Social Sciences

Research

15 pages, 513 KB

Open AccessArticle

When Self-Care Isn’t Enough: The Practice of Soul Care and Mitigation of Soul Wounds in Public Child Welfare Workers

by Nancy Kuhuski and Sarah Dubitzky

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(6), 409; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15060409 (registering DOI) - 22 Jun 2026

Protecting the safety and well-being of children in public child welfare is one of the most critical and demanding jobs in social work. Burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and moral injury are prevalent in this field and often occur simultaneously. This intersectional experience impacts [...] Read more.

Protecting the safety and well-being of children in public child welfare is one of the most critical and demanding jobs in social work. Burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and moral injury are prevalent in this field and often occur simultaneously. This intersectional experience impacts the deepest level of a person—their soul. When left unaddressed, these soul wounds come at a high cost to the workers, organizations they work for, the clients they serve, and their greater communities. This qualitative study sought to explore and identify the characteristics of soul care and the power it has to transform the lived experiences of child welfare workers. Collaborative, semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven workers who had been in this field for 10 or more years and described themselves as having good soul care. Findings from this study concluded the combination of strongly held core beliefs and engagement in a steady regulation loop constituted soul care. Soul care can occur regardless of circumstance. When a soul wound occurs, the Soul Wound Cycle is activated. The momentum of the regulation loop propels one’s movement through this cycle, allowing the processing of the soul wound, resulting in increased resiliency and regaining of equilibrium, ultimately leading to better outcomes for children. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 265 KB

Open AccessArticle

The Tribally Adapted National Training and Development Curriculum (NTDC): Impact on Foster and Adoptive Parent Preparedness to Foster American Indian Children from the Southwest Region of the United States

by Angelique G. Day, Carson Ball, Norma Hernandez, Katie Baudhuin, Becky Carino and Becky Main

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(6), 406; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15060406 (registering DOI) - 22 Jun 2026

Abstract

Foster parents working with children who are American Indian/Alaskan Native (AIAN) face challenges to provide trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate, and culturally relevant care for the children in their care. The Tribally Adapted National Training and Development Curriculum is a state-of-the-art training program designed to [...] Read more.

Foster parents working with children who are American Indian/Alaskan Native (AIAN) face challenges to provide trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate, and culturally relevant care for the children in their care. The Tribally Adapted National Training and Development Curriculum is a state-of-the-art training program designed to prepare foster parents to effectively parent AIAN children exposed to trauma and to provide these families with ongoing skill development necessary to understand and promote healthy child development. The current study describes the results of two focus groups (N = 11) that occurred in person in the social services office of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in May of 2022. Findings describe the experiences of participants that completed the tribal NTDC training and how the training impacted their readiness and experience to foster in comparison with parents of AIAN foster children who received the training-as-usual training protocol (Foster Parent College (FPC)) provided by the State child welfare authority. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

21 pages, 302 KB

Open AccessArticle

What Does It Take to Ensure Children’s Cultural Care? Examining Organisational Drivers Across Five National Contexts

by Kathy Karatasas, Rebekah Grace and Daryl J. Higgins

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(6), 351; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15060351 - 28 May 2026

Viewed by 275

Abstract

Children’s cultural care is not an ancillary practice concern but a central element of governance, safeguarding, and ethical responsibility within out-of-home care systems. Across child protection systems internationally, out-of-home care services are mandated to safeguard children while upholding statutory and international care obligations. [...] Read more.

Children’s cultural care is not an ancillary practice concern but a central element of governance, safeguarding, and ethical responsibility within out-of-home care systems. Across child protection systems internationally, out-of-home care services are mandated to safeguard children while upholding statutory and international care obligations. Leadership sets direction, organisational structures embed accountability, and learning cultures sustain responsiveness, forming an architecture that protects children’s cultural identities as inseparable from their safety, wellbeing, and belonging. Cultural care thus signals organisational integrity and the translation of rights-based commitments into practice. Yet many out-of-home care organisations struggle to support children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to maintain connections with family, community, and culture. Responsibility is often delegated to individual caseworkers, limiting systemic impact. Whole-of-organisation approaches are needed to embed cultural connection as a core safeguarding priority, strengthen accountability, and develop practitioner capability. Interviews with representatives from service organisations across five countries examined the organisational drivers that enable effective cultural care and the factors shaping the implementation of practice tools. Findings highlight the interconnected roles of leadership, governance, workforce development, and practitioner teams in sustaining culturally responsive practice. This paper reinforces shared responsibility across organisational levels to act with intentionality and cultural curiosity in supporting children’s rights to identity and belonging and concludes with an A–Z prompt tool offering reflective questions for leaders and practitioners to strengthen organisational approaches to cultural care. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

20 pages, 270 KB

Open AccessArticle

Extended Foster Care Practice and Program Reform: Perspectives of Workers and Community Partners

by Emiko A. Tajima, Kristian V. Jones, Jon M. Torres, Isaac A. Sanders, Carina Mendoza, Brittney Lee and Jennifer Personius

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(6), 347; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15060347 - 25 May 2026

Viewed by 273

Abstract

Extended Foster Care (EFC) provides services and benefits on a voluntary basis to young adults leaving the foster care system without having attained legal permanency. In the US, more than 19,000 young adults transitioned out of foster care without achieving legal permanency in [...] Read more.

Extended Foster Care (EFC) provides services and benefits on a voluntary basis to young adults leaving the foster care system without having attained legal permanency. In the US, more than 19,000 young adults transitioned out of foster care without achieving legal permanency in 2021. As states seek to improve supports to young adults eligible for EFC, it is important to identify institutional barriers and needed practice reforms. This study reports on analyses of qualitative focus group data gathered from workers (N = 24) and interviews with community practitioners (N = 14) as part of Washington state’s collaborative systems assessment of EFC. Data from transcripts were analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis of coded content. Rapid qualitative analysis allowed for efficient analysis and sorting of data to gather findings prior to the legislative session. Key themes identified related to (1) service and benefit gaps and needs, (2) organizational practice reforms, and (3) a need for culturally responsive services and a representative workforce. Specifically, workforce staff and community partners emphasized the need for EFC-specific units, developmentally tailored training, working from a clearly articulated practice model relevant to youth and young adults, the importance of reducing caseloads, recruitment and retention of a representative workforce, and more evidence-based practice options for EFC. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

17 pages, 649 KB

Open AccessArticle

Decoding Narrative Statements in Child Protective Services Hotline Calls: A Methodological Approach

by Chereese Phillips and Caroline Black

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(5), 329; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15050329 - 18 May 2026

Viewed by 362

Abstract

There is clear evidence that non-safety-related concerns abound in child protection hotline calls. In the United States, over half of Child Protective Services (CPS) calls are screened out because they do not meet criteria for a child welfare investigation. While reporter bias is [...] Read more.

There is clear evidence that non-safety-related concerns abound in child protection hotline calls. In the United States, over half of Child Protective Services (CPS) calls are screened out because they do not meet criteria for a child welfare investigation. While reporter bias is one factor theorized to contribute to this level of screened out calls, the field has neither used methods that account for culturally specific socialization processes involved in bias nor analyzed hotline calls to determine if these biases were present. This paper describes cultural domain analysis (CDA) as an innovative method to inform the measurement and assessment of bias in reporters’ narratives about children and families during calls to a CPS hotline. We describe CDA, which involves a rapid interviewing technique (freelisting), a participatory method for coding (pile sorting) and how the resultant findings can be used to inform the development of a measurement framework (codebook and scale), which may be tested using recorded hotline calls. Together, these methods provide a useable framework that can help surface common and shared ways bias is conceptualized and defined in the context of CPS hotline calls. This proposed approach provides a socially valid and reliable way for measurement to make generalizable inferences across a jurisdiction. When applied in practice, data collected and analyzed from the proposed measurement framework can inform jurisdictional CPS hotline policy, practice, and training. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 252 KB

Open AccessArticle

Upstream Legal Advocacy During Pregnancy to Prevent Traumatic Child Welfare Separations: Evidence from the FIRST Legal Clinic

by Adam Ballout and Marian S. Harris

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(5), 318; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15050318 - 14 May 2026

Viewed by 310

Abstract

Legal advocacy for parents involved in the public child welfare system in the United States is typically initiated only after a child has been removed and a dependency petition has been filed. For infants, removal at or shortly after birth constitutes a profound [...] Read more.

