The Productive Uses of Conflict in Child Protection

Date

2014

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Social Sciences

Abstract

Some child protection cases exemplify a certain kind of cooperative interdependence, a consequence of the ways in which practitioners and clients are entangled. Client and practitioner are “stuck” with each other and need each other to succeed. There is also an intrinsic power imbalance that technique, ideology, and skill cannot hide and that has risks for the well-being and success of the practitioner-client relationship. There is also a risk to the practitioner of biases caused by successful influence. “Productive conflict,” defined as conflict under conditions of cooperative interdependence, may compensate for these challenges and lead to “integrative solutions.” In these cases the conflict itself is a kind of collaboration.

Description

Keywords

child protection, child welfare practice, social interdependence, productive conflict, metamorphic effects of power

Citation

Magnuson, D. (2014). The Productive Uses of Conflict in Child Protection. Social Sciences, 3(4), 672-686.

DOI