Navigating emotions in child welfare: Immigrant parents’ experiences and perceptions of involvement with child welfare services in Norway

Memory Jayne Tembo - International Social Work

Abstract

This study explores immigrant parents’ emotional experiences in child welfare services as well as parents’ emotional management and their interpretations of the role of emotions in the child welfare system. The analysis revealed that strong negative emotions dominate parents’ experiences and correspond to immigrant-related challenges and factors associated with child welfare involvement. The study suggests that parents perceive that the way child welfare workers interpret their emotions affects the decisions the workers make and how the parents are perceived during the case. The study further highlights ways that parents manage their emotions during cases to prompt favourable outcomes.