World-views of children in residential care seen through the stories they create

Abstract

The present qualitative study aimed at accessing the world-views of four latency age children living in residential care. This was done through a process of storytelling with each of the children. Mooli Lahad's six-piece story making technique, or 6PSM (1991) was used to elicit the stories. The prevalent themes, conceptual categorizations and metaphors created by the children threw light onto how these four children in out-of-home care constructed meaning. A brief interview consisting of one question was then carried out with each child. Before direct research with the children was begun, however, interviews with each child's carer, residential social worker and psychologist were carried out The purpose of this was to obtain information about each child's history and personality. The aim was to obtain a triangulated perspective in order to corroborate the information gained from the stories. A thematic analysis of the stories was carried out by an expert. The themes that emerged were compared with the information obtained through the interviews with the professionals. Results revealed a multifaceted understanding ofthe children's world-views. The children's world views were found to be characterised by fears of separation and loss, feelings of grief, acute awareness of the instability and discontinuity of their lives, a sensitivity towards themes such as family, feelings of ambivalence towards caregivers, and strong beliefs regarding justice, authority and discipline. What also emerged was a consciousness towards elements of positive attachments such as kindness. These themes were found to be in line with what studies reveal regarding the emotional worlds of children living in residential care.