Apr 9: Tran's case

Tran is a thirteen-year old Vietnamese-American boy. Tran’s mother and younger sister were killed in
Vietnam when he was an infant. Tran and his father subsequently moved to live with extended family in
a large, urban city on the West Coast. A year ago, Tran ran away from the downtown hