young people's perspectives on recognising and telling about abuse and neglect
TRANSCRIPT
Young People’s Perspectives on
Recognising and Telling about Abuse and NeglectJeanette Cossar
University Of East Anglia, Norwich
Funded by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for England
Research team
Jeanette CossarMarian BrandonSue BaileyPippa BeldersonLaura Biggart University of East Anglia
Darren Sharpe Anglia Ruskin University
Anabel Acheampong Aundre BoudierDarrel Fritz-CampbellJoshua SnapeReece ThibouBen Thrower Young Researchers
Research Aims
• To examine young people’s perceptions of abuse and neglect, and to explore their experiences of telling and getting help from both informal and formal sources
• To use this knowledge to make suggestions for practice which would improve access to support following abuse
Strands of the study• A structured literature review about children’s and
young people’s recognition and disclosure of abuse.• A content analysis of an online peer support site
where young people post and respond to problems involving abuse and neglect (261 ‘threads’).
• An interview study with thirty vulnerable young people, aged between 11 and 20.
• Six focus groups with children and young people, parents and practitioners involved in working in different tiers of services for young people.
RECOGNITION TELLING HELP
RECOGNITION
TELLING
HELP
Help
Related to cause
Help Related to symptoms
FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING RECOGNITION, TELLING and HELP
• Recognition linked with age. Neglect harder to recognise than other types of abuse.• Partial recognition - an emotional awareness that things were not right, before being able to articulate it to self or others. • Gradual understanding not a sudden epiphany. Growing realisation, alongside lack of awareness of how to change the situation, could mean the child stayed vulnerable.
RECOGNITION
I think he is old enough to kind of understand a little bit maybe, but I think he is kind of young, like too young to know what to do
I believe every word said by my mum that I’m no good, that I’m useless, that I’ve done everything wrong
• Hidden: actively avoid telling, passive• Signs and Symptoms: externalising, internalising,
trigger incident• Prompted: in response to expression of concern• Purposeful: child seeks out professional
TELLING
I lashed out on him, a year’s worth of anger… he ended up
in hospital and I ended up getting in trouble
I never told anyone, because I felt that what I was going through didn’t count as abuse
Symptoms: •Often time limited, but could be helpful.
Cause: •Sometimes an immediate and effective helping response where issue was clear from the beginning.•Sometimes underlying issues of abuse became gradually apparent through provision of holistic support services which allowed relationships to build over time.
HELPHelp
Related to cause
Help Related to symptoms
I find it hard to open up about things like that… but [the youth worker] learned me.
I could speak to her [teaching assistant] and not feel like she was laughing at me.
Sara aged 13
No Recognition Partial recognition
Clear Recognition
Hidden
Trigger pointSigns and symptoms
Prompted Purposeful
RECOGNITION
TELLING
HELP
Help
Related to cause
Help Related to symptoms
Partial recognitionThat it wasn’t right to be at home by herself age 13.
HiddenPassive: Says she would have told if
she had been asked.
DEAD END
I was a bit to myself… I think that it is why no one knew anything because I was always the same
Signs and symptoms
Violence
HelpRelated to symptoms: school based
anger management sessions
Dead end (time limited)
They focused more on your school uniform than who you are
RecognitionShe is raped –
immediate recognition
HiddenActively avoids telling
PurposefulTries to get help –
contacts police
DEAD ENDAttempt to seek help
dismissed
it didn’t work out the way I wanted it to so I don’t think I will go back to the police
Signs and symptomsShe becomes
homeless
HelpRelated to symptoms:
She is referred by Housing to a voluntary organisation working with young people
Sara, aged 15Sara, aged 17Sara, aged 19Pathways: Sara
EffectivenessTrustDuration Closeness
Intervention Related to cause:1. Police involvement re. DV2. Police involvement re. sexual abuse3. Involvement of further support (teacher, counsellor, social worker)
InterventionRelated to symptoms
Gemma, aged 14
RECOGNITION
TELLING
HELP
Intervention
Related to cause
Intervention Related to symptoms
Pathways: GemmaGemma, aged 16
InterventionRelated to causeMum gets social worker involved
I was like, I have got to speak to somebody because it was just killing me
it took me a while to realize that I don’t want to be here
I shouldn’t have left my family, because he was no better than what
I went through in my younger life
Implications for Practitioners• Do not rely unduly on children and young people
telling verbally about abuse and neglect.• Be mindful that telling is emotionally difficult, and
may be delayed and tentative.• Young people may be encouraged to talk by a
sensitive but persistent response from a trusted professional.
• Recognition may come as a result of receiving help rather than being a precursor to telling.
Using the framework• Helps professionals to consider that a young person who
comes to their attention because of their behaviour might be experiencing underlying problems.
• Helps professionals to understand different types of telling and highlights the importance of a professional’s response.
• Looking at pathways helps professionals to understand a young person holistically, looking at their past experience both of life in their family and of service provision.
• Draws attention to the needs of young people who may be well known to services but who may still need help to recognise and talk about what has happened to them.
https://www.uea.ac.uk/centre-research-child-family
‘It takes a lot to build trust’. Recognition and Telling: Developing earlier routes to help for
children and young people.
Available at http://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/content/publications/content_747