Study on the Assessment of the Home Environments of Children with Behavioural Problems in Bratislava, Slovakia

Victor Otieno Okech, Monika Mačkinová, Pavol Kopinec, Barbara Nowak

Victor Otieno Okech is an assistant professor of Social Work. His area of research interest is on behavioural problems in children and adolescents.

Monika Mačkinová is a professor of Social Work and the current head of the Social Work department at the Comenius University in Bratislava. Her area of specialization is on medical social work and marginalized populations.

Pavol Kopinec is an assistant professor of Social Work. His area of research focuses on challenges and integration of refugees, asylum seekers, and the migrants. He has worked with various international organizations that addresses plights of the refugees and migrants. He has also participated in drafting various national policies on migration.

Barbara Nowak is an associate professor of Social Work. Her area of specialization is on rehabilitation and re-integration of offenders. She has a special interest in working with incarcerated women and juvenile delinquents. She has a wealth of experience working with the populations behind the bars.

Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this study is to measure the quantity and quality of stimulants available in caregiving environment of children with behavioural problems. THEORETICAL BASE: This study was guided by the ecological systems theory developed by Urie Bronfenbrenner, where we measured some of the factors in the home environment that influences children’s development. METHODS: The research design we used in this study was cross-sectional survey, where we measured the home environments of children using the MC-HOME Inventory, a standardized questionnaire developed by Caldwell and Bradley. OUTCOMES: We found an overall mean of 42.35 ± 6.73, from the 59 items provided in the MCHOME Inventory. From each of the 8 subscales in the Inventory, we observed that responsivity had the highest mean of 9.3+1.63 (max. 9), followed by learning material and opportunity with a mean of 5.65 + 1.27 (max. 7), and the 3rd position, enrichment, had a mean of 5.60 + 2.04 (max. 8). SOCIAL WORK IMPLICATIONS: There is need for field social workers to engage parents on the whole process of re-educating children, especially on how to set the right emotional climate at home that promotes the development of children.

Keywords
caregiving, home environment, MC-HOME inventory, responsivity, proximal process, bioecological model

p. 67-81