framework for, and extent of, visitation and contact between children, siblings, and parents following care orders? What are the child's opinions on visits? How are we to understand the child's reactions to visitation? How is visitation used in line with the goal of reunification? How are parents, children, and foster parents supported before, during, and after visitation? How do visits and contact with biological parents affect the child's everyday life? What are foster parents’ perspectives on visitation? How is visitation facilitated in order to maintain contact between the child and their siblings, grandparents, and extended family? How does the biological principle matter in assessments of visitation? How does contact with supervision work? How might the visitation location affect the quality of the visitation? How is consideration of language, religion, and culture taken care of during visitation? What is the purpose of visitation? How is visitation evaluated? How is visitation assessed after an emergency placement? What discourses have an impact on our views on visitation? How does contact challenge the understanding of family? What is visitation? And, finally, how do opportunities for contact through telephone, e-mail, and social media play a role in the assessments of the scope and framework of the visit?

This Special Issue invites established and early-career researchers to share their knowledge and research in the research field of visitation between parents and children under public care.

For consideration, please submit your extended abstract to the Special Issue Guest Editor, Hilde A. Aamodt haamo@oslomet.no, by 1 May 2024. Notification of acceptance will be provided by 1 June 2024. For those accepted for consideration, paper submission will be due by 1 January 2025 for preliminary review.

Dr. Hilde Anette Aamodt
Prof. Dr. Nicole Hennum
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • child welfare
  • foster child
  • visitation parents
  • foster parents
  • birth family
  • contact
  • visits
  • parenthood

