2nd Congress of the Open Network for Dialogical Practices, Leuven, March 7- 9 th

2013, Sietske Dijkstra

Expertisecentre SafetyDesk Dijkstra

Good work in complex cases. A case study on tacit knowing and

good work

Avans/own Desk

Sietske Dijkstra, Domestic Violence and InterAgencyWork

University of Applied Sciences, Den Bosch: s.dijkstra@avans.nl

Desk Dijkstra, www.sietske-dijkstra.nlFran.dijkstra@worldonline.nl

Content of the workshop

• A brief summary on Hidden treasures and tacit knowing

• Exercise on the good professional• Description of Good work in complex cases• What is good work and what are complex (DV) cases?• Exercise Qi Gong• A case : group work• Remarks and conclusions

Hidden Treasures

What good professionals do, and what clients experience, in dealing with domestic violence (Dijkstra & Van Dartel, 2011 second edition)

Hidden treasures

Study of professionals and clients confronted with partner violence and child abuse

Portraits of expert practitioners and three clients

Study of literature on DV and tacit knowingInterviews with clients on their experiences

Frame of Reference

Interested in good work, starting points:

– Bottum up approach: at the work floor itself knowledge can be developed by practitioners

– Interagency perspective: cooperation is the challenge and the bottle neck

– Interaction perspective: who works and how does it work (instead of what works)

Tacit knowing

‘We can know more than we can tell’ (Polanyi, 1966)

Tacit knowing

• It can be a treasure• It is often hidden• It is highly personal and based on experience• It can be without words, self-evident or

unconsious• It can create good work

Polanyi, theory of awareness

1. Two ways of awareness: focal and subsidiary2. They have different functions (subsidiary:

brings to the focus of attention)3. A fusion brings out their joint meaning4. Brings about a quality not present

Key: Structure of perception

• Perception: focal and subsidairy are both needed

• Indwelling: internalising experience, in the body/expressed by the body, comprehension

• Gestalt: the whole is more than all the particles, has a surplus

• Tacit integration: transformation• Explicit knowing: know how (skill) and know

what (weten)

– Knowing how to play the piano– Knowing how to bicycle – Knowing how to use a concept without defining it

Exercise: The good professional

• Imagine you are a professional working in the field of DV

• What do you need to work as a good professional (write down max 5 statements) Hand them over at the end (prof status, date)

• Discuss it with your neighbour• Reflection in the group on two or three

common themes

Students Social Studies (N= 150)

• 1. Empathy (for victims and perpetrators)• 2. Listening• 3. To postpone judgment• 4. Decisive• 5. To set limits

What is good and what is complex?

• Good in the study: – no standards or interpretations beforehand– hidden treasures started as a direct quest, unanswered

and changed into the work of a good colleague

Complex in the study:- different parts; understanding of the whole, not the

fragments- (un)predictability and time needed to understand - number of resources needed to come to a solution

Goal good work in complex cases

• Describe, analyze and strengthen good work, what is needed to realize this and reduce barriers

• To bring the benefits and spin of to every day practice and the clients

• Reduce complexity by a skilled and long term vision on help and attention for patterns

• Reduce the number of professionals and time/money involved by high level, skilled and interactive work

Thematic Complex cases

• Fights after a divorce due to partner violence over the children: the partner relationship ended, but the conflict continues

• Drop out from school of Roma girls and forced marriage, sometimes in a criminal setting

• Threats of honor related violence when girls are becoming teens

• The statements of violence at the police (restraining order, out of home placement, legal status)

Good work

• What is good work?– Awareness on perspectives (client system in the

centre; contradictions in truth)– Qualities (personal/professional/institutional)– Intention (to do the best you can; dialogue)– Framework (theoretical, practice based: for

example on change and what is needed; on safety)– Mindset and attitude (flexibility, setting limits,

leadership– Consequences (what happens after…)

Complex cases

• What makes a case complex?– Different, contradictive perspectives – Trouble and struggle: Conflicts– Intergenerational and or multiproblem– Blurred sight and lack of comprehension– Many ongoing negative consequences with great

impact on the whole system– Many professionals involved– Stuck cases

(Good) work in complex (DV) cases

• Urgency• Time pressure• Uncertainty• Lack of understanding of the whole

(fragments)• Danger and risk• From analysis to an integration in handling

cases in daily practice

Qi Gong: Moving meditation

Qi Gong

• 1. activating– Rubbing hands– Shaking wrists– Tap your arms and legs2. Exercise

