Thesis
Participation is not enough: practices associated with giving due weight to the views of children and young people in out-of-home care policy-making in Australia
Southern Cross University
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Southern Cross University
2021
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25918/thesis.203
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Abstract
The obligation to ensure children’s right to express themselves freely and to give due weight to their views in policy decision making is described in Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Despite findings that direct engagement and dialogue are critical for meaningful participation, little is known about what happens when policy actors listen and consider their views in out-of-home care (OOHC) policy-making in Australia. The dearth of evidence risks overlooking the lived experience expertise of children and young people whose lives are affected by child protection, OOHC, and other policy systems. This study used a critical-participatory methodology informed by practice theory, children’s rights and relational accountability. It aimed to identify practices associated with giving due weight in policy-making, arrangements enabling and constraining practice, and young people’s ideas about improving practice.
The study sought to extend participatory research practice by involving co-researchers in each research phase, including design of research methods, data collection, data analysis, knowledge co-creation and dissemination. Five young co-researchers with first hand experience in OOHC were engaged in observing over 100 policy actors in six national and state policy-making sites and interviewing 12 senior policy practitioners in Phase 1. In Phase 2, an eBook practice resource was co-created with co-researchers and shared with over 700 readers. Findings uncovered 14 policy-making practices, including four directly associated with giving due weight: listening and giving serious consideration, feedback and reporting back, amplifying their views and including children and young people as policy actors. Participatory analysis uncovered complex cultural-discursive, material-economic, and socio-political arrangements that enabled contracting out consultation and engaging caseworkers as experts on children and young people’s lives. Arrangements also constrained direct engagement, listening and including children and young people as policy actors.
Improving the practice of giving due weight in participating Australian policy organisations relies on valuing the lived experience of children and young people and engaging in direct and ongoing dialogue with them. Such a dialogue is an opportunity to mobilise trust and relational accountability between policy actors. Beyond participation, giving due weight is an opportunity to activate ethical responsiveness in the organisations that serve children and young people’s welfare, wellbeing and safety for a more child-centred approach to policy practice.
Details
- Title
- Participation is not enough: practices associated with giving due weight to the views of children and young people in out-of-home care policy-making in Australia
- Creators
- Meaghan Vosz
- Contributors
- Mark Hughes (Supervisor) - Southern Cross UniversityAnne Graham AO (Supervisor) - Southern Cross University
- Awarding Institution
- Southern Cross University; Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Theses
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Southern Cross University
- Publisher
- Southern Cross University
- Number of pages
- 325
- Identifiers
- 991013022834102368
- Copyright
- © ARC 2021
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Health
- Resource Type
- Thesis