1. Objectifs

Intentions :
This chapter outlines the three major rationales - a psychological, a sociological, and a power - relationship analysis offered to explain the phenomenon that indicates that poor families are disproportionately higher users of public child welfare services in Canada.

2. Méthode

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse de contenu

3. Résumé

« Of these three [rationales], the first has been the most persistent. It postulates that the poor have a personality set with characteristics ill-adapted for success in our society. The second rationale proposes that economic and social stresses make the poor more vulnerable to personal, familial, and social breakdown. The third analysis focuses on the power relationship between the poor and the social intervention agencies, a relationship which puts the poor at a great disadvantage. […] The residual perspective incorporates the psychological rationale. […] Conversely, the institutional perspective tends to embody the sociological rationale. […] The third explanation of poverty focuses on the power differential between rich and poor. » (p. 53) Ce document peut intéresser les chercheurs qui travaillent sur la famille au Québec puisque des statistiques pour la province du Québec sont présentées.