Legal advocacy for parents involved in the public child welfare system in the United States is typically initiated only after a child has been removed and a dependency petition has been filed. For infants, removal at or shortly after birth constitutes a profound disruption of the parent–child attachment relationship and is increasingly recognized as an adverse childhood experience. This paper focuses on a summative program evaluation of the Family Intervention Response to Stop Trauma (FIRST) Legal Clinic in Washington State, a prevention-oriented model providing free, confidential legal advocacy and peer support to pregnant and postpartum parents prior to Child Protective Services (CPS) investigation or court involvement. Administrative data from 2019 to 2025 for 1232 eligible families were utilized to examine eligibility and referral patterns, reasons for ineligibility, and case outcomes. Findings demonstrated that eligible families with known outcomes avoided dependency court involvement entirely or experienced case closure without child removal, while a smaller proportion proceeded to dependency court filings. These findings highlight the need to reduce unnecessary child welfare system entry and mitigate traumatic disruption of the parent–child attachment relationship at birth by providing legal advocacy before investigation and court involvement. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

14 pages, 234 KB

Open AccessArticle

Investing in the Child Welfare System Through the Workforce: Lessons Learned from a Title IV-E Child Welfare Stipend Program

by Yao Wang, Scott D. Ryan, Damone Wisdom, Hui Huang and Catherine A. LaBrenz

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(5), 301; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15050301 - 7 May 2026

Viewed by 321

Abstract

The child welfare system is designed to promote child safety, well-being, and permanency, but the high stress and intensity of cases require a specialized workforce. Using a qualitative case study design, this study explored the perspectives of current and former Title IV-E stipend [...] Read more.

The child welfare system is designed to promote child safety, well-being, and permanency, but the high stress and intensity of cases require a specialized workforce. Using a qualitative case study design, this study explored the perspectives of current and former Title IV-E stipend recipients on their preparation and readiness to actively participate in the child welfare workforce. The research team conducted semi-structured interviews with 10 individuals who had participated in a large Title IV-E stipend program in a southern state during a five-year period (2020–2025). Using applied thematic analysis, four main themes emerged: (1) bridging the classroom-practice gap; (2) professional preparation and development; and (3) experiences and future directions for Title IV-E Programs. We explored implications for Title IV-E policies and programs on specific strategies to best prepare the child welfare workforce so that they can best ensure child safety, permanency, and well-being. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

20 pages, 294 KB

Open AccessArticle

Voluntary Placement of Children into Foster Care: Perspectives of Child Welfare Stakeholders

by JaeRan Kim, Josal Diebold, Annette Semanchin Jones, Laurel Bidwell and Katharine Hill

Soc. Sci. 2026, 15(5), 276; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci15050276 - 22 Apr 2026

Viewed by 607

Abstract

Voluntary placement agreements are a less understood avenue through which children and families receive child welfare services. This article describes a qualitative exploratory study of participants who oversee and engage with children and families utilizing voluntary placement services in two states (n [...] Read more.

Voluntary placement agreements are a less understood avenue through which children and families receive child welfare services. This article describes a qualitative exploratory study of participants who oversee and engage with children and families utilizing voluntary placement services in two states (n = 12). Thematic analysis of interviews revealed voluntary placements are used as a strategy for strengths-based engagement with families, including creative problem-solving, to help obtain resources for youth with emotional and behavioral health needs. Participants also described challenges managing ambiguity regarding the use of voluntary placements and acknowledged limitations and varied outcomes of voluntary placement. Youth in voluntary placements are often overlooked in broader child welfare and foster care practice and policy discussions. Stronger accountability and guidance on voluntary placements are needed to ensure children and families are provided adequate supports to reduce the need for out-of-home placements when possible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy)

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

The Public Child Welfare System: Discourses on Research, Practice and Policy

Share This Special Issue

Editors

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Published Papers (8 papers)

Research

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI