Academic Research Fellowship Report - Susan Flynn
Susan Flynn is an Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work Social Policy, she was one of the recipients of a TRiSS Academic Research Fellowships 2022/23. Susan will be using the funds to attend an international conference on the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disablities, in Chicago, in August 2024.
Her project is titled, "Coping with complex intersections of child protection risk, the internet and disability: Towards informing and understanding professional responses."
Background
Ireland is amid a digital age. This has entailed massive surges in children’s internet usage to the extent that nowadays, most Irish children are deeply embedded within virtual worlds by engaging in everyday internet usage (Livingstone et al., 2011). It is already known that the internet encompasses not just immense opportunities, but immense child protection risks (Good and Fang, 2015; Haber, 2020; Powell, 2008). Added to this is the complexity presented by disability. As existing research demonstrates, at the intersection of disability and child protection are unique challenges and risks (Jones et al., 2012; Sullivan & Knutson, 2000). TRiSS Academic Research Fellowship funding has been critical in allowing for the dissemination of vital findings from a unique study into this area, at one of the most renowned international conferences surrounding disability.
Impact of the funding
Improving practitioners, researchers and policy makers capacity to keep children safe over the internet is arguably urgent. With children’s well-being and safety at stake, evidence-based safeguarding responses cannot afford to lag behind the pace of change in technological advancement across the internet. The particular research that this TRiSS Academic Research Fellowship funding covered was focussed on the complexity presented within the convergence of child protection risk, the internet and disability. Two interrelated work packages of a wider project, funded by the Provost’s PhD Awards, had been completed but could not be disseminated at a key international conference due to lack of funding:
Work package two. Research question: What are the key macro-level components of child protection risk present within internet usage where disability is a factor? Scoping review with qualitative thematic analysis.
Work package three. Research question: What is the nature of risk in internet usage for disabled individuals who are deemed to pose a risk to children? Qualitative semi-structured interviews with key professionals.
An application was made to TRiSS to allow for the dissemination of findings through oral presentation at the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IASSIDD), 17th World Conference held in Chicago USA in 2024. The event usually welcomes over 1200 participants making this a high impact international event. Thankfully, despite the competitive nature of the abstract selection process, the submission of an abstract for this study was successful. TRiSS funding was then used to cover the purchase of flights and conference fees among other mandatory expenses. Overall, the impact of TRiSS Academic Research Fellowship funding is determined to be high for this research, as without effective dissemination, research findings remain of little use in terms of having a real-world impact.
References
Good, B. and Fang, L. 2015. ‘Promoting Smart and Safe Internet Use Among Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders and Their Parents.’ Clin Soc Work J, 43:179–188.
Haber, E. 2020. ‘The Internet of Children: Protecting Children's Privacy in a Hyper-Connected World.’ University of Illinois Law Review, 4. ISSN: 0276-9948 Online ISSN: 1942-9231.
Jones, J., Bellis, M.A., Wood, S., Hughes, K., McCoy, E., Eckley, L., Bates, G., Mikton, C., Shakespeare, T. and Officer, A. 2012. ‘Prevalence and Risk of Violence against Children with Disabilities: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.’ The Lancet 380: 899–907.
Livingstone, S., Haddon, L., Gorzig, A. and Olafasson, K. 2011. Risks and Safety on the Internet: The European Children: Full Findings. LSE: UK.
Powell, A. 2008. Paedophiles, Child Abuse and the Internet: A Practical Guide to Identification, Action and Prevention. Abington: Radcliffe Publishing.
Sullivan, P. and Knutson, J. 2000. Maltreatment and Disabilities: A Population-Based Epidemiological Study. Child Abuse and Neglect, 24: 1257–1273.