African immigrants in Sweden experiencing the threat of forced child removal

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the experiences of African parents living in Sweden around the concept of forced child removal. The study aimed at finding out their experiences and attitudes around the concept and how the threat of it affects their parenting styles and coping strategies in Sweden. Nine semi-structured qualitative interviews were made with participants of African origin living in Sweden. Data was analysed using a reflexive thematic analysis. An important contribution of the study to parenting amongst African immigrants in Sweden is knowledge gained of the shift from an authoritarian style of parenting towards an authoritative one. It is about going from punishing the children if they make mistakes in life to reasoning with them more about what is right to do in life. This knowledge is helpful for social workers working with this segment of the population because an authoritative style of parenting takes into consideration the autonomy of the child and, therefore, closer to the Swedish styles of parenting, than authoritarian styles, which can make interventions with such parents easier. Social workers, however, need to get closer to their clients to understand the motivations of this shift from individual clients as this might differ.

ABSTRAKT

Denna studie undersökte erfarenheter av afrikanska föräldrar som bor i Sverige kring konceptet med tvångsomhändertagande av barn. Studien syftade till att ta reda på deras erfarenheter och attityder kring konceptet och hur hotet om det påverkar deras föräldrastilar och copingstrategier i Sverige. Nio semistrukturerade kvalitativa intervjuer gjordes med deltagare med afrikanskt ursprung bosatta i Sverige. Data analyserades med hjälp av en reflexiv tematisk analys. Ett viktigt bidrag från studien till föräldraskap bland afrikanska invandrare i Sverige är kunskapen om övergången från ett auktoritärt föräldraskap till ett auktoritativt. Det handlar om att gå från att straffa barnen om de gör misstag i livet till att resonera mer med dem om vad som är rätt att göra i livet. Denna kunskap är till hjälp för socialarbetare som arbetar med denna del av befolkningen eftersom en auktoritativ föräldrastil tar hänsyn till barnets autonomi och därför är närmare den svenska föräldrastilen, än den auktoritära stilen. Den auktoritativa stilen kan göra interventioner med sådana föräldrar lättare. Socialarbetare behöver dock komma närmare sina klienter för att förstå motiven för denna förändring från enskilda klienter eftersom detta kan skilja sig åt.

KEYWORDS:

• Parenting
• African immigrant
• forced child removal
• stigma

NYCKELORD:

• Föräldraskap
• Afrikansk immigrant
• tvångsomhändertagande av barn
• stigma

Introduction

This article is about African immigrant parents’ experiences of the risk of their children being taken into care by the Swedish authorities. It is not about the authority’s understanding and ambition to protect the best interests of the child (Ylvisaker et al., 2015). It is about the parents’ situation. The article, therefore, focuses on the parents’ fear of forced child removal. Children are one category who are increasingly affected by migration (IOM, 2014). After the move from one country to the other families are expected to transfer their parenting practices from their country of origin to the new country of residence (Okpokiri, 2017; Sims & Omaji, 1999). This, however, does not come easy because sometimes there is a big difference in practices from the cultures and this necessitates that families makes decisions on whether to do away with their practices from the country of origin, modify them to suit the country of residence or continue to use them in their original form (Okpokiri, 2017; Sims & Omaji, 1999). The challenges of trying to reconfigure oneself and identity in a new space affects African immigrants, their culture as well as class as they become reshaped through interaction with other cultures (Uwakweh et al., 2014). The decision to keep cultural practices, do away with them or modify them, does not come easy. It might come with consequences like child removal from the country of residence. This is because the practices from the country of origin are unacceptable in the country of residence (Okpokiri, 2017).

These reasons make the experiences of the threat of forced child removal amongst immigrants in general important and African immigrant parents specifically, an interesting and important field of study (Fylkesnes et al., 2018). Sweden is a country with a large immigrant population, about 19.7% of its population in 2020 had a foreign background. In its three biggest cities, Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmo, it is more likely to come across people from foreign backgrounds than other places (Andersson, 2002). About 43% of 0- to 17-year-olds in these cities are children with one or both parents from a foreign country or born in a foreign country themselves (Erman & Härkönen, 2017). Regarding caseloads in social work in Sweden, children and families with foreign backgrounds are overrepresented (Andersson, 2002).

