Kay Tisdall

Stigma and Parental HIV

HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) is experienced as a highly stigmatized disease by those with HIV and their families. Moreover, it has been argued that it is the stigmatized nature of HIV that separates it from other chronic illnesses (Bor and Elford, 1998; Geballe and Gruendel, 1995). Drawing from a recently completed qualitative study conducted in Scotland, this article examines the impact of HIV stigma on children and young people with a parent or carer with HIV. The starting point for the research (and for this article) is the perspective of the children and young people themselves. The article gives an account of their understanding of stigma, and explores the different methods that they have adopted to cope with the effects of living with such a stigmatized illness in the family. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of this study for social work policy and practice with children and young people affected by parental HIV.

Reflecting on Children and Young People's Participation in the UK

The article interrogates how children and young peoples participation in public decision-making has been promoted in the UK. It considers critically the reasons typically (and persuasively) put forward for such participation, which can be categorized as: the promotion of childrens rights; alignment with consumerism and service user involvement; enhancing democracy; and developing childrens well-being and development. Each of these reasons can appeal to particular agendas of policy-makers, professionals and other influential adults, to provide room and support for participation. But inevitably each reason has certain advantages and disadvantages, acted out in current trends and accompanying dilemmas in children and young peoples participation activities.

Cross-disciplinary conversation in childhood studies: Views, hopes, experiences, reflections

LEENA ALANEN: Thank you all for agreeing to participate in this Special Anniversary Conversation to celebrate the 25th anniversary of this journal. The theme of this second anniversary conversation is cross-disciplinarity in the study of childhood. To give a sense of context to our discussion could you please describe your career in terms of the academic disciplines which you have traversed. Have there been cross-disciplinary meeting points on the way? CLAUDIO BARALDI: I started my career studying social systems theory. For this purpose, I also looked at different approaches, including systemic theories of physics and life. Without abandoning my primary interest in theory, in a short time I learnt the importance of applying theories to empirical research. In the 1980s, in Italy, adolescents were addressed as an important social issue. Against this background, I started doing research on adolescents’ involvement in informal and formal groups, in collaboration with local administrations. This was an opportunity to focus on adolescents’ participation in groups as communication systems, mixing social systems theory with social psychology and studies on education. At the beginning of the 1990s, I started to focus on the ways in which socialisation may be explained through participation in communication. For this purpose, I analysed different theoretical viewpoints in sociology, communication studies, clinical psychology, social psychology and cybernetics. In the middle of the 1990s, I came across childhood studies during an international conference and research on childhood became my primary interest. I was fascinated by both the idea of exploring the meaning of children’s participation in communication systems, and by the possibility to combine different theoretical approaches in the field of childhood studies, for example, the Reggio approach to early childhood education, the Italian educational experimentation of children’s 760326 CHD0010.1177/0907568218760326ChildhoodAlanen et al. 25th anniversary special section: Conversations2018

440 Diversity, migration and child protection

Background Child maltreatment is a major global public health and safety issue, with short and long term adverse consequences for individuals, communities and society generally. Children and families affected by migration are more vulnerable to maltreatment due to numerous reasons including reduced resources, increased psychosocial pressures, trauma, displacement and bereavement. Policymakers and practitioners sometimes struggle to find a balance between respect for diverse cultural customs and keeping a child safe. Numerous child homicides occur across the world where cultural sensitivity and fear of repercussion meant that early warnings of maltreatment were missed and opportunities to prevent child maltreatment or deaths were lost. At the same time, blanket policies addressing issues particularly pertinent to some migrant children, for example radicalization, female genital cutting, may provoke further distancing between some ethnic groups and services that might address children’s safety needs. Methods An integrative review of child maltreatment reports was undertaken from selected available serious case reviews, child death reports and child protection databases. Major literature on diversity, migration and child protection was examined for critical comment and best practice examples. Relevant policy documents were also scrutinised. Five diverse exemplar case studies were interrogated in depth to consider the linkages between diversity, migration and child protection. Inductive thematic analysis organised emergent themes within a human factors and safety framework. Results Extant literature is myriad, multidisciplinary and diverse. There is a paucity of empirical research addressing the linkages between migration, diversity and child protection. Whilst there is a difference between the needs of refugee and asylum-seeking children and young people and those of settled first or second generations, there are more commonalities than might be thought. Thematic overviews of significant cases illuminate tensions in responding adequately to issues of child maltreatment where cultural difference prevents helpful dialogue in enhancing child safety. Conclusions Migration is a contemporary global issue that can exacerbate child vulnerability to maltreatment. There is a need to tackle issues of diversity head on in order to protect children adequately. Lessons from recent cases have not been learned and whilst potentially uncomfortable, pragmatic guidance is required.