IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/cysrev/v31y2009i4p429-439.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The developmental-ecological approach of Japanese child welfare professionals to supporting children's social and emotional well-being: The practice of mimamori

Author

Listed:
  • Bamba, Sachiko
  • Haight, Wendy

Abstract

This paper illustrates a cultural-developmental approach to the study of child welfare. It describes in cultural context everyday socialization beliefs and practices through which Japanese child welfare workers attempt to support the well-being of maltreated children. Through repeated individual and focus group interviews, naturalistic observations, and an intervention, three interrelated concepts emerged: Ibasho (a place necessary to psychological well-being where one feels peace, security, acceptance and belonging), anshin-kan (a sense of security), and mimamori (the practice of watching over others carefully as a protective figure) as significant to adults in their practice with maltreated children. Adults emphasized the importance of children's feeling of anshin in creating their Ibasho within the institution. Adults' mimamori of children was commonly described by participants and documented during participant observation. Mimamori as an everyday socialization practice is fundamentally developmental and ecological. It creates a socially and emotionally supportive context which provides children with developmental opportunities including to find their Ibasho. Deep emotional commitment to children and accepting relationships were viewed as necessary to successful mimamori, and were prioritized over direct interventions to support children's well-being. Implications for U.S. child welfare research and practice are discussed including the opportunity to step outside of that which we take for granted to strengthen developmental and ecological considerations in child welfare within our own pluralistic society.

Suggested Citation

  • Bamba, Sachiko & Haight, Wendy, 2009. "The developmental-ecological approach of Japanese child welfare professionals to supporting children's social and emotional well-being: The practice of mimamori," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 429-439, April.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:31:y:2009:i:4:p:429-439
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190-7409(08)00237-5
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Haight, Wendy & Jacobsen, Teresa & Black, James & Kingery, Linda & Sheridan, Kathryn & Mulder, Cray, 2005. ""In these bleak days": Parent methamphetamine abuse and child welfare in the rural Midwest," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(8), pages 949-971, August.
    2. Bamba, Sachiko & Haight, Wendy L., 2007. "Helping maltreated children to find their Ibasho: Japanese perspectives on supporting the well-being of children in state care," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 405-427, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bamba, Sachiko & Haight, Wendy, 2009. "Maltreated children's emerging well-being in Japanese state care," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(7), pages 797-806, July.
    2. Sheridan, Kathryn & Haight, Wendy L. & Cleeland, Leah, 2011. "The role of grandparents in preventing aggressive and other externalizing behavior problems in children from rural, methamphetamine-involved families," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(9), pages 1583-1591, September.
    3. Lewandowski, Cathleen A. & Hill, Twyla J., 2008. "The impact of foster care and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) on women's drug treatment outcomes," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(8), pages 942-954, August.
    4. Haight, Wendy & Ostler, Teresa & Black, James & Sheridan, Kathryn & Kingery, Linda, 2007. "A child's-eye view of parent methamphetamine abuse: Implications for helping foster families to succeed," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 1-15, January.
    5. Wilson, Samita & Hean, Sarah & Abebe, Tatek & Heaslip, Vanessa, 2020. "Children’s experiences with Child Protection Services: A synthesis of qualitative evidence," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    6. Meays, Brittney M. & Simpson, Jamie L. & Ramos, Athena K. & Bevins, Rick A. & Carlo, Gustavo & Grant, Kathleen M., 2019. "Children exposed to methamphetamine in settings where the drug is being used," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 1-1.
    7. Cushing, Gretta & Samuels, Gina Miranda & Kerman, Ben, 2014. "Profiles of relational permanence at 22: Variability in parental supports and outcomes among young adults with foster care histories," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 73-83.
    8. Lloyd, Margaret H. & Akin, Becci A., 2014. "The disparate impact of alcohol, methamphetamine, and other drugs on family reunification," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 72-81.
    9. Haight, Wendy L. & Carter-Black, Janet D. & Sheridan, Kathryn, 2009. "Mothers' experience of methamphetamine addiction: A case-based analysis of rural, midwestern women," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 71-77, January.
    10. Haight, Wendy & Marshall, Jane & Hans, Sydney & Black, James & Sheridan, Kathryn, 2010. ""They mess with me, I mess with them": Understanding physical aggression in rural girls and boys from methamphetamine-involved families," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(10), pages 1223-1234, October.
    11. Robertson, Anne S. & Haight, Wendy, 2012. "Engaging child welfare-involved families impacted by substance misuse: Scottish policies and practices," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(10), pages 1992-2001.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:31:y:2009:i:4:p:429-439. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/childyouth .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.