This article takes a close look at the openings of 12 different Dutch adoption assessment sessions. In the first of a series of 4 adoption assessment sessions, social workers perform different actions that are analyzed in detail. The overall focus is on how contact and relationships are established in …

The objective of this study is to contribute towards understanding how welfare and justice discourses become apparent in institutional conversations where social workers involved in child protection have dual professional identities: that of helper and of gatekeeper. In this article we analyse a specific …

Van professioneel zelfbewustzijn of beroepstrots kan slechts sprake zijn wanneer er bij de beroepsoefenaar ook passie voor het werk aanwezig is. In mijn ogen moet een goede professional van zijn werk houden. Ik wil nog wel verder gaan: een goede professional houdt meer van zijn werk, dan van zijn carrière. …

This thesis is on institutional communication, and focuses in particular on interactional processes between social workers and prospective adoptive parents in assessment procedures for adoptive parenthood. These assessments are conducted in the Netherlands by the Child Protection Board (hereafter CPB). …

Lectorale rede van dr. M. (Martine) Noordegraaf op 24 september 2010. Centraal staat de vraagl: hoe kun je een gesprek hebben in een relatie die professioneel en niet op voorhand vertrouwd is? Hoe leer je als professional om dergelijke gesprekken te voeren? Nog belangrijker: hoe breng je als professional …

In this study we examine how suitability for adoptive parenthood is assessed and displayed in interactions between social workers and prospective adoptive parents. In particular, we have analyzed relationship questions that are put to couples with and without an observation from the social worker. The answers …

Prospective adoptive parents who take part in a Dutch adoption assessment procedure are asked to write down their life stories. In this article we examine how information from the life stories is deleted, selected and transformed into a topic to talk about in an assessment interview and/or to write about …