Abstract
Clinical social work with low-income single mothers at-risk for physical abuse of their children traverses multiple theoretical perspectives for viewing causality and intervention in order to prevent future abuse. Cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic approaches have figured prominently in the discourse but are often considered as opposing viewpoints. In this paper, narrative excerpts from a study about social workers’ experiences in developing working alliances with these women are used to suggest an integrative theoretical viewpoint for contracting with them to refrain from hitting their children.
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Tempel, L.R. Loosening the Soil of Their Thinking: A Theoretical Integration for Contracting with Low-Income Single Mothers to Stop Physical Aggression Toward Their Children. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 26, 39–48 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-008-0161-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-008-0161-x