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Protecting Children and Caring for Families: Re-thinking Ethics for Practice
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Protecting Children and Caring for Families: Re-thinking Ethics for Practice

Maria Harries, Bob Lonne and Jane Thomson
Communities, Children and Families Australia, Vol.2(1), pp.39-48
2007
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http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=293518917253455;res=IELHSSView
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Abstract

Social Work Law Psychology child welfare child abuse moral aspects ethical aspects decision making
In this paper we argue that contemporary risk averse child welfare practice is at risk of relegating decision making to a singular orientation, viz., to a deontological approach, dominated by the highly seductive and indeterminate rights-based 'best interests' principle. It thereby risks consigning other ethical principles to subsidiary positions or disregarding them completely. We posit that a preoccupation with a single principle precludes attention to the wider political context and structural disadvantage, fails to analyse broader outcomes, and is having a deleterious overall effect on children and families. In its place, we present a theoretical model for contemporary ethical decision making in child welfare practice based on recognition of three crucial conceptual elements: competing ethical principles, unequal power relationships and complex stakeholder responsibilities. Finally, while explaining the model's relevance and applicability, we acknowledge tensions for workers in the 'hot' environment in which being seen to follow rules and protect the 'best interests of the child' are seen as political priorities. Any risk of not following procedure is a preoccupying anxiety for workers and their agencies, given the present context in which time and resource constraints and fear dominate practice.

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