- swing your arms (bigger and bigger and return)- hold your arm as an umbrella above your head- get water high and push it low again (breath in and

out)3. Feel the qi and enjoy the energy

- think of your short list on good professional

Complex case

• Jan, an American woman in her early fifties was married to a younger Dutch male and they got a son together who is now six. Jan had two adult children from an earlier relationship. She was violated by her Dutch partner and his father and the police was involved. They divorced two years ago and since that day they fight over the visits of the boy. He has the passport of the boy, she feels controlled and threatened and not treated well by the police. It is unclear if they reported her charge for maltreatment

How can we work with this case?

• Who is speaking? (and who is silent?)• What is the heart of the matter? (max three key

issues)• How to address that?• Who could do that? (skills, knowledge, experience,

cooperation)• How could we tackle the complexity here?• What is our strong and common goal and how do we

measure the effects?

Write down on post its

• Some advice

• Creating good work

• Working with a complex case (reducing complexity)

• Change of meaning and mindset

Good work principles

• What keeps the fight out of sight and going on?• What is good advice here?• How to get there and what is the pattern?Handling DV• High control of others goes together with low self

control and high stress• The right help is crucial (not too light, not

overreacting)• Change ask for a common goal and a new

perspective on the old

Dangers in working with complex cases

• 1. leads to fixed positions in the conflict• 2. leads to serious harm and fatal cases• 3. involves many professionals and organisations

(disagreement and lack of common goal)• 4. no significant improvement• 5. creates stuck and more complicated cases • 5. leads to demotivation and negative emotions• 6. blurred sight: no overview nor insight in what is

needed and when

• Conclusimultiplying complexity

Challenges in working with complex cases

• 1. development of knowing by experience by taking a new perspective, based on normative professional standing points (flagsystem, abuse is forbidden by law, safety of children is crucial…..)

• 2. ending the continuous struggle by showing the harm: the challenge and strength of group work (motivation, mirror, content, reflection and change)

• 3. brings back the case worker/the lead professional by skillful use of authority (grace and rigor)

• 4. gives an enormous push forward to craftmanship, by good work, awareness and growth

Reflection, a complex case

• Multiplies complexity (in the current system)• Is difficult to change. A change is only possible

by changing the context and the perspective, mixing inside and outside views, alteringperception (Polanyi, in Dijkstra, 2013) and shift the power relations – Justine van Lawick showed that there can be

movement if adults in their role as parents become the observers of their own fight, using the group dynamics. I have observed this power in groups for abusive men in their role as fathers

Reflection on development, discovery and learning

• Knowing and experience lead to development of knowing if there is space for reflection, dialogue and interaction with the ones who are involved

(Dijkstra, Van Dartel & Verhoeven, 2013, forthcoming).

Good work in complex case

• Working to the greatest and sustainable change in the shortest period of time

• Leading to growth and deeper insight, including cooperation and hands on

• Pays attention to the significance of details and the whole

Good work in complex cases

• Leave open space for (creating) good• Be aware of the dangers and the protection• Awareness on DV cases: urgent, insecure, dangerous,

splitting• Awareness how survivors, partners, children,

families, professionals all interact in the case• Discover and learn together in and from cases:

partnership to make good work in complex cases possible

Literature• Dijkstra, S. 2013. Handling Domestic Violence. The power and fragility of tacit

knowing. In: H. Kunneman (ed) Good work and the ethics of Craftmanship, 135-147. http://www.swpbook.com/1663

• Dijkstra, S. en N. van Dartel, 2012. Verborgen schatten. Wat goed professionals en clienten ervaren bij de anapak van geweld. Amsterdam: SWP (second print).

• Dijkstra, S., Dartel van N. & W. Verhoeven 2013. Partnergeweld en kindermishandeling aanpakken: leren van en met professionals en cliënten. Lustrumbundel Lectoren Zorg en Welzijn, Amsterdam. (forthcoming)

• Laan, G. van, 1995. Leren van gevallen, Amsterdam: SWP.

• Lawick, J. van 2012. Vechtscheidende ouders en hun kinderen, Systeemtherapie 24, 3, 129-150.

• Polanyi, M. 1966. The tacit dimension, University ofChicago Press Chicago/London.• Sennett, R. 2012. Together. The rituals, pleasures and politics of cooperation,

London/New York/Toronto: Allen Lane, Penguin books.