Risk, Trust and Complexity in Social Work with Bereaved Children

Summary: Bereaved children are a special group of social work service users. The well-being of bereaved children has received increasing attention from the field of social work. Finds: This paper applies a case study on a 6-year-old bereaved child, in order to explore the risks and the nature of complexity in case work. Conclusions: Children’s grief is often deprived in current social context. Social workers can use skills such as empathy and self-disclosure to recognize the feelings of bereaved children, while building trust and confidence of children.