A study by the multicultural centre in Sweden (Mångkulturellt centrum (MKC)), at the directive of the Minister of integration to review the situation of Afrophobia experienced by Afro-Swedes, revealed that Afrophobia is a widespread problem in Sweden (MKC, 2014). The definition of Afro-Swedes in the report encompassed all residents in Sweden of sub-Saharan African descent. Afro-swedes were seen as the Swedish minority most exposed to hate crimes, marginalisation in all sectors of Swedish society (MKC, 2014). Stereotypes about people of African descent were still seen by the report as predominant in Swedish culture and, in effect, affect the everyday lives of Afro-swedes (MKC, 2014). Sweden thus provides an interesting case for research about parenting amongst African immigrant families to understand how predisposing factors like race and cultural differences can affect their parenting styles and fear of child removal by social services.

This research explored the experiences of African immigrant parents living in Sweden around the concept of forced child removal and how the threat of this affects their parenting skills. It further explored coping mechanisms they need to employ to avoid the possibility of their children being forcefully removed.

Purpose and aim

In this research, I investigated how the possibility of forced child removal by social services in Sweden affects the perceptions, experiences, parenting styles and coping strategies of African immigrant parents living in Sweden. The research is intended to be conducted from the perspective of the parents, who in this case, are African immigrants with children. Results from the research are aimed at contributing to knowledge available on the African immigrant population and could be utilised when seeking knowledge to strengthen policies on integration in Sweden.

Research questions

1. How do African immigrant parents experience and perceive forced child removal by social services in Sweden?

2. What are the effects of the threat of forced child removal by social services on African immigrant parents and parenting?

3. What coping strategies are employed by African immigrant parents to deal with the threat of forced child removal by social services in Sweden.

Theoretical framework

Two theoretical concepts, namely, stigma and impression management were chosen to analyse this study. Stigma and its interrelated concepts like labelling, stereotyping, discrimination and power are used in the analysis of experiences of the threat of forced child removal by immigrant African parents and impression management is used in understanding their coping mechanisms.

Stigma

Stigma, first conceptualised by Erving Goffman in 1963, refers to a deeply discrediting attribute or undesiring difference which results in a person being rejected by society. This leads to the person being disqualified from full acceptance in society (Goffman, 1963). Stigmatisation brings a difference between the stigmatised and those who are not stigmatised, and Goffman refers to the non-stigmatised as normals (Goffman, 1963). Normals, according to Goffman (1963), believe persons with a kind of stigma are not human enough. This can result in different forms of discrimination being mated out to stigmatised persons, which can, in the long run, reduce their life chances. After Goffman, other researchers have further developed the concept, and one of such researchers is Link and Phelan (2001). In their conceptualisation of stigma, they mention that several interrelated components interact together to produce stigma (Link & Phelan, 2001). An important element in Link and Phelon’s conceptualisation of stigma and a shortcoming of Goffman’s conceptualisation is the role of power. They believe that for stigmatisation to successfully occur there must be access to economic, social and political power which allows stigmatisation (Link & Phelan, 2001).

Impression management

Impression management theory also referred to as self-presentation like stigma, was first conceptualised by Erving Goffman in 1959 and suggests that people must present themselves in the most positive ways to others (Janse, 2020). It is a conscious or subconscious way in which people try to influence how they are seen by others by controlling information about them during social interactions (Janse, 2020; Sukmayadi & Yahya, 2019).

The way people talk, dress up and walk in public can be used as an impression management strategy (Sukmayadi & Yahya, 2019). There are different impression management strategies, but five impression management techniques identified by (Spoorthi, 2020) were utilised in this study.

There is, however, a shortcoming of impression management. Newman (2009) mentions that in as much as impression management can make one more likeable and dictate their social standing in society on the one hand, it has shortcomings which have negative social consequences on the other hand. This is because impression management results in creating manufactured persons which can end in falsification and deception.

Method

Research population and sampling

The criteria for the selection of units used in this research were African immigrant parents who could understand English or Swedish. Both male and female, as well as married and single parents were considered. Parents who have had their children removed with active cases were, however, exempted from the sampling criteria due to ethical reasons. Parents who had been threatened to have their children removed or generally think they live in constant fear of this were considered. In the end, nine participants from five African countries, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Somalia participated in the study. Of the nine participants recruited for the study, four were males and five females between the ages of 20–40 years which meant they were still in their childbearing years and very active as parents. Children of the respondents in the study were between the ages of 1 to 12 years. Most of the respondents had their children in the toddler to school age stages, but not yet in their adolescence. This could mean that studies around parents with children in the adolescent stage and above can yield different results. The duration of stay of respondents in Sweden ranged between 3 and 10 years which indicated that they had lived in the country for a while and were accustomed to some practices. The selection is prospective with the help of one of the researchers in the study who has African descent. The interviewees have not been the subject of Social Services’ efforts. The generalizability of the results and conclusions in this study is limited by the relatively few people interviewed.

Data collection method

Semi-structured interviews were used in collection of primary data for this research. This method was most appropriate because the study was of an exploratory qualitative type interested in the personal experiences of the participants. According to Fylan (2005) semi-structured interviews are used to elucidate information from people in order to find out about their experiences and how they feel and think about this. Semi-structured interviews are also viewed as appropriate for exploratory qualitative research designs because whilst it gives a structure to the research by asking questions related to the research, it also gives space for the conversation to be free and include things not initially on the interview guide and may therefore change between participants (Bryman, 2012; Fylan, 2005). For this paper, an interview guide¹ was developed, but as mentioned by Bryman and Fylan, information collected from participants varied to some extent as the conversations became different depending on participant’s unique experiences.

Data analysis procedures

Coding and thematic analysis

This study employed what Braun and Clarke describe as a reflexive thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2019). Stages in a reflexive thematic analysis include familiarisation with the data, coding to put labels on important parts of the data relevant for answering research questions and identifying and collating data extracts that will be relevant later for analysis. The next stage is generating initial themes, after which they are reviewed to see if they provide a convincing story of the data. After this, the themes are defined and named in order to give the scope of the theme. The last stage is weaving together analysis and data extracts by contextualising the analysis in relation to existing literature and theory (Braun & Clarke, 2019).

Findings and analysis

Parenting

Results from the study around the central theme of parenting revealed some similarities and differences in participant’s experiences and descriptions of their parenting styles and constraints in a new culture. All participants expressed open communication between parents and children as what they expected of a good child–parent relationship. They mentioned the importance of being friends with children and looking out for them so they can be comfortable discussing all aspects of their lives with them. The Swedish system of open communication between children and their parents was complemented. From the words of a participant:

It's not like you must be like a parent, especially nowadays, it's not like you have all the power. It should be like kind of neutral. You listen to the kids, they listen to you. You don't dictate to your kid, but you are guide, that's good (R-6)

Some parents admitted having aspects of these expectations of a good parent–child relationship from their own upbringing; others explained that they adopted these expectations due to the norms and expectations of the new society they found themselves. Some admitted aspects of their own upbringing they were not proud of and will not like to instil the same values in their children. Participant’s narrations of their own upbringing support earlier literature on upbringing styles in Africa which were mainly of the authoritarian style (Johannesen & Appoh, 2016; Okpokiri, 2017; Salami et al., 2017) according to Baumrind’s typology of parenting.

The parenting styles they, however, employed themselves was of the authoritative type which took into consideration the child’s autonomy as much as it recognised parental control and this contrasts earlier research from Johansson and Appoh which suggested that parenting in African immigrant families takes a needs based approach where the relationship between children and their parents is a preventative one with parents’ perceptions taking precedence without explicit recognition of verbal expressions of the child’s needs (Johannesen & Appoh, 2016). The contrast with earlier literature, however, may not be an easy one to conclude on since some participants admitted they subscribed to authoritative styles of parenting because of the norms and expectations of the new society. This can mean that they only subscribe to this style of parenting because they are constrained by the new society to do so but not because they believed in themselves. This situation can be analysed from the point of view of stigma theorists, who mention that in order to deal with stigma, the stigmatised person sometimes strives to exert extra effort in areas not usually associated with people of his kind (Goffman, 1963).

Results from the study also pointed to the fact that most participants migrated from countries with different welfare conditions than that of Sweden and therefore appreciated the new society in which they lived. A few were, however, conflicted in choosing which values they would like to instil in their children because they felt whilst the cultures from their countries of origin were quite conservative and too authoritarian, the Swedish system did not provide a viable way out because it gave too much freedom without control.

