The “Therapeutic parent”: A model for the child and youth care profession

A model of child and youth care called the “therapeutic parent” was developed through a series of four job analysis workshops. After an introduction to the model and a discussion of job analysis, the methods and results of the four workshops are presented. The therapeutic parent model attempts to answer four basic questions about child and youth care professionals as “therapeutic parents”: 1. Who must you be? 2. Who must you not be? 3. What must you know? 4. What must you do? The model has several implications for child and youth care as a profession. First, the model provides a theoretical and empirical foundation for what child and youth care professionals should or must be, not be, know, and do; thus, the model may help provide a more coherent sense of identity to the field and its practitioners. Second, two content valid and legally-defensible selection procedures have now been developed, which could lead to more standardized selection and certification of child and youth care practitioners. Third, the model provides a comprehensive audit of education and training needs, which could pave the way for a more coherent, intensive, and inclusive curriculum.