What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children

Cultural humility challenges us to broaden our cultural perspectives and frames of reference – to be prepared and motivated to see what we do not see. In this paper, we offer a commentary that lifts the voices of maltreated children based on years of listening to children and their families tell the...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Robert M. Ortega, Olivia D. Chang, Mary B. Ortega, Lynn Teriberry, Richetta VanSickle, Kathleen Coulborn Faller
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-07-01
Series:Child Protection and Practice
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000853
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849422365158539264
author Robert M. Ortega
Olivia D. Chang
Mary B. Ortega
Lynn Teriberry
Richetta VanSickle
Kathleen Coulborn Faller
author_facet Robert M. Ortega
Olivia D. Chang
Mary B. Ortega
Lynn Teriberry
Richetta VanSickle
Kathleen Coulborn Faller
author_sort Robert M. Ortega
collection DOAJ
description Cultural humility challenges us to broaden our cultural perspectives and frames of reference – to be prepared and motivated to see what we do not see. In this paper, we offer a commentary that lifts the voices of maltreated children based on years of listening to children and their families tell their stories. These stories provide recurring themes and reveal the keys to their protection. These insights are framed as pillars of resilience and uphold the foundation of our call to protect children, namely, safety, trust, support, and hope. A cultural humility perspective suggests that these pillars are restored or established and maintained in variable ways predicated on the unique experiences of each child. Our primary work with maltreated children is to identify breaches in these pillars; and for all children, we are challenged to restore and maintain these pillars if our goal is to protect them.
format Article
id doaj-art-5592da9ed01840b88f5ec88da48e48d0
institution Kabale University
issn 2950-1938
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Child Protection and Practice
spelling doaj-art-5592da9ed01840b88f5ec88da48e48d02025-08-20T03:31:07ZengElsevierChild Protection and Practice2950-19382025-07-01510017810.1016/j.chipro.2025.100178What cultural humility teaches us about protecting childrenRobert M. Ortega0Olivia D. Chang1Mary B. Ortega2Lynn Teriberry3Richetta VanSickle4Kathleen Coulborn Faller5School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Corresponding author. School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USAThe Family Assessment Clinic, Ann Arbor, MI, USAThe Family Assessment Clinic, Ann Arbor, MI, USAThe Family Assessment Clinic, Ann Arbor, MI, USASchool of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USACultural humility challenges us to broaden our cultural perspectives and frames of reference – to be prepared and motivated to see what we do not see. In this paper, we offer a commentary that lifts the voices of maltreated children based on years of listening to children and their families tell their stories. These stories provide recurring themes and reveal the keys to their protection. These insights are framed as pillars of resilience and uphold the foundation of our call to protect children, namely, safety, trust, support, and hope. A cultural humility perspective suggests that these pillars are restored or established and maintained in variable ways predicated on the unique experiences of each child. Our primary work with maltreated children is to identify breaches in these pillars; and for all children, we are challenged to restore and maintain these pillars if our goal is to protect them.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000853Cultural humilityChild maltreatmentChild welfarePractice
spellingShingle Robert M. Ortega
Olivia D. Chang
Mary B. Ortega
Lynn Teriberry
Richetta VanSickle
Kathleen Coulborn Faller
What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
Child Protection and Practice
Cultural humility
Child maltreatment
Child welfare
Practice
title What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
title_full What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
title_fullStr What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
title_full_unstemmed What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
title_short What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
title_sort what cultural humility teaches us about protecting children
topic Cultural humility
Child maltreatment
Child welfare
Practice
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000853
work_keys_str_mv AT robertmortega whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren
AT oliviadchang whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren
AT marybortega whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren
AT lynnteriberry whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren
AT richettavansickle whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren
AT kathleencoulbornfaller whatculturalhumilityteachesusaboutprotectingchildren