The Relationship between Loneliness, Self-Efficacy, and Satisfaction with Life in Left-Behind Middle School Students in China: Taking Binhai County of Jiangsu Province as an Example

Lei Jiang, Mingyue Liao, Ronghua Ying - Best Evidence in Chinese Education

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between loneliness, self-efficacy, and satisfaction with life of Left-behind middle school students in China.

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Trends in the prevalence and incidence of orphanhood in children and adolescents <20 years in rural KwaZulu-Natal South Africa, 2000-2014

Gabriela Mejia-Pailles, Ann Berrington, Nuala McGrath, Victoria Hosegood - PLoS ONE

In South Africa, large increases in early adult mortality during the 1990s and early 2000s have reversed since public HIV treatment rollout in 2004. In a rural population in KwaZulu-Natal, the authors of this study investigated trends in parental mortality and orphanhood from 2000–2014.

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The impact of parental migration on non-cognitive abilities of left behind children in northwestern China

Han Liu, Fang Chang, Hannah Corn, Yi Zhang, Yaojiang Shi - Journal of Asian Economics

Using survey data consisting of 5002 eighth graders from 160 middle schools in northwestern China, this paper investigates how parental migration affects children’s non-cognitive abilities, as is measured by Big Five components of conscientiousness, extraversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, and openness, as well as children’s grit.

Social Protection & Child Protection: Working together to protect children from the impact of COVID-19 and beyond

The Alliance for Children Protection in Humanitarian Action, UNICEF, Save the Children

This paper presents evidence of how social protection approaches can contribute to child protection outcomes and outlines recommendations which call for strong mobilization and uptake by governments, UN and multilateral development agencies, regional bodies, donors, and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs).

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International Kinship Care Guide

Cross Border Child Safeguarding Working Group, Children and Families Across Borders

This guide is the first of its kind which comprehensively addresses the best practice for placing Looked After Children currently in the UK into the care of a family member(s) who lives in another country.

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COVID-19: Adapting Child Protection Case Management MOOC Follow-Up

MOOC Taskforce

Following thousands of comments and responses posted by the 8,000 course participants for the MOOC on COVID-19: Adapting Child Protection Case Management, as well as research and evidence being issued by child protection agencies, three international experts were invited to provide short videos containing advice and opinions of experts in different regions of the world regarding the need to plan for support for children for the evolving situation of COVID-19 and in particular post-pandemic scenario. 

Social Welfare Workforce Capacity Assessment to develop a long-term capacity building strategy for the social welfare service sector in Ghana

Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, and UNICEF Ghana

This report notes existing gaps and needs in social service provision and provides recommendations for specific actions to strengthen the social welfare workforce in Ghana.

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Data collection on children in residential care: Protocol and tools for a national census and survey on children in residential care

UNICEF

In response to the need for accurate and reliable statistics on children in residential care, UNICEF has developed the first-ever comprehensive methodology to collect data on children living in residential care settings by applying a number of preexisting tools from international survey programmes, such as the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) and other validated instruments, to an institutional population.

Behind the Mask of Care: A Report Based on the Results of the Situation Analysis of Baby Homes in Ukraine

USAID, UK aid, Hope and Homes for Children

This report presents the findings of the 2019-2020 assessment conducted within the Pilot assessment of residential healthcare facilities for children and development of recommendations for reform in five baby homes of Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava and Kherson regions of Ukraine. In addition to the findings from the assessment of baby homes, the report presents results from the region assessments regarding needs in the medical rehabilitation, paediatric palliative care, and social services for children aged 0-6 years and their families. 

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Early Childhood Development Index 2030

UNICEF

The ECDI2030 is a tool, developed by UNICEF, to measure progress toward SDG indicator 4.2.1. It captures the achievement of key developmental milestones by children between the ages of 24 and 59 months. Mothers or primary caregivers are asked 20 questions about the way their children behave in certain everyday situations, and the skills and knowledge they have acquired.

