Psychosocial Support

The best form of psychosocial support is a healthy family and supportive environment, preferably in the child's community of origin, or one that is culturally similar. Psychosocial well-being is a product of multiple support, which is rooted in the ability to form healthy relationships and participate in community networks.

However, certain considerations may be required in order to help children and caretakers come to terms with life-changing events, such as the loss of a parent. Separation can be highly stressful for children, particularly if it is unexpected, or repeated. Some children may experience anxiety, attachment problems, sleep disturbances, dependency issues, regression, and a range of other behavioural issues which threaten their mental health and development.

Specific types of support may be required for children suffering from loss, severe or chronic ill health, abuse or exploitation. The child’s experience, age, resilience, and the level of support received from the family and community will determine if a child needs external services. A child is far less likely to experience psychosocial stress if they have good natural support mechanisms and therefore protection efforts should focus on supporting families and communities to help each other.

When psychosocial support is needed, an assessment is important in determining the scope and type of issues, the existing family and community resources, and analysis of how these can be strengthened. Clinical mental health interventions such as therapy, psychiatry or psychological counseling, should only be provided by trained professionals after a clinical assessment and, in all cases, should be culturally relevant.

Psychosocial activities must promote the children’s development and their relationships with others, re-establish routines, increase self confidence and sense of control over their lives. Children’s activities, such as the provision of safe places, group work or referrals to specialists, should be designed around the child’s individual needs, age, gender, and cultural identity. Interventions should be empowering, inclusive, and fully integrated with wider community efforts. Children’s participation is essential in psychosocial work; children should be encouraged to express their opinions, and to have these taken into account.

The literature found here describes the psychosocial effects of separation, and other threats to children such as HIV/AIDS, conflict, abuse and exploitation, and provides guidance and examples of psychosocial interventions.

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The Mental Health and Help-Seeking Behaviour of Children and Young People in Care in Northern Ireland: Making Services Accessible and Engaging

Montserrat Fargas-Malet & Dominic McSherry - The British Journal of Social Work, 12 Jul 2017

This article presents the findings from the Mind Your Health study conducted in Northern Ireland, which analyzes the experiences of young people in care and their carers in accessing and engaging in mental health services.

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The impact of poverty on children in out-of-home care services in a Chinese context and the application of multiple family group therapy to enrich their family lives

Mooly M.C. Wong, Joyce L.C. Ma and Londy C.L. Chan - Children and Youth Services Review, 17 Jun 2017

This article examines the impact of poverty on looked-after children and their families, describes and evaluates the use of multiple family group therapy and other family-based interventions, and reports children's experiences and feedback from the groups.

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Improving outcomes for babies and toddlers in child welfare: A model for infant mental health intervention and collaboration

Susan Chinitz, Hazel Guzman, Ellen Amstutz, Joaniko Kohchi, Miriam Alkon - Child Abuse & Neglect, 13 Jun 2017

This article describes and evaluates a model utilizing Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) to minimize the impact of early trauma for infants and toddlers removed from parental care.

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Building a User-Friendly and Government-Owned Case Management System for Highly Vulnerable Children: The Yekokeb Berhan Program Experience in Ethiopia

Kelley Bunkers & Suzanne Andrews - 4Children/CRS, 01 Jun 2017

This case study describes the coordinated care and case management system for highly vulnerable children and their caregivers implemented by the Yekokeb Berhan program in Ethiopia.

Therapeutic residential care in Spain. Population treated and therapeutic coverage

Eduardo Martín, Carla González-García, Jorge F. del Valle, Amaia Bravo - Child and Family Social Work, 05 May 2017

The goal of this study is to describe the population treated in therapeutic residential care (TRC) facilities in Spain and the therapeutic coverage given.

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The effects of early institutionalization on emotional face processing: evidence for sparing via an experience-dependent mechanism

Audrey Young, Rhiannon J. Luyster, Nathan A. Fox, Charles H. Zeanah, Charles A. Nelson III - British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 04 May 2017

This study employed event-related potentials (ERPs) to examine the neural correlates of facial emotion processing in 12-year-old children who took part in a randomized controlled trial of foster care as an intervention for early institutionalization.

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Protective Factors as Mediators and Moderators of Risk Effects on Perceptions of Child Well-Being in Kinship Care

Ramona W. Denby, Mark F. Testa, Keith A. Alford, Chad L. Cross and Jesse A. Brinson - Child Welfare Journal, 01 May 2017

In this empirical analysis of kinship caregivers and children from the Special Issue on Kinship Care of the Child Welfare Journal, researchers sought to determine the protective factors that mediate against risks and produce optimal levels of child well-being for children being cared for by kinship caregivers in the US.

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“You Can't Run Into a Burning Building Without Getting Burned Yourself”: An Ecological Systems Perspective of Parents Choosing Out-of-Home Care for an Intercountry Adopted Child

JaeRan Kim - Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 01 May 2017

This study explored the experiences of adoptive parents who chose to place their intercountry adopted child in out-of-home care due to the child's disability.

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Signs of reactive attachment disorder and disinhibited social engagement disorder at age 12 years: Effects of institutional care history and high-quality foster care

Kathryn L. Humphreys, Charles A. Nelson, Nathan A. Fox, and Charles H. Zeanah - Development and Psychopathology, 12 Apr 2017

This study examines signs of reactive attachment disorder and disinhibited social engagement disorder at age 12 years in 111 children who were abandoned at or shortly after birth and subsequently randomized to care as usual or to high-quality foster care, as well as in 50 comparison children who were never institutionalized.

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Post-adoption support and interventions for adoptive families: Best practice approaches

Julie Selwyn - German Research Center on Adoption (EFZA) , 2017

This rapid literature review was commissioned by the German Research Centre on Adoption (EFZA) located at the German Youth Institute in Munich (Germany). The overall aim of the review was to consider the support needs of domestic and intercountry adoptive families and the evidence for effective interventions. Step-parent, relative and domestic private adoptions were excluded.