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The Intergenerational Continuity of Adversity and Resilience (IN-CARE) Project

Projectomschrijving

IN-CARE project: De intergenerationele overdracht van kwetsbaar ouderschap

Vraagstuk

Het krijgen van een (eerste) kind is een ingrijpende gebeurtenis. De uitdaging waar (jonge) ouders voor staan is vaak nog groter voor ouders die zelf een kwetsbare achtergrond hebben, zoals ouders die opgegroeid zijn in een instabiele of onveilige thuissituatie. Dit kan leiden tot problemen bij opvoeden en het opgroeien van het kind.

Onderzoek

Het IN-CARE Project richt zich op de mogelijke gevolgen van kwetsbaar ouderschap voor ouder en kind. Er wordt een groep ouders gevolgd die in hun jeugd behandeld is geweest in de gesloten Jeugdzorg. We volgen ouders en kinderen over de jaren heen en betrekken zelfs meerdere generaties.

Verwachte uitkomst

Het doel is dat er bij afronding van het onderzoek meer kennis is over de onderliggende mechanismen en intergenerationele overdracht van kwetsbaar ouderschap. Deze kennis wordt vertaald naar de hulpverleningspraktijk en de opleiding van toekomstige professionals, zodat er interventies ontwikkeld kunnen worden om deze cyclus te doorbreken.

Contact

Mocht u in contact willen komen met dit project, dan kunt u mailen naar: v.vander.geest@vu.nl.

Verslagen


Samenvatting van de aanvraag

The transition to parenthood is a life-changing event for most individuals. It poses a new challenge for first-time parents, the challenge being even greater for young parents who are more vulnerable. These vulnerable parents, who experience difficulties in different life domains (e.g. a lack of social support, socio-economic resources, or psychological and behavioral problems), are not able to provide the optimal peri- and postnatal circumstances for their child. Research has indicated that difficult transitions to parenthood may have long-term negative outcomes for both parents and their children, but not many studies have analyzed the determinants of vulnerable parenthood (including both risk and protective factors), the long-term (intergenerational) outcomes of vulnerable parenthood, nor the factors that may foster (intergenerational) resilience. As a consequence of this knowledge gap, available interventions to support the most vulnerable parents are not evidence-based and may not effectively prevent intergenerational transmission of adversity. The overarching project aim is to not only advance theoretical knowledge on intergenerational transmission, but also yield knowledge that is relevant for practitioners working with vulnerable parents. It uses a high risk “clinical” sample of care-leavers from secure out-of-home care (OHC) facilities, because this is a group that is at high risk of transmitting adversities to next generations, and it compares the outcomes to a low-risk control group. The project will apply longitudinal, multi-generational and prospective follow-up research to identify the risk and protective factors associated with vulnerable parenthood and long-term child outcomes. Additionally, we will administer in-depth interviews with parents about their experiences. In doing so, we will be able to identify the mechanisms that underlie the intergenerational transmission of adversity, as well as the mechanisms that underlie resilience despite adversity, and subsequently this knowledge will be crucial for the development of interventions that target parenting support for these parents more effectively. The project’s plan of action constitutes of two phases. In the first phase, institutional client files of OHC facilities will be used to collect anonymous information about former secure OHC pupils’ childhood experiences, behavioral problems and family circumstances. Subsequently, data from Statistics Netherlands will be used to add demographic information and information about care involvement (including youth care) on subjects (generation 2), their parents (generation 1) and their children (generation 3). For mothers in generation 2, public health services data around birth care and birth will be collected from Perined (also available at Statistics Netherlands). All findings will be compared to a matched low-risk control group. In the second phase, we will conduct in-depth follow-up interviews with individuals who have left secure facilities, using a life-history calendar to reconstruct their lives before and after leaving OHC, focusing on life-course transitions and in particular the transition to parenthood. In addition, a small number of case studies will be carried out to prospectively follow individuals after their stay in an OHC facility. In this project, science and practice are deliberately connected: a connection that we believe is of great importance. We are convinced that fundamental and rigorous research methods can and should be used to serve and guide practice, and in our opinion, the project also provides a unique opportunity to train a PhD candidate to combine fundamental research with policy and practice, and thereby develop a more sustainable line of practice-oriented research in the future. Host institution VU/NSCR provides an excellent institutional environment for a PhD with ample PhD training opportunities. Also, the main applicants both have excellent track records and extensive experience in supervising PhD projects. The strong interdisciplinary project consortium of scientists, practitioners and institutions of applied sciences guarantees implementation of the project’s findings in the training of professionals. The Department of Social Work of University of Applied Sciences Leiden (Hogeschool Leiden), as well as the Department of Midwifery Sciences at the University of Applied Sciences in Groningen (InHolland) will actively engage in developing special educational programs for future professionals, based on the findings of the current study. Last but not least, youth care facilities will take part in the project, both by providing access to in-depth information from the institutional files and by reaching out to practitioners in order to involve them in the project. From the start, a group of experienced experts who spent part of their youth in secure residential facilities will take part in the project and collaborate in preparing the interviews and disseminate findings.

Kenmerken

Projectnummer:
554002001
Looptijd: 73%
Looptijd: 73 %
2021
2025
Gerelateerde subsidieronde:
Projectleider en penvoerder:
dr. V.R. van der Geest
Verantwoordelijke organisatie:
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam