Paper
An approach for the link between social levels and child maltreat-ment by social network analysis
- issue: Issue 2 / 2009
- authors: Gillonne Desquesnes
- keywords: social network, social level, France
- views: 3767
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abstract
Context and purpose. The aim of this study is to understand better the links between child maltreatment and social levels through social networks. If social networks in which families are integrated ensure individuals all supports they need, social networks should be so taken into account in the evaluation of the intervention for vulnerable families.
The relationship between social levels and child maltreatment still remains a polemic issue. Research on maltreatment, lead since about thirty years, does not really succeed to settle the question. Is this problem associated with lower social class or does child maltreatment permeate all social levels ? These two viewpoints are finally matched to the main paradigms most frequently used to explicate child maltreatment. These are the ecosystemic or sociological paradigm versus the psychopathological or medical paradigm. Furthermore, it seems that child maltreatment is a particularly vague notion and that fact contributes to the polemic. Child maltreatment is an extensive notion that includes acts and behaviours totally heterogeneous. We can see this conceptual extension through semantic changes in the new law related to child protection, adopted in march 2007 in France, words like "child maltreatment" are systematically replaced by "children in danger or in risk of danger".
We choose to focus attention on social networks to understand better relationship between child maltreatment and social level, social networks analysis is considered as a tool to measure social contacts between individuals and also as a theoretical framework. Different researches have actually shown the role played by social networks in the apparition of child maltreatment or child neglect (Coohey, 1996; Salzinger and al., 1983). We know too that personal networks are socially very variable. So we state the following hypothesis: personal network, used as social indicator, should, by the similar networks characteristics, gather together abusive families.
Methods and sample. We have conducted in-depth interviews in thirty families, these mothers or/and father interviews were made up of two parts. In the first part was examined the life history and life context of the family. Major risk factors for child maltreatment were included in the schedule interview. The second part of the interview concerned personal social network: first we asked the person to describe her personal social network (number and variety of persons, number of contacts, geographical proximity...). Secondly, we focused attention on the function of these ties (type of support given/received...).
Interviews were next transcribed and analysed: we used a content analysis on the biographic discourse and a social network analysis on the relational data.
These interviewed families were families involved with French child protection services according to the decision of a juvenile court judge and were chosen by ours contacts in different services according to two factors: presence of child maltreatment whatever its form and also social level according to parental occupation. The sampling had to over represent middle class families for they are few among child protection services users.
Results. The results given are our first research results. Content analysis of mothers and fathers interviews shows negative and traumatic events in the childhood of mothers and/or fathers, instability and violence by partner in matrimonial course more or less according to the social levels. Alcohol, depression and pregnancy problem were most often evoked.
Social network analysis reveals some small personal networks composed with immediate family members and frequently conflictual strong ties between family members. Note that the social worker is sometimes included in the personal network. Personal networks can also be heterogeneous and integrate a set of friends, it is not only the case of the middle social level personal networks. We are wondering about the fragility and the real support of these personal networks.
Recommendations. As Corbillon underlines (2000), interventions for vulnerable families in France observe and integrate poorly social personal network, if they do at all. Professionals in charge of these families miss the resources provided by social network.
For future research, it would be interesting to collect different personal networks for a same family at different time of her life course.
Key references
Coohey C., Child maltreatment : testing the social isolation hypothesis, Child abuse and neglect, 1996, 20, 3, 241-254.
Corbillon M., Réseau social et interventions socio-éducatives, Les sciences de l'éducation, pour l'ère nouvelle, vol. 33, n°4, 2000, 135-157.
Salzinger S., Kaplan S., Artemyeff C., Mothers'personal social networks and child maltreatment, Journal of abnormal psychology, 1983, 92, 1, 68-76.
Contacts: Gillonne Desquesnes, Mrsh - Centre Maurice Halbwachs, Equipe Dyreso, Université de Caen Basse-Normandie, Esplanade de la paix, 14032 Caen, Tel. +33 2 31566551/+33 6 14602817 gillonne.desquesnes@unicaen.fr / gillonne.desquesnes@orange.fr