Listen to thisThere are several key program ingredients which are essential prerequisites for using intervention techniques. In other words, child/youth care workers attempting to use intervention techniques will have a much greater chance of success if they work in youth care programs with similar ingredients to the ones listed below. This does not mean that programs will not have shortcomings or be missing one or more of these ingredients, but it does mean that administrators and staff must be constantly working toward blending similar ingredients into program philosophy and actions.
Commitment to Caring Relationships
Caring
relationships are the most important ingredient in any program for troubled
youths. The "core of care," however, takes time to develop. (Maier, 1979)
The trust, attachment, empathy, compassion and security which comprise the
core cannot be developed through passing encounters with a number of
child/youth care workers. Caring relationships require a commitment to and
from workers. Consequently, in effective programs, administrators express a
strong commitment to the caring role of the worker and support their
commitment with incentives, training and supervision for the workers. The
workers respond by making a commitment to remain with the organization and
by using available resources to continually upgrade their interactions with
the youth.
Developmental Dynamics
The bulk of treatment for
troubled youths will take place in daily interactions among the youths and
the child/youth care workers. When the environment is planned and structured
to emphasize daily interactions which enhance emotional, cognitive and
physical growth, there is no more potent force for helping troubled youths.
When programs ignore or downplay this crucial aspect of treatment, the
youths are short-changed. Effective programs have mechanisms for assessing
youths’ current levels of development and encourage the use of intervention
strategies which begin by meeting needs at assessed levels of development
and proceed by building upon existing strengths and by developing new
strengths.
Planned Daily Activities
Planned involvement in self
care, academic, vocational, and recreational activities is part of the
central focus of successful programs. Troubled youths need extensive
involvement with peers and adults in activities which promote mastery of
daily living skills, develop academic and vocational skills, and enhance
artistic, musical and athletic abilities. These are the activities that most
program managers believe will help troubled youth to be independent, to
problem solve, and to create their own fun and enjoyment. However, program
managers will also agree that these activities can be easily lost in the
shuffle of daily interactions or be interrupted by circular effect behavior.
Therefore, successful programs emphasize advance planning to eliminate as
much confusion and disruption as possible.
Family involvement
Youths need continual involvement
with their families, even youths who come from very disruptive families.
This involvement, however, should not be limited to traditional family
therapy. Family members want to know how to manage, teach, parent, and enjoy
their youths, and most troubled youths need continuous interaction with
their parents and siblings. Therefore, effective programs involve families
in as many child/youth care facets of the program as are reasonably
possible.
Discipline Alternatives to Punishment
Troubled youths
do not need more punishment. If punishment were the answer, most of them
would be exemplary citizens. They have been punished throughout their lives,
many of them physically punished, and even more of them psychologically
punished. Hence, effective programs try to expose youths to the many
discipline alternatives to punishment which have been developed over the
past years. For example, there are discipline techniques which emphasize
self discipline or internal control as an alternative to external punishment
imposed by adults. These alternatives have a much better prognosis for
success, but also require time, patience, and commitment to deliver.
Team Decision-Making
Child/youth care workers are
rarely the sole implementers of an intervention technique. They are usually
part of a team of workers who are responsible for choosing and implementing
intervention techniques for a specific group of children. Teams can be as
large as ten members and as small as two members. Some teams have members
from several departments in addition to the child/youth care department and
other teams have members from only one or two departments. No matter how
small or large the team, the objective is to reach consensus about how to
intervene with each youth in the team’s care. Agreements are obtained by a
majority vote but members of the minority must also be willing to compromise
in order to effectively implement team decisions. One or two members cannot
be resisting or "doing their own thing" or the technique will fail.
Creating a consensus decision-making environment is not easy but it can be accomplished. Programs with effective consensus team decision-making usually have the following characteristics:
there is a strong commitment among administrators to promote professional equality for all team members; in-service training emphasizes teamwork, communication, and reporting and observing skills; working conditions and incentives are comparable for most team members; and all team members have an opportunity to attend team decision-making meetings. (Krueger, 1982)
References
Krueger, M. (1982) Implementation of a
team decision-making model among child care workers. Doctoral
dissertation, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Maier, H. (1979) The
core of care: Essential ingredients for the development of children away
from home. Child Care Quarterly, 8(3), pp.161-173
Krueger, M.A. (1988) Intervention techniques for child/youth care workers. Washington DC: CWLA, pp.11-15
