Academic literature on the topic 'Separation (Psychology) Australia'

This paper addresses the issue of contact centres, which have evolved to address the needs of children and parents affected by separation and divorce. The author notes the emergence of contact services in Australia and the establishment of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Children’s Contact Services (ANZACCS). The bulk of the paper outlines the development of children contact centres in France, summarises findings from the evaluation of 10 centres, and describes examples of three different French contact centre models. Brief summaries are also included of the situation in the UK and the USA. Some suggestions for Australian services are made, including the need for multi-disciplinary working parties in each State and Territory to advise programs.

This study, undertaken for the qualification of BSW(Hons), explored the nature of supports used by non-residential fathers after separating from their children. It was designed to address the perspectives of men who were separated from their children and to explore the supports they used to cope with this separation experience. It acknowledges the complexity and changing nature of the fathering role in Australia today.Data was obtained from semi-structured interviews with men who were encouraged to share experiences in relation to their roles as non-residential fathers. An interpretive perspective and descriptive method used in the design allowed for a deeper understanding of what men experience when separated from their children.The findings demonstrated that the nature and use of supports employed by fathers related to how they experienced separation and managed relationships and contacts with their children. Men used a range of informal and formal supports to manage the often difficult post-separation period and maintain relationships with their children. These findings have implications for social work practice, particularly for understanding the support needs of men when separating from their children. It points also to the need for an increased emphasis on the importance of supports for non-residential fathers.

A number of key authors maintain sibling relationships are absolutely crucial when considering out-of-home care options, while policy derived from theory and practice must guarantee that the best interests of the child(ren) are taken into account. Furthermore, placing siblings together is most likely to be a protective factor against placement breakdown. This being the case, care plans should focus on ensuring sibling connectedness and the maintenance of emotional bonds into adulthood.This paper discusses current out-of-home care policy and practice in Western Australia which incorporates research from (1) attachment theory, (2) family structure, (3) cultural diversity, (4) development, (5) contact, (6) care planning, and (7) long-term care to provide guidance when considering siblings entering the out-of-home care system. The authors contend that this approach improves decision making practice and is consistent with new legislation — the Children and Community Services Act 2004, which is expected to be introduced in Western Australia on 1 March 2006, and which has as its underlying principle the best interests of the child.

Separation and divorce are realities faced by many families. Yet in the case of foster and adoptive families, only a small number of studies have looked at the way such experiences affect them. This article seeks to fill this gap by exploring the nature and consequences of separation and divorce among foster and adoptive families in Australia and the United States. A thematic analysis of primary and secondary data collected by the authors identified three dominant themes: (1) that divorcing foster families experience variable responses from service providers; (2) that some adoptive parents perceive that relationship breakdowns compound adoption-related losses; and (3) that some adoptees challenge the assumption that the nature and experience of separation and divorce among adoptive families is unique. The article concludes by advocating for the provision of clear guidelines for foster and adoptive families experiencing separation or divorce, and highlights the need for supportive community responses to help those affected.

Although the new family law legislation, the Family Law (Shared Parental Responsibility) Amendment Act of 2006, seeks to implement the notion of ongoing and collaborative parenting of children following parental partnership breakdown, separation and divorce, institutional obstacles still prevent the realisation of this policy. The question then arises: can such a model of separation and divorce be achieved? This question is examined through a discussion of a series of studies undertaken by a Monash University research team investigating parents' involvement in their children's schooling following parental separation and divorce. The research, building on a number of small studies carried out in Western Australia, looked at parents' and teachers' views of schools' ability to relate to separated and divorced parents and the wider difficulty of schools managing this family form.

Research on unaccompanied refugee and evacuee children who came to Australia in the late 1930s and early ‘40s sheds light on parenting and caregiving practices which may support children in times of unexpected stress and trauma, and which may help protect them against the lifelong disabling effects such experiences can have. This lifespan retrospective study revealed that, while many children experienced short-term psychosomatic responses to the stress and trauma of separation, war, and persecution, there was a vast difference in effects over the longer term. Factors which may have contributed to this disparity are explored in this paper.