All participants expressed some form of constraint in their parenting due to their origin, which was first foreign and secondly African. This sometimes got them into problems with authorities, including the social services and made them feel constrained by the Swedish system. A participant described her experience as follows:

And they stereotype with the barbaric experiences, which they think or heard, or have experience with and decide that black parents are like that. Therefore, when they are assessing your case they already have a lot of like, like, what can I say expectation. (R-6)

Distinguishing and labelling people by putting them in categorisations is a component of stigma (Link & Phelan, 2001) because it creates an ‘us’ and ‘them’ but for stigma theorists Link and Phelon this alone is not enough to result in stigmatisation of one group because for stigma to successfully occur the side doing the stigmatisation should have some power over the other in terms of economic, social and political power (Link & Phelan, 2001). The narrations of parents of trying to behave in certain ways and being stereotyped points to the fact that they are aware that they are at the receiving end of stigma, and this may be as a result of their position in terms of power in the Swedish state. They live in the Swedish welfare state that extensively is publicly funded and administered with a strong role of the state (Aspalter, 2011). The state, therefore, holds the economic, social and political power and is at liberty to wield it to its representatives in the form of workers at public institutions which include social workers. These representatives represent their interests. This explains why in a relationship between an African immigrant parent and public service authorities where an African immigrant’s system of parenting is looked down upon, it is the immigrant parent who becomes stigmatised as opposed to the social worker because of the role of power.

Study results established that parents felt that, most often they were discriminated against and watched carefully because of their skin colour and stereotyped expectations of social services for people like them. Race is identified as a predisposing factor for stigmatisation by stigma theorist Goffman (1963). Stigmatisations can lead to discrimination and ultimately to unequal outcomes between the stigmatised group and those who are seen as normals (Goffman, 1963; Link & Phelan, 2001). This is because the stigmatised person is not fully accepted in society and is labelled as deviant from societal norms.

Results from the study further pointed to the fact that it was draining for parents who had to take decisions just for conformity and not because they believed in those decisions themselves. This can be looked at from the disadvantages of impression management, as mentioned by Newman (2009). A parent feeling drained by trying to be who she does not corroborate with Newmans assertion that impression management can lead to a falsification of identity which can ultimately lead to destruction of identities making people drained in the process when they must constantly be who they are not for societal acceptance (Newman, 2009).

Participants also mentioned that irrespective of cultural differences the best interest of the child is at the centre of their parenting styles. This supports the rights of children as stipulated by the CRC and incorporated into Swedish domestic laws. This assertion could look good in theory, but in practical, interpretations of the best interest of the child could differ. For example, a parents’ attempt at doing things in the best interest of the child could mean threatening the child about sending him to her home country, but for social workers in Sweden, this might not be in the best interest of the child. Best interest of the child is therefore open here for cultural interpretation as mentioned by Lansford et al. (2018).

Experiences of forced child removal

Responses from the findings revealed that parents felt differently about the concept of forced child removal by social services. Some parents felt it was an extremely bad decision to remove children from home forcefully whilst others thought it offered a way out for children who might otherwise be living in adverse situations. All participants were, however, of the view that forced child removal should be the last resort after a thorough and fair investigation in a child protection case. Views from participants further highlighted the fact that most children lied about their personal circumstances at home since they were aware of child protection laws in Sweden in order to gain freedom outside the family with no control. Children and professionals like teachers and social workers were seen as being at the centre of investigations and lying as narrated by parents. This was expressed by a participant as follows:

But the problem is, some immigrants, families, their children have kind of you know a false picture of what the Swedish life looks like. They think that if they live with a Swedish and if the social services take them, they might be living a better life than they currently live in. They think they will have more freedom, more money and all that stuff. And in that case, what they do is that they make up some foolish stories. Sometimes they show up some body damage from long time ago, meaning that their parents harmed them and, in the end, then the social services take them without really knowing the truth. (R-2)

Sweden is described as a country that promotes and believes in the autonomy of children; therefore, children are seen as individuals with their own rights in child protection cases and must be listened to (Wells & Bergnehr, 2014). Nevertheless, parents believed that in as much as children are given the platform to express themselves, parents should also be given a similar platform to result in a fair playing ground. This view of parents can be likened to the proposals from the CRC, which promotes the best interest of the child but at the same time supports that this is done with consideration for the rights of family and custodians of the child (UN General Assembly, 1989). Parents’ accounts revealed that they viewed the Swedish style of parenting as belonging to the permissive category of parenting.

African parents may also view the involvement of professionals in their lives as an intrusion due to differences in how child protection is organised in their countries of origin as opposed to Sweden. In many African countries, child protection and removal is usually the domain of the nuclear and extended families and attracts forced outside interventions in extreme cases (Akintayo, 2021; Okpokiri, 2017).

