Fostering childrens emotional wellbeing

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Fostering childrens emotional well-being Sheila
Greene Childrens Research Centre, Trinity
College Dublin Presented at the Barnardos
Tomorrows Child Conference November 6th 2008
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What are emotions and how do they develop?
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• A feeling state involving thoughts, physiological
  changes and an outward expression or behaviour
• Evolutionary adaptations, which enhance our
  capacity to experience, evaluate and react to the
  environment (and our interpretations of the
  environment)

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• Basic emotions
• Happiness Interest Disgust Surprise Fear
  Anger Sadness
• Higher order emotions
• Guilt Shame Envy Pride Embarrassment
• Become more differentiated with age and experience

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What are the indicators of emotional well-being
in children?
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Happy? High self-esteem? High self worth? High
self-efficacy? Close bonds to family and
friends? Independent? Copes with challenge and
adversity? Enabled by key competences Capacity
for empathy and sympathy Self-awareness Self-contr
ol/emotional self-regulation Communicating
emotions and needs Need for support
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How does emotional well-being relate to other
aspects of childrens development and
functioning?
Is it important?
Why?
In a major UK survey, adults state that emotional
well-being is more important than income,
physical health and IQ (NCH 2008)
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How are Irish children faring?
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• UNICEF
• An Overview of Child Well-being in Rich
  Countries 2007
• Used 40 indicators
• Average rank for Ireland 10.2
• (Netherlands 4.2 UK 18.2)
• Material Well-being 19
• Health and Safety 19
• Educational Well-being 7
• Family and Peer Relationships 7
• Behaviours and Risks 4
• Subjective Well-being 5

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Is child well-being under threat? UK Long term
underinvestment and a dog eat dog society
Jonathan Bradshaw UK and USA increasing rates of
depression, anxiety and anti-social
behaviour. Modernitys paradox Affluence does
not bring increased well-being Are the factors
supporting childrens well-being being
undermined? Toxic childhoods etc.
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• What do children need ?
• Bronfenbrenner (1990)
• 5 critical processes for a childs positive
• development
• 1.Participation in progressively more
• complex reciprocal activity over an
• extended period with one or more
• persons with whom the child
• develops a strong, mutual, irrational,
• attachment and who is committed
• to the childs well-being and
• development. Every kid needs at
• least one adult who is crazy about him

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• 2. Exposure to an environment that invites
  exploration, manipulation, elaboration and
  imagination
• 3. Emotional support for the childs primary
  caretaker
• 4. Communication and mutual trust between the
  principal settings in which child and parent/s
  live their lives
• 5. Societal support for children and child
  rearing

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What do you think are the most important things
that make life good for young people? 11,000
14-16 year olds in England (2006)

• FAMILY
• FRIENDS
• LEISURE
• 8. MONEY

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How does recent thinking about the nature of
childhood and child agency influence our thinking
about emotional well-being?
Listening to children Recognising agency When
does this start? What do children tell
us? About wanting to be heard About adults not
listening, not being fair and not showing respect
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How do we promote emotional well-being?
As Parents Helping children to modify
temperamental extremes Providing secure
base Acceptance/warmth/sensitivity to this
child Firm boundaries/reasonable demands and
expectations Communication and negotiation
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As Professionals

• Day to day practice supplementing and supporting
  
• parental role, providing another experience of a
  good relationship, caring, educating. Being
  reflective.
• Using programmes
• Parenting
• Promoting pro-social behaviours
• Teaching emotional intelligence
• Managing problem behaviour/anxiety/depression
• Teaching resilience
• And/or alternative approaches e.g. Reggio Emilia

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• How do we assess emotional well-being?
• Distinguishing between transient normative
  emotional changes
• and behavioural/mental disorders
• Psychometrics Child Self-report Adult report
• Simple ratings
• Standardized multi-dimensional scales, e.g.
• Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire
• Rutter Scales
• Accessing childrens subjective worlds.
• Qualitative inquiry
• Parental report
• Observation, engagement and documentation

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What are the pitfallsfor professionals?

• Having a one size fits all approach
• Focusing on childrens deficiencies not their
  strengths. the rich child
• Making relationships artificial/mechanical
• Adopting an overly therapeutic approach
• Intrusiveness
• Overestimatimg what we know

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Every childs right
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Sheila
Greene Childrens Research Centre, Trinity
College Dublin
www.tcd.ie/childrensresearchcentre
www.growingup.ie