The South Australian foster care system is plagued by problems of both supply and demand. Decreases in the availability of residential care and suitably trained foster carers has led to a shortage of placements to meet current demand. At the same time, increased selectivity in the intake of children into care has led to an over-concentration of more challenging children who either cannot be placed in foster care, or are being placed with the support of significantly higher loadings or payments. In this paper, it is argued that these problems can be understood conceptually using basic micro-economic principles, namely: demand-supply curve analysis, separation of market segments, and supply elasticity. It is argued that the supply of placements has become increasingly price-inelastic due to the nature of demand (the type of child), and that increasing short-term payment rates only serves to magnify the problem by artificially maintaining unsuitable care arrangements. Alternative solutions, such as the introduction of training and professional foster carers, are discussed.

AbstractThe focus of this qualitative study was on separated mother’s (N = 36) lived experiences of mothering in the context of post separation family violence and the Australian family law system. Thematic analysis of interviews was guided by a theoretical framework, this being the Three Planets Model. Analysis of the data resulted in two themes relating to mothering being identified. Firstly, that women demonstrated a mode of protecting rather than parenting indicating that mothering was often undertaken in isolation and fear, within an adversarial family law system, and in the presence of a perpetrator of family violence. The second theme related to the aftermath of separation and the long dark shadow cast by family violence. After having left a controlling and violent relationship, separated mothers reported that there was no opportunity to recover, nor to healthily extricate themselves from family violence, which resulted in cumulative harm not only for their wellbeing but also for their children.

Welcome to the first issue of Children Australia for 2013. We trust you had an enjoyable festive season and are now firmly back into your work/life routines for the New Year. This year Jennifer and I are continuing with our commitment to bring quality research and practice-based commentaries about issues important to children, young people, families and the professionals who work with them. Later in the year we will see a special issue guest edited by Dr Nicola Taylor from the Centre for Research on Children and Families, Otago University, New Zealand. The special issue will focus on matters related to family law, the court system and separation/divorce. In addition to our regular invitation to submit your papers to Children Australia, we invite experts in the field to make contributions to the special issue.

The general aim of this research was to explore issues regarding mediation in family law about which there appears to be uncertainty. Study I investigated: (a) what stakeholders (practitioners and separated spouses) believe the aims of mediation should be; (b) what they believe are the effects of the separation factors, that is, perceived mutuality (whether the decision to separate was made by one or both spouses), perceived status (whether spouses view themselves as Ieavers, lefts or neither), and the attribution and strength of blaming someone for the decision to separate on attitudes towards engaging in mediation; and (c) stakeholders' views of the importance of the attitudinal factors (i.e. hope, expectation and commitment) for reaching agreement. The attitudinal factors were derived from Janis and Mann's (1977) theory of decision making. Study 2 investigated the operation of the separation and attitudinal factors in separated spouses attending mediation and the influence of specific biographical variables on these factors. The biographical variables were duration of separation, duration of marriage, gender and referral type. In Study I, 67 stakeholders (42 practitioners and 25 separated spouses) were of the opinion that spouses learning techniques to be able to resolve future disagreements should be the most important aim of the four aims of mediation suggested to them. Currently, the Family Law Act 1975 does not recognise this aim, though the finding is consistent with contemporary views of what the aim of mediation should be. Stakeholders also agreed that the separation factors substantially affect attitudes towards engagement in mediation and that the attitudinal factors are very important for reaching agreement. These findings are consistent with theories that suggest the separation factors influence engagement in mediation (Brown, 1985; Emery, 1994) and that the attitudinal factors are important for reaching agreement (Weitzman & Weitzman, 2000). In Study 2, 315 separated spouses (160 females, 155 males) attending court ordered (n = 150) and voluntary (n = 135) mediation responded to a questionnaire that sampled their biographical variables and the separation and attitudinal factors. Small significant χ2 measures (p < .001) revealed that the separation factors were associated. Specifically, when separated spouses perceived the decision to separate was non- mutual, they also were likely to perceive themselves as left or leavers. Those in the non-mutual, left group were more likely to blame and the majority of these were males. Analysis of a moderate significant Kendall rank correlation coefficient (p < .001) for the association between hope and commitment and weak/negligible associations between these factors and expectation revealed that separated spouses reported high levels of hope and commitment hut did not necessarily expect to reach agreement. Separated spouses who were court ordered were more likely to blame intensely (r = .24, p < .01), were less committed (w = .14, p < .001) and less expecting (w = .43, p < .001) to reach agreement than those who attended voluntarily. Expectation of reaching agreement was highest within 6 months of the decision to separate, while strength of blame for the decision to separate was most intense in those who were court ordered and those attending mediation within 6 months of the decision to separate. Implications of the findings for policy makers, assessment of separated spouses' readiness to engage in mediation and theory to guide mediation practice are discussed.

