Intercountry Adoption Victoria Assessment Standard No.7 Child Wellbeing (Behaviour Management)

IAV Assessment Standard No. 7 Child Wellbeing (Behaviour management)

Intercountry Adoption Victoria (IAV)

(a) 1. Scope

This standard should be read in conjunction with the Intercountry Adoption Victoria(IAV) Manual and other IAV Assessment Standards This standard applies to all employees of IAV, contractors to IAV and applicants to the IAV at each stage of the IAV process including application, assessment and post placement support.

(b) 2. Relevant Legislation

Section 35e of the Adoption Regulations states: e) the applicants have the capacity to provide a stable, secure and beneficial emotional and physical environment during a child's upbringing until the child reaches social and emotional independence; IAV is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all Intercountry children placed through the service. IAV recognises that a child’s previous experience influences what they need in their emotional environment.

(c) 3. Background

Opinions are divided on whether corporal punishment or spanking is helpful or harmful to a child's behaviour. Public attitudes towards the acceptability and effectiveness of spanking vary a great deal by nation and region. While corporal punishment has been made illegal in some countries, it is legal in Australia so long as it is deemed reasonable. The research about the impact and effectiveness of corporal punishment generally is also divided. Children adopted from overseas however should not be compared to children brought up in other circumstances. These have frequently experienced very significant trauma in their lives and usually have very complex needs. These children may have experienced abuse, neglect or trauma in their backgrounds. They have also experience a variety of care arrangements. While there are conflicting views about corporal punishment generally, there is clear evidence that corporal punishment is likely to be harmful for children who have been in alternative care or suffered abuse. These children are more likely to experience threat than discomfort. All children have a right to feel safe, and need to be cared for in an environment which maximises their capacity to develop a secure attachment to their new parents.

A clear plan in relation to strategies is important as these children are likely to display challenging behaviours. The types of behaviour that children adopted from overseas commonly exhibit are derived from the emotional damage associated with their early life experiences. Such behaviours can include a range of the following: indiscriminate affection with strangers, demanding and clingy behaviour, anxious behaviour, highly co-operative behaviour, engaging or charming behaviours in a superficial way, difficulties with eye contact, destructive and hoarding tendencies, lying and deceitful behaviours and aggressiveness.1 It is important for these types of behaviours to be understood in the context of the child’s early experiences. The focus of parenting an adopted child should be therapeutic in nature and responsive to the specific needs of the child. The prime role of the adoptive parents is to assist the child to manage difficult emotions and feelings and to help the child heal, develop and grow. Research has shown that many children, when placed in an adoptive home that provides appropriate parenting, are able to learn, how to engage in and benefit from the dyadic experiences provided by the new parent2. For children who have been much more traumatised and compromised in those aspects of their development that require these dyadic experiences, it is likely that they will have much greater difficulty responding to their new parents. For these children, experts believe that models of parenting and treatment that are focused on facilitating attachment while at the same time helping the child to resolve past traumas are the most beneficial.3 Significant support to families in relation to effective and positive child rearing practices is available through IAV, Parent Support Groups, the Post Placement Support Service and other community professionals. There is also significant reading material available to assist parents with appropriate strategies to assist with the care of a child with complex needs.

(d) 4. Requirements

4.1 Use of Corporal Punishment When assessing prospective parents, the assessing worker should examine: applicants understanding of the impact of corporal punishment on a child who has been in alternative care or has been abused the strength of the applicants other behavior management strategies applicant’s commitment to not use corporal punishment. This may include asking applicants to make an undertaking. IAV will educate applicants to the program about this approach during formal education, assessment and post placement work with adoptive families.

4.2 Development of Trauma Informed Practices

Recommended Parenting Approach: Daniel Hughes: PACE Model IAV encourages adoptive parents to utilise the Daniel Hughes model of PACE (playfulness, acceptance, curiosity and empathy) in responding and interacting with their adopted children. The foundation of these interventions must incorporate the above principles and never involve coercion, threat, intimidation or the use of power to force submission. This model is a relationship-based approach to build trust in order for the child to feel secure and understood and requires ongoing reciprocal experiences between parent and child.4 IAV will educate applicants to the program about this approach during formal education, assessment and post placement work with adoptive families.

1 Federici, R. (1998). Help for the hopeless child: A guide for families with special discussion for assessing and treating the post institutionalised child. 2 Hughes D. (1997) Facilitating developmental attachment: The road to emotional recovery and behavioral change in foster and adopted children. 3 Hughes D. (1997) Facilitating developmental attachment: The road to emotional recovery and behavioral change in foster and adopted children. 4 Hughes D. (1997) Facilitating developmental attachment: The road to emotional recovery and behavioral change in foster and adopted children. Time Out Timeout that involves a physical separation of the child from the adoptive parent is not considered appropriate for children who have been recently adopted, for children who have ongoing separation anxiety from their adoptive parents or for children who are still forming an attachment with their adoptive parents. IAV encourages adoptive parents to employ a variation of timeout that does not involve physical separation of the child from the parent. Such examples include having the child sit close-by the adoptive parent to calm down; or, for the adoptive parent to calmly hold the child when the child is in an out of control state in order to assist the child to regain control and regulate their distress.

Verbal Chastisement Similarly children who experienced institutional care or abuse may be affected more significantly by severe verbal chastisement and what may be acceptable for other children, in this circumstance is verbal abuse.

(e) 5. Resources and Support

Contact Details Intercountry Adoption Service. 20/570 Bourke Street Melbourne. Victoria 3000. Telephone 8608-5700 or 1300 769 926. Permanent Care and Adoptive Families (PCAF) www.pcaf.org.au Hughes D. (1997) Facilitating developmental attachment: The road to emotional recovery and behavioral change in foster and adopted children. ‘From isolation to connection: A guide to understanding and working with traumatised children and young people’. Office of the Child Safety Commissioner Victoria. http://www.ocsc.vic.gov.au/downloads/isolation-to-connection-september-2009.pdf ‘Realistic Expectations: the first twelve months’ Publication by emk press. http://www.emkpress.com

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This document is available as a Word document on the internet at: www.dhs.vic.gov.au/about-the-department/documents-and-resources/policies,-guidelines- and-legislation/intercountry-adoption-service-assessment-standards

Authorised and published by the Victorian Government, 1 Treasury Place, Melbourne. December 2015