Children in care institutions

Evie Browne - K4D Helpdesk Report

This paper explores the question: What does the literature tell us about how many children worldwide are in institutions/orphanages; how likely they are to be exploited and in which ways; and what interventions are most effective in preventing this?

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Situation Analysis of Children in Uganda - 2019

Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, and UNICEF Uganda, with support from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics

This situation analysis explores multidimensional poverty in Uganda, including an examination of both material and social needs of children – including health care and education, a social and family life, clean and safe drinking water, housing that is not squalid and overcrowded, adequate clothing, and regular meals with sufficient and nutritious food.

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Principle of Subsidiarity - ISS/IRC comparative working paper 1: Spotlight on solutions

International Social Service

Having the best interest principle and taking into account the individual needs of each child in intercountry adoptions, this paper endeavours to promote the two tier approach of the principle of subsidiarity by examining the drafting spirit behind international standards (Section 1), providing examples of legislation and jurisprudence (Section 2) and identifying promising practices (Section 3) that reflect the principle.

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What Works to Protect Children on the Move: Rapid Evidence Assessment

Rachel Marcus, Amina Khan, Carmen Leon-Himmelstine and Jenny Rivett - UNICEF

This rapid evidence assessment (REA) aimed to answer three questions: (1) What interventions have been effective in ensuring the protection of children on the move? (2) What are the implementation factors that make these interventions effective or that hamper effectiveness (for example the context of the intervention, and specific design features such as who is targeted)? and (3) What kinds of social welfare and child protection systems are linked to effective interventions?

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“I Had No Hope, I Had No Help at All”: Insights from a First Study of Fathers and Recurrent Care Proceedings

Georgia Philip, Lindsay Youansamouth, Stuart Bedston, Karen Broadhurst, Yang Hu, John Clifton and Marian Brandon - Societies

This article presents data from the first large-scale study of fathers involved in repeat (or recurrent) care proceedings in England. The study consisted of three elements: an analysis of population-level administrative data from the Child and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS), a survey of fathers in pre-proceedings and care proceedings, and a qualitative longitudinal (QL) study of recurrent fathers.

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Heightened sensitivity to the caregiving environment during adolescence: implications for recovery following early‐life adversity

Natalie L. Colich, Margaret A. Sheridan, Kathryn L. Humphreys, Mark Wade, Florin Tibu, Charles A. Nelson, Charles H. Zeanah, Nathan A. Fox, Katie A. McLaughlin - The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry

This study used data from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project – a randomized controlled trial of foster care for children raised in psychosocially depriving institutions – to examine the associations of the caregiving environment with reward processing, executive functioning, and internalizing and externalizing psychopathology at ages 8, 12, and 16 years, and evaluated whether these associations change across development.

Team Decision-making Service Planning for Children and Adolescents at Risk for Placement Instability: Fidelity and Initial Outcomes

Sonya J. Leathers, Roni Diamant-Wilson, Jill E. Spielfogel, Lee Annes, Amy Thomas, Shirlyn Garrett-Wilson - Children and Youth Services Review

This research focused on a U.S. statewide program that uses team decision-making meetings to identify needs and plan services for youth who are at risk for instability while in foster care.

Examining the Impact of COVID-19 on Parental Stress: A Study of Foster Parents

J. Jay Miller, Morgan E. Cooley & Brittany P. Mihalec-Adkins - Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal

The overarching purpose of this exploratory study was to understand how foster parents’ parenting-related stress levels have changed over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the role of sociodemographic characteristics in exacerbating risk for increased stress.

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Family Law and Policy for LGBTQ Individuals and Families: Adoption, Foster Care, Assisted Reproduction, and Parental Rights

Naomi G. Goldberg and Amira Hasenbush - Politics, Oxford University Press

This article argues that the patchwork of legal protections across U.S. states means that many LGBTQ-headed families lack needed security, stability, and legal recognition.