The increase in separation and divorce rates during the 20th century brought with it many far-reaching social implications for all involved, sparking a high level of interest among researchers. Most research in this area has been approached from stress frameworks that have conceptualised separation and divorce as a stressful life transition that individuals must adjust to. Yet, attempts to understand separation and divorce to date have been dominated by quantitative methods that have resulted in a relatively static and objective understanding of this experience; particularly in Australia. Furthermore, although international rates of divorce are declining, rates of separation following cohabiting unions are increasing. However, research continues to neglect the voices of formerly cohabiting individuals. Using a qualitative methodology, the current study sought to explore the experience of separation from the perspectives of both formerly married and cohabiting parents in Australia to learn more about how they adjust following this stressful life event. The term ‘separated’ was used to denote relationship dissolution to ensure adequate representation of both formerly married and cohabiting parents. This study was embedded within an interpretivist paradigm and was guided by a phenomenological qualitative methodology. Using Moustakas’ (1994) systematic phenomenological research method, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 55 separated parents ranging in age from 23 to 56 years. Thirty-four parents were formerly married and the remaining 21 were part of cohabiting unions. Of the 25 mothers who participated in the current study, 11 were residential, 5 were non-residential and 9 were shared care parents. Of the 30 fathers involved in the current study, 9 were residential, 11 were non-residential and 10 were shared care parents. Exploration of experiences of the six groups of parents allowed for more robust and rich data. Phenomenological data analysis guided by Moustakas (1994) was used to understand and interpret interview transcripts. Data analyses identified five major themes and related sub-themes that captured the experience of separation and the factors associated with adjustment: uncoupling (including sub-themes of psychological health, family stress, infidelity, and drifting apart); uncoupled (including sub-themes of co-parenting, the economic struggle, loss and loneliness, identity: assumed and assigned, and psychological, emotional, and physical health problems); searching within the self (including sub-themes of personal control, selfregulation, optimism, and healthy living); reaching beyond the self (including sub-themes of connectedness, social support and reaching out, positive employment, constructive coparenting, the parent – child relationship, and loving again); and patterns of adjustment (including sub-themes of the rollercoaster, the ‘time’ factor, and the protective nature of separation). Collectively, findings revealed that the Australian experience of separation began prior to separation and was constantly changing over time. Formerly married and cohabiting parents’ experiences were imbued with stressors frequently identified in research that has adopted dominant stress frameworks, along with numerous personal and environmental resources that lessened the impact of stressors and assisted adjustment following separation. A framework that represents the experience of separation and the factors associated with adjustment was developed based on these five themes. Findings support an understanding of adjustment following separation and divorce that advocates for a paradigm shift away from objective conceptualisations of this experience, towards an understanding of this experience as it is perceived by those who have been through it. Therefore, to only attend to static and objective conceptualisations of separation and divorce as they are experienced by formerly married individuals would be to overlook significant psychological and social elements of the separation and divorce experience. Further research is encouraged with a specific focus on gender, residential status and marital status.

