Extended childhood" and "extended parenthood" challenges in Norwegian Child welfare

Aftercare and transition from the child welfare service to the social welfare service system, has in recent years been raised as a research theme in social work. In a broader perspective includes that also a focus on youths’... [ view full abstract ]

Aftercare and transition from the child welfare service to the social welfare service system, has in recent years been raised as a research theme in social work. In a broader perspective includes that also a focus on youths’ need of help and support from their parents in young adult years. The term “extended childhood” is one way to describe this phenomenon. If the youths shall have the opportunity to participate in such an extended childhood, it requires that someone is willing to undertake an “extended parenthood”.

Research from different countries indicates that youth who has been under care by the child welfare service seem to get less support form their own family and network than other youths.
In Norway are there few young people who receives support after twenty years of age, despite that the Law of Child Welfare Services opens for aftercare until twenty threeyears of age. In a time where the organization of public welfare is influenced by new public management has the services focused on effectiveness, cost and throughput. In a social work perspective is it interesting to look at the transition period, and the youth as service users in that period.

This presentation is based on a study of youths who have been placed in institution in accordance with section 4.24 regarding Law of Child Welfare Services, and their experiences with the transition from the institution to a more stable and independent state of living. The study is based on semi-structured in-depth interviews with seventeen youths about their experiences, and a review of documents from the county social welfare board case’s, as well as the child welfare documents following the county social welfare board case’s.
We will focusing of the terms “extended childhood” and “extended parenthood” and see how the child welfare services’ “decision-based parenthood” creates challenges regarding the youths’ wishes to engage in an extended childhood past the age of twenty. Finding from our study shows on the one hand the youths’ wish for continued support, and on the other hand, the ways in which the child welfare services choose to terminate this support. Youth who needs further support are transferred to the social welfare system (NAV).
Youth who have been placed in an institution in accordance with section 4.24 regarding Law of Child Welfare Services, will as a result of complex problems maybe meet greater challenges in the transition to adulthood compering with other young people who has been under care by the child welfare service. Meanwhile, will questions like how long the child welfare should be involved, and what kind of measures Child Welfare Services shall provide, be relevant for all children in Child Welfare Services as approaching eighteen years of age. Our analysis suggests that terms such as “extended parenthood” and “decision -based parenthood”, can be usefully implemented in the discussion of aftercare in the child welfare services.