A Study on the Birth Parent's Experience in the Process of Family Reunification for Children in Social Care

보호아동의 친가정 복귀 과정에서 친부모의 경험 연구

Using grounded theory method, this study analyzed the in-depth interviews with 11 parents of institutionalized children in order to find out how the experience of the parents on the process of the children's family reunification. According to the results, it was 'leaving one's child' that composed causal conditions, and also it was 'sentenced life' and 'adapting to a life without child' that composed existing conditions. Thus, the contextual condition was found out as 'a belief of family' and 'a belief of child caring' and the mediation conditions were 'power to recover' and 'not being as one's intentions'. Also, reaction/interaction strategies turned out as 'preparing a basis of child-care', 'playing a parent', 'standing against being adapted' and 'adjusting as their children back to family'. Finally, the analysis showed 'burdens on caring', 'wanting to leave one' child again', 'having stronger family membership' and 'being hopeful in a future' as results. The specific levels of the process were found out as following 4 steps, as time goes by. 1)Fostering children at institutions: become harsh parents(or a harsh parent), 2)After fostering: rebuild collapsed family in order to take the children back, 3)Family reunification: become aboveboard to oneself, family and the world, 4)After family reunification: try to keep the family taking precautions against resending. While taking their children back, the parents turned out to experience long, unremitting tension. Reflecting results of the analysis above, and in order to promote sending institutionalized children back to their families this article suggests practical alternatives for parents who left their children in institutions.

본 연구는 보호아동이 친가정으로 복귀하는 과정에서 친부모의 경험이 어떠한지를 살펴보고자 친부모 11명을 대상으로 심층 인터뷰한 후 근거이론방법으로 분석하였다. 분석결과, 인과적 조건은 '자녀를 맡김'이 도출되었고, 현상은 '형벌같은 삶', '자녀와의 분리상황에 적응함'으로 나타났다. 이에 맥락적 조건은 '가족 신념', '자녀양육 신념'이며, 중재적 조건은 '재기할 힘', '뜻대로 안됨'이었다. 작용/상호 작용 전략은 '양육기반 마련하기', '부모 역할 지속하기', '적응에 저항하기', '자녀복귀시기 조정하기'로 나타났다. 결과로는 '돌봄 부담감', '맡기고 싶음', '가족의식 강화됨', '미래가 희망적임'이 도출되었다. 과정분석 결과, 시간의 경과에 따라 (1) 자녀위탁단계: 자녀를 위탁한 모진 부모가 됨, (2) 자녀 위탁 후 단계: 자녀복귀위해 무너진 가정세움, (3) 자녀 친가정 복귀 단계: 나, 가족, 세상에 떳떳함 (4) 자녀 친가정 복귀 이후 단계: 재위탁 경계하며 가정지킴으로 구분되었고 보호아동의 친부모들은 자녀를 친가정으로 복귀시키는 과정에서 끊임없는 긴장의 연속을 경험하는 것으로 나타났다. 이에 보호아동의 친가정 복귀를 촉진하기 위한 실천적 대안을 제시하였다.