NCJ Number
136751
Journal
Children and Society Volume: 4 Issue: 4 Dated: (Winter 1990) Pages: 337-351
Date Published
1990
Length
15 pages
Annotation
Public alarm over the sexual abuse of children has inhibited some professional childcare workers from having appropriate physical contact with the children. It is in the long-term interests of the children that professionals confront these issues directly.
Abstract
Childcare workers are faced with several dilemmas when planning the use of physical contact: how to know what sort of touching to use and when, how to use touch in a planned way but without losing spontaneity, and how to lessen the risk of touching without misinterpretation. There is a wealth of research demonstrating that children need physical contact for their physiological and psychological development. Because young children receive most of their physical contact from parental figures, there is a duty on those in loco parentis to provide this contact. Childcare workers should explore ways to deal with these problems in terms of working with individuals and groups of children and within the agency context. 33 references