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 236 KiB  
Article
‘I Think It’s So Complicated Knowing What to Make of What Children Show’: On Child Welfare Employees’ Assessments of Children’s Reactions to Visitation
by Tanja Røed Larsen
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(5), 260; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14050260 - 24 Apr 2025
Viewed by 313
Abstract
The theme of this article is how child welfare workers understand children’s reactions when they assess visitation between parents and children in public care in Norway. The data material consists of 35 transcribed, anonymised recordings of child welfare workers from different child welfare [...] Read more.
The theme of this article is how child welfare workers understand children’s reactions when they assess visitation between parents and children in public care in Norway. The data material consists of 35 transcribed, anonymised recordings of child welfare workers from different child welfare services across the country discussing visitation. The analytical approach is based on Sara Ahmed’s perspectives on discourses on emotions and how the circulation of emotions creates reactions. This has enabled an exploration of child welfare workers’ understanding of children’s reactions as hierarchical, produced by stigma and adaptations. This article shows the complexity present when child welfare workers consider visitation between parents and children in public care. It shows how children’s reactions to visitation can be interpreted and understood and how this affects the assessments that are made. The article provides an insight into how child welfare workers are influenced by societal discourses about what emotions are and what they do and how this is of significance when assessing visitation between children and parents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
16 pages, 258 KiB  
Article
Understanding a Parent’s Visitation Capacity After a Care Order
by Tina Gerdts-Andresen and Anette Ødegård Eriksen
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 221; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14040221 - 1 Apr 2025
Viewed by 170
Abstract
The ability of parents to maintain visitation with their child after a care order is a complex aspect of child welfare. While visitation is widely recognized as essential for preserving family bonds and supporting potential reunification, less attention has been given to how [...] Read more.
The ability of parents to maintain visitation with their child after a care order is a complex aspect of child welfare. While visitation is widely recognized as essential for preserving family bonds and supporting potential reunification, less attention has been given to how broader life circumstances influence a parent’s ability to engage in visitation. This study explores how parents describe their life situation after a care order and examines how different contextual factors may relate to their visitation capacity. The study employs thematic analysis based on interviews with 31 parents whose children were placed in public care. The findings reveal that parents face multiple barriers that affect their ability to sustain meaningful contact with their child, including emotional and psychological strain, social isolation and stigma, trust and cooperation challenges, and shifting parent–child relationship dynamics. Many parents described profound distress following the care order, marked by anxiety, grief, and loss of parental identity. Additionally, strained relationships with child welfare professionals, inconsistent expectations, and systemic barriers further complicate their efforts to remain engaged. These findings highlight that visitation capacity is not merely a matter of legal access but is shaped by broader life circumstances, emotional resilience, and institutional support structures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
16 pages, 272 KiB  
Article
A Space for Motherhood? Contact Visits from the Perspectives of Mothers with Migration Experiences
by Eirinn Hesvik Ljones, Øivin Christiansen and Marte Knag Fylkesnes
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 216; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14040216 - 28 Mar 2025
Viewed by 282
Abstract
When a child is placed in out-of-home care, parents must adapt their parenting to a unique situation governed by Child Welfare Services (CWS). Contact arrangements between parents and children are particularly important, as they provide the primary opportunity for parents to maintain a [...] Read more.
When a child is placed in out-of-home care, parents must adapt their parenting to a unique situation governed by Child Welfare Services (CWS). Contact arrangements between parents and children are particularly important, as they provide the primary opportunity for parents to maintain a meaningful connection and participate in their children’s lives. This article explores how mothers with migration experiences navigate their motherhood when it is regulated by the CWS in Norway. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and a photo-elicitation task with eight birth mothers, the study sheds light on how they perceive and talk about staying connected with their children living in out-of-home care during contact visits. Three themes were identified through a narrative-inspired thematic analysis: (1) mothers’ active efforts to organise meaningful contact visits for their children; (2) their struggles to maintain family cohesion and belonging; and (3) the constraints they face in their emotional care work due to regulated and limited contact. These findings illustrate how contact visits function as an essential but also challenging space for motherhood. We argue that by recognising mothers’ perspectives, resources, and challenges during the limited and regulated contact visits, CWS can offer more culturally sensitive and supportive parental follow-up. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
13 pages, 209 KiB  
Article
The Child Welfare Employees’ Constructions of Contact Visits for Parents and Children in Public Care
by Marianne Buen Sommerfeldt and Hilde Anette Aamodt
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(4), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14040206 - 26 Mar 2025
Viewed by 522
Abstract
Following a care order, children and parents are entitled to contact with each other in accordance with the conditions established by the Child Welfare Tribunals. How child welfare employees understand what contact visits can be and how they can be structured in line [...] Read more.
Following a care order, children and parents are entitled to contact with each other in accordance with the conditions established by the Child Welfare Tribunals. How child welfare employees understand what contact visits can be and how they can be structured in line with the best interests of the child is crucial in their decision making. This article explores the different constructions of contact visits, in terms of how employees communicate their understanding of access arrangements. This article draws on recordings of child welfare employees discussing the structuring and extent of contact between parents and children in public care. The analysis explored the material in line with Luhmann’s communication theory and found that the dimensions in which the employees communicated produce the ways in which the contact visits are constructed. The ways in which the contact visits were constructed varied, and the factual dimension, temporal dimension, and social dimension were interdependent in the communication. This article demonstrates the impact of employees’ communication in assessing and constructing contact visits for the access arrangements for the individual child and encourages awareness of the factors that are emphasized. This article highlights the need for discussions grounded in social work perspectives to ensure individualized access arrangements. The article contributes to rethinking understandings of how to construct contact visits, while urging critical reflection on the power of child welfare employees in determining how contact visits should be structured. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
16 pages, 236 KiB  
Article
‘What Are We to Each Other?’: Relational Participation as Processes of Positioning, Confirming and Manifesting Relationships
by Mona Kragelund Ravn
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(3), 177; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14030177 - 14 Mar 2025
Viewed by 425
Abstract
It is generally recognized in research that participation is lacking in social work and is essential to improve. This article presents findings from qualitative focus group interviews with children and parents in Denmark with supervised contact (SC) after placement focusing on what participation [...] Read more.
It is generally recognized in research that participation is lacking in social work and is essential to improve. This article presents findings from qualitative focus group interviews with children and parents in Denmark with supervised contact (SC) after placement focusing on what participation is for them. Since SC is a context embedded in conflicting perspectives, enabling a sense of participation can be challenging, making SC an interesting case for exploration. The findings show that for both children and parents, participation is about emotionally engaging in, finding, confirming and manifesting their positioning in the relationship, which goes beyond a traditional rights-based understanding. Based on the new empirical knowledge and anchored in the metatheory of agential realism, the article argues for participation as a relational, dynamic and transcendental concept that revolves around three empirical key aspects: positioning, confirming and manifesting, entangled in children’s and parents’ experiences, emotions and thoughts about ‘what are we to each other?’. Children and parents express orientation towards entering relationships, even though these are challenging. Thus, a major point is the need for further research into the relational and emotional processes of participation with awareness of the importance of the specific relationship. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
14 pages, 252 KiB  
Article
The Discourse on the “Dangerous Child Welfare Parent”—How Contact with Parents Is Constructed as a Risk for Children Under Public Care in Norway
by Hilde Anette Aamodt and Marianne Buen Sommerfeldt
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(3), 173; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14030173 - 13 Mar 2025
Viewed by 598
Abstract
This article discusses contact and interaction between children, siblings and parents after a care order. We have collected and analyzed audio recordings of discussions between child welfare employees in Norway. In these meetings, the employees discuss and decide the extent and organization of [...] Read more.
This article discusses contact and interaction between children, siblings and parents after a care order. We have collected and analyzed audio recordings of discussions between child welfare employees in Norway. In these meetings, the employees discuss and decide the extent and organization of visits and contact between parents and children under public care. Visitation mainly emerges as a risk in the discussions and thus as something that must be limited. This article shows how this risk can be seen in the context of a political or moral discourse in which these parents are given an identity and a position as “dangerous”. However, there are some exceptions. In these exceptions, parents emerge as significant and important, and contact is seen as an opportunity for the child. Here, it is the risk of not having contact that stands out. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
14 pages, 227 KiB  
Article
“It Is Possible to Call More People Mum”—Contact Between Children in Foster Care and Their Birth Parents
by Marianne Rugkåsa and Elisabeth Backe-Hansen
Soc. Sci. 2025, 14(3), 154; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci14030154 - 2 Mar 2025
Viewed by 581
Abstract
Contact arrangements in child protection can often create conflicts and distress. This is an area the Norwegian Child Welfare Services (CWSs) have paid greater attention to in recent years, to a large degree due to several recent decisions made by the European Court [...] Read more.
Contact arrangements in child protection can often create conflicts and distress. This is an area the Norwegian Child Welfare Services (CWSs) have paid greater attention to in recent years, to a large degree due to several recent decisions made by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the early 2020s and Norway’s Supreme Court in March 2020, as well as subsequent case law, all highlighting the importance of post-care contact. In the article, we focus on conditions that contribute to successful contact arrangements. We also discuss how CWSs can organise such arrangements in ways that lead to cooperative relationships around the children. The article analyses data from two cases where all those participating in the contact arrangements agreed that they worked well. In addition, we draw on supplementary data from a survey of caseworkers in the CWS about their experiences and assessment of contact arrangements in 525 cases. The analyses show that flexibility, openness, recognition, dialogue, and participation are particularly significant. It is essential to look at contact arrangements as ongoing processes, incorporating changes occurring in the child’s situation, the parents or the foster parents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Contact between Parents and Children in Child Welfare Care)
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