But you should see their families

Authors

  • Andy Bilson
  • Galina Markova

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1921/swssr.v12i3.458

Keywords:

<i>child abandonment</i>, <i>institutional care</i>, <i>countries in transition</i>, <i>Bulgaria</i>, <i>Roma</i>

Abstract

The use of institutional care in countries in transition to capitalist economies in Eastern Europe and Central Asia continues to grow. This paper shows how common understandings of reasons for entry to care that blame parents lead to policies that are unable to address the situation of children and families. Effective social policy needs to find ways to see the predicaments of parents and overcome the blindness that can be induced by prejudice and ideology. The paper demonstrates how a small research project involving Roma women as researchers in Bulgaria was able to make parents visible and challenge commonly held views leading to the development of an effective local alternative to residential care.

References

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Published

2012-12-26

How to Cite

Bilson, A., & Markova, G. (2012). But you should see their families. Social Work and Social Sciences Review, 12(3), 57-78. https://doi.org/10.1921/swssr.v12i3.458