Family Solidarity 2.0: Levers for a more inclusive family policy

As a supervisor of children and young people with divorced parents, how do you communicate? What do you do when a grandparent of one of the children you supervise wants to take part in decisions? What is the position of a plus parent when matters concerning the child are discussed? In the research project Family Solidarity 2.0, Arteveldehogeschool is developing guidelines to adopt a more inclusive family policy as an organisation.

Research theme: Participation in practice

Field of interest: People and Society

Duration: 1/10/2020 - 1/10/2024

Financing: FWO

Changing Flemish family context

Families today often differ from the traditional two-parent model. In doing so, legal parents are not necessarily the most meaningful others in the day-to-day care of a child. The increased complexity in family formation puts pressure on traditional mechanisms of family solidarity.

Consider a plus parent who has formed a close bond with a child but has no or minimal legal rights and obligations towards that child. Or two stepsisters who have formed a family bond but whose parents split up again. This poses challenges not only to young people but also to professionals working with children and adolescents.

Family policy tailored to all families

The research project Family Solidarity 2.0 studies the topic of family solidarity from the perspective of the changing Flemish family context. In cooperation with the University of Antwerp, Ghent University and KU Leuven, Arteveldehogeschool wants to look for levers within this project to develop a more inclusive family policy as an organisation.

The goal of such an inclusive family policy is that all important caregivers for children are recognised in their role. The overarching aim of the research project is to lay the foundations for a new legal and social framework for family solidarity, which we call family solidarity 2.0. We examine what contemporary solidarity in complex families looks like, what challenges lie here and how each form of family solidarity can be recognised.

Promoters

This project has been approved as a FWO-SBO project with Prof Dr Dimitri Mortelmans as the main promoter and co-promoters Prof Dr Ann Buysse, Prof Dr Jan Van Bavel, Prof Dr Gerd Verschelden and Dr Sofie Vanassche.