Best interests of the child (BIC) is a construct that is central to legal decisions in several areas including parenting matters in the Family Courts, guardianship, child-protection, and adoption. Despite the centrality of the construct, BIC has not been operationalised (Thomson & Molloy, 2001) and there is little agreement about what is considered best for children within social service and legal communities (Banach, 1998). Given that one of the aims of law is to reflect public sentiment (Green, 1996), the current study explored the general public’s conceptualisation of BIC. More specifically, I sought to determine what community members think the term “best interests” means and what factors they believe need to be considered when determining BIC? A qualitative approach was used and data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Participants (n= 19) defined BIC as parents effectively meeting the developmental needs of children to produce healthy young adults, both physiologically and psychologically. A complex hierarchical model was generated from participant responses that outlined the primary developmental needs of children and sets of conditions and parenting practices that elicit these. Despite the indeterminate nature and vagueness of the BIC standard, the findings from the current study suggest that current legislative practices do reflect public sentiment. Results of this research represented an important step towards a more comprehensive understanding of the BIC concept and endorse existing practices of forensic evaluators. Moreover, embedding gathered information in the context of child development and parenting literature appears essential to the utility of forensic psychological assessments. Finally, the model generated highlights the complexity of BIC and the need for practitioners to be aware of interactions that exist between child development and contexts of the home, community, culture and society.

Transitioning to boarding school during the middle years of childhood impacts upon the social, emotional and academic wellbeing of young people (Bramston & Patrick, 2007; Connell & Wellborn, 1991; Deci, Vallerand, Pelletier, & Ryan, 1991; Earls & Carlson, 2001). Students who live at school as boarders, may experience greater transitional changes in all three components of wellbeing due to the extent of change experienced during this transition. While research addressing transitioning to school has indicated the importance of connectedness to school, bonding, friendships and a sense of autonomy (Eccles et al., 1993), there is limited research addressing the transitioning experiences of boarding students and their families. This mixed methodology study sought to understand how boarding students experience transitioning into boarding school, its possible association with connectedness to the boarding house, reported levels of staff support, loneliness, homesickness and help-seeking for homesickness. Focus groups and interviews were used to better understand how parents experience the transitioning of their children into boarding school. This thesis used data collected from a Healthway funded Starter Grant. The research was cross-sectional by design involving a purposeful sample of 267 students, 59% male and 41% female, aged 12 - 15 years, who lived in one of eight metropolitan and regional boarding settings in Western Australia (WA) in 2011, and 37 of their parents. Data for this project were collected from October, 2010 to September, 2011 The first research question used qualitative data to explore the experiences of boarding parents. Findings suggested parents appeared to be more affected by their children leaving home than did the majority of boarding students. The following strategies were suggested as helpful to support positive transitions: preparing both parents and their children effectively for the move; making contact with other boarding parents at least six months prior to the transition; having meaningful connections with the staff caring for their children communicating and visiting their children regularly; co-developing with their children communication and visiting plans; and, keeping busy. Research questions two to five analysed quantitative data collected through a student survey. The following transitioning activities were found to be either very helpful and / or associated with other benefits (as listed above): tour of the boarding house; sleepover with or without parents; separate information targeting students and parents sent or given to boarding families, up to date information on the Internet; Orientation Day; peer mentors; staff telephoning students prior to transition; and, boarding staff meeting with each family individually on or following Orientation Day. Homesickness was most commonly experienced during the first two weeks of boarding and when students returned after their holidays. Girls, younger students and International students reported experiencing more homesickness. Three factors: psychosomatic symptoms; separation distress; and, grief and loss, best explained how students in this study experienced homesickness. Help-seeking behaviours comprised the factors contacting parents, keeping busy and conversing with staff and students. A number of activities were associated with reductions in both psychosomatic symptoms and separation distress; however, for those students who experienced grief and loss, going on leave with their parents and knowing when their parents would next be visiting or taking them on leave appeared to be the only activities that reduced students’ grief response. Help-seeking was most evident for students who experienced psychosomatic symptoms or feelings of separation distress. Students who experienced grief and loss were less likely to report seeking help. Girls and younger students reported utilising the most help-seeking strategies. The findings of this study and the subsequent recommendations will assist families and staff to better understand the experiences of boarding students and their families as students transition into boarding.