Participants interviewed demonstrated a good knowledge of what can result in forced child removal, but it was not clear if they understood that forced removal of children was expected to occur as a last resort in child welfare cases. Some attributed their knowledge to the awareness of laws pertaining to removal in Sweden, others had knowledge from experience with social services, whilst a few others assumed reasons for removal from what they heard from friends and families about forced child removal. It is important to report that most of the references of parents about the reasons for actual removal they had experienced centred around physical abuse rather than neglect. This is echoed through the voice of a participant as follows:

They say things at social services that did not happen. They lied that I beat and beat my daughter and I started crying. I just told them God sees what I did. If I am a real Swedish, can they lie that I beat my child when I didn’t? If it was Nigeria, I can sue people like this to court but I don’t know what to do here as a black woman (R-3)

Earlier literature gathered for the study revealed that African parents changed across transnational borders, but the use of physical discipline was still present (Salami et al., 2017; Okpokiri, 2017). This could mean that parents usually faced a discrepancy between their cultures of origin and the Swedish culture and when they are questioned over it, they feel it is unfair. It might also mean that African parents may be easily stereotyped as physically abusive to their children because there is evidence to support this from research.

There is however a discrepancy between how parents experienced the system of child protection in Sweden and how it is designed to be. Earlier literature reviewed revealed that the Swedish child welfare system is a family-oriented one as opposed to a child welfare one and issues of forced child removal without the consent of parents are done in extreme cases (Cocozza & Hort, 2011). The rights of parents are intended to be respected, with parents carried along the entire process in issues concerning their children (Cocozza & Hort, 2011). The experiences of the parents, which is quite the opposite can, however, be explained by assertions made by Edvardsson (2010) that the law in Sweden around forced child removal may usually look good in theory, but what happens in practice could however be different depending on different factors.

Coping

Results revealed that all participants had come up with ways to cope with the Swedish system and to prove that they were good parents either consciously or subconsciously. Dressing up children to look good before showing up in public, especially in their schools was seen as very important in the study. Most participants explained that this gave an indication that their children were being well taken care of and this made them appear to be good parents. In the words of a participant:

My daughter’s mother has this like … this misconception that the social workers are hunting their kids. So, a lot of clothes on her. She is overdressing her kind of like she is going to a wedding or something. When she is actually going to preschool, and it just to show the teachers that she is taking care of the kid (R-1)

Narrations of parents can be analysed with both stigma and impression management. So far, it has been established that African parents feel discriminated against because of their race which makes them pre-disposed to being labelled as incompetent in their child-rearing. This could put them in a category of a stigmatised group, and to get out of this, according to Goffman (1963) people belonging to such a group, which is stigmatised try to exert extra effort in areas that are not usually expected from members of such a group. From parents’ narrations, they try their best to be accepted as competent enough by dressing their children in desirable ways to create an impression to the Swedish authorities that they are competent parents irrespective of their backgrounds.

Dressing to look good could also be viewed as an impression management technique of exemplification where parents are being self-conscious about what authorities may feel about them and therefore act in ways to avoid such situations from occurring altogether without having to explicitly say this.

Results from the study further revealed that most parents coped by being aware of the rules and regulations governing child protection in Sweden and trying to live by them. They may be seen here as employing an impression management technique of ingratiation to enable them to co-exist peacefully with natives of the host country. Statements by parents corroborate earlier literature on the topic. Mbakogu (2015) mentions that African parents seemed comfortable using recommended rules in the new society to bring up their children, although they did not necessarily agree it was the best way to bring up a child. This can be seen as a way for them to cope with a situation they have no control over. This view was described by a participant as follows:

And over here they have their own norms, their own, like rules and their own way of living and raising children. So, a big part of how I behave actually comes from the fact that I know that I will be questioned if I do some mistakes. (R-2)

They were, however, fearful that accepting these parenting styles in the destination country would have a negative impact on their style of discipline and parenting (Mbakogu, 2015).

Some parents from the study believed that being able to speak up for yourself as a parent and knowing your rights can be helpful when it comes to child protection cases. Parents being defensive here is an impression management technique employed by parents, albeit subconsciously. From the perspective of impression management theorists’, statements made above could be analysed as using the impression management technique of self-promotion.

Coping has so far been analysed theoretically from the perspective of impression management. It is important to note here that although parents might be able to keep up appearances and appear likable to authorities by employing impression management techniques, this may come at a price. This is because, according to Newman (2009), impression management results in creating ‘manufactured persons’ which can end in falsification and deception, which might ultimately result in damaged identities (Newman, 2009, p.183). These damaged identities must be repaired in order to sustain interactions (Newman, 2009, p.183).

Conclusion

The results of the study indicate that African immigrant parents may have originated from families with authoritarian parenting styles, as suggested by earlier literature on this field. Some of the families in the study are shifting towards a more authoritative kind of parenting in destination countries where the autonomy of the child is valued either by freewill or as an effort to meet up with what is required of them in Swedish child welfare. Is this a strategy the families choose in fear of child removal, or is it because they gain insight into other ways of thinking about child parenting? Parents are also interested in applying some values from their countries of origin in the Swedish settings, which sometimes is misunderstood and can bring about encounters with child protective services. Most parents are of the view that in such situations, they are not given enough space to express themselves in comparison to children and welfare authorities. The parent’s experiences of forced child removal can be seen as a conflict between child and family rights on one side, and about the parents’ power to decide for themselves how the children should be brought up, on the other side. The negotiation strength of African parents in the study seems to be weak due to differential power relations between parents and child protection officers. They live in fear of their children being forcefully removed if they do not conform to Swedish styles of parenting. In order to avoid the threat of forced child removal, some of the African immigrant parents in the study employ impression management tactics to co-exist peacefully with natives in the Swedish welfare state. This does not come easy, as it may result in them losing aspects of their homeland parenting identities. The threat of child removal affects African immigrants authoritarian parenting style; and something that should be further researched is what causes the transition from authoritarian to authoritative parenting? What role can Social Services have, and how does the Swedish cultural context affect parenting?

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ruhia Mahama

Ruhia Mahama works as a social worker in Gothenburg, Sweden. She came from Ghana as a student 8 years ago. She is also involved as a researcher in a Nordic project on relative poverty among families with children. She has the ambition to start a PhD in the near future. Email: [email protected]

Rikard Eriksson

Rikard Eriksson is a behavioural scientist and professor of social work with a focus on both organisational and client-centred research in social work. Eriksson is a Swedish citizen and lives in Denmark. He works at Østfold university college in Norway. Email: [email protected]

Pål Ellingsen

Pål Ellingsen is originally a social worker and has for 20 years done a lot of research on users, governance and management of the public sector in the Nordic region. Ellingsen lives in Norway and works at Østfold University College there. Email: [email protected]

Notes

1 See Appendix for interview guide.

Appendix. Interview guide

Socio-Demographic Information

1. Name (Code) —————– 2. Sex——–3. Age———- 4. Educational Background—————————————5. Work/occupation —– 6. Duration of Stay in Sweden (in Years) — 7. Level of Swedish————–8. Number of Children ———— 9. Age of children——————- 10 Country of Origin——————–

African immigrant parents’ experiences of forced child removal in Sweden

1. How will you describe your expectations of how a good parent should relate to a child?

2. What in your opinion influences these expectations? (Swedish societal expectations/yourself?)

3. Generally, what is your opinion about the concept of forced removal of children from the home?

4. During your time in Sweden have you ever heard or experienced in any way that a child has been removed from the home and placed in compulsory care?

5. What do you think are the reasons for forced removal of children from their homes?

6. Why do you think these are the reasons? (knowledge of the law, here say, firsthand experience)

Effects of the threat of forced child removal on African immigrant parents and parenting styles.

1. Which of the values (Swedish/country of origin) will you prefer to develop in your children and why?

2. Do you at any point in your parental role feel watched or observed by authorities you have to come into contact with because of your children? How does this make you feel?

3. Do you get the impression that this has anything to do with the fact that you have a foreign background? How does this make you feel?

4. Does the possibility of being questioned in your role as a parent affect how you react towards your children in public and how does this make you feel?

Coping strategies employed by African immigrant parents to deal with the threat of forced child removal by social services and the obstacles they may face in this process.

1. How do you take decisions concerning your child at home?

2. Are there any challenges in trying to develop values from your home country in your children?

3. What are some of the things you say or do to assure authorities involved with your child (school, hospital, social services) that you are parenting your child right?

4. Do you think some of these things you say or do for reassurance would have been necessary if you were living in your country of origin?

5. Is there something else I have not mentioned in this interview, but you think it’s worth mentioning?