Thursday letter 11/07/19
The Kari Killén summer theme part 1
- Kingdom of Killén -
Read previous Thursday letters on
mimeini.blogspot.com
Introducing the summer theme and the sudden change to English
Since last Thursday's letter I have decided to make a whole summer theme about Kari Killén and I have decided to change the language from Danish to English during this time as I believe this topic is of international interest.
I received some interesting feedback on last week's Thursday letter about Kari Killén.
One persons feedback in particular made a strong impact on me. A person who had a thorough knowledge of Killén's life and approach contacted me last week after she had read the Thursday letter and we then had a message exchange that lasted several days.
Last week's Thursday letter received more visits than any other Thursday letter I've made.
I received some interesting feedback on last week's Thursday letter about Kari Killén.
One persons feedback in particular made a strong impact on me. A person who had a thorough knowledge of Killén's life and approach contacted me last week after she had read the Thursday letter and we then had a message exchange that lasted several days.
Last week's Thursday letter received more visits than any other Thursday letter I've made.
- Kingdom of Killén -
This week's post will try to give the reader an impression of just how influencial Killén's theories have been on all aspects of the child welfare system in the Nordic countries.
Let me start with a statement.
My claim is that when a child is taken into care in Denmark or when legal decisions are made about keeping a child in care, it is not really the written law that is used as a foundation for the decision, it is in reality an assessment of Killén's theories that the decision is based upon.
If this is true, it says something about how influencial Killén's theories are in Denmark.
We are dealing with a theory that in practice has become a law.
I would like to point out some areas within the field of the child welfare system where I see significant influence from Kari Killén's theories.
A few weeks ago, journalist and social worker Puk Sabber, through a Facebook status, led me on the track of two documents that the Danish social authorities had released explaining how to find legal evidence for adoption without consent. I´ve linked the two documents below. They are in Danish.
Adoption without consent - a guidance and inspiration material for case managers
Adoption without consent - nine methods for identifying parenting ability
Both of these documents represent a concept that is almost identical to Killén's theory. Killén is even mentioned as inspiration in one of them.
In my own journey through the system as a parent, nothing has hurt me more than the first comprehensive "parental capacity assessment" that I went through.
It was not the fact that the authorities decided to take my children into care that hurt me, it was the human devaluation that I experienced during the "parental capacity assessment".
I have spent a long time trying to understand and analyze which criteria these assessments are based upon and why they are as they are.
When I encountered Killén's lectures and publications I could see where the entire concept of this "parental capacity assessment" arrived from. Almost every part of it was described in Killén's material.
Last week I cited journalist and social worker, Puk Sabber, who wrote that Killén's book "Child neglect is everyone's responsibility" is the absolute central book in the Danish social worker's education when it comes to the area of children. The same applies in Norway. A quick investigation shows that this seams to be the case for Sweden too. Finland I could imagine would be the same although I have not yet been able to find any evidence for that. At least in Denmark and Norway it is evident that everyone who studies to become a social worker is indoctrinated with Killén's way of thinking.
Phrases that you often hear as a parent from a social worker such as "I can understand that you are sad that you cannot take care of your own child, but she needs circumstances and conditions that you are not able to provide" are almost identical with concrete examples that Killén gives in her books.
"Herning modellen" is a model developed by the Danish city Herning. Many other Danish cities have adopted the model. The model aims to trace early signs of malfunction in families and intervenes against them. The model is clearly based upon Kari Killén's theories.
When Norway is trying to export its child welfare program to other countries quite aggressively, it is basically the concept of implementing Killén's theory into the legal system that they are trying to export.
During this week's Thursday letter, I have not done thorough analyses to prove my claims. I have merely introduced a number of areas where I see the influence of Killén's theories.
I could probably find even more. Killén's theories influence every part of the Danish child welfare system. Naming the Scandinavian child welfare system "Kingdom of Killén" is no exaggeration.
Let me start with a statement.
My claim is that when a child is taken into care in Denmark or when legal decisions are made about keeping a child in care, it is not really the written law that is used as a foundation for the decision, it is in reality an assessment of Killén's theories that the decision is based upon.
If this is true, it says something about how influencial Killén's theories are in Denmark.
We are dealing with a theory that in practice has become a law.
I would like to point out some areas within the field of the child welfare system where I see significant influence from Kari Killén's theories.
A few weeks ago, journalist and social worker Puk Sabber, through a Facebook status, led me on the track of two documents that the Danish social authorities had released explaining how to find legal evidence for adoption without consent. I´ve linked the two documents below. They are in Danish.
Adoption without consent - a guidance and inspiration material for case managers
Adoption without consent - nine methods for identifying parenting ability
Both of these documents represent a concept that is almost identical to Killén's theory. Killén is even mentioned as inspiration in one of them.
In my own journey through the system as a parent, nothing has hurt me more than the first comprehensive "parental capacity assessment" that I went through.
It was not the fact that the authorities decided to take my children into care that hurt me, it was the human devaluation that I experienced during the "parental capacity assessment".
I have spent a long time trying to understand and analyze which criteria these assessments are based upon and why they are as they are.
When I encountered Killén's lectures and publications I could see where the entire concept of this "parental capacity assessment" arrived from. Almost every part of it was described in Killén's material.
Last week I cited journalist and social worker, Puk Sabber, who wrote that Killén's book "Child neglect is everyone's responsibility" is the absolute central book in the Danish social worker's education when it comes to the area of children. The same applies in Norway. A quick investigation shows that this seams to be the case for Sweden too. Finland I could imagine would be the same although I have not yet been able to find any evidence for that. At least in Denmark and Norway it is evident that everyone who studies to become a social worker is indoctrinated with Killén's way of thinking.
Phrases that you often hear as a parent from a social worker such as "I can understand that you are sad that you cannot take care of your own child, but she needs circumstances and conditions that you are not able to provide" are almost identical with concrete examples that Killén gives in her books.
"Herning modellen" is a model developed by the Danish city Herning. Many other Danish cities have adopted the model. The model aims to trace early signs of malfunction in families and intervenes against them. The model is clearly based upon Kari Killén's theories.
When Norway is trying to export its child welfare program to other countries quite aggressively, it is basically the concept of implementing Killén's theory into the legal system that they are trying to export.
During this week's Thursday letter, I have not done thorough analyses to prove my claims. I have merely introduced a number of areas where I see the influence of Killén's theories.
I could probably find even more. Killén's theories influence every part of the Danish child welfare system. Naming the Scandinavian child welfare system "Kingdom of Killén" is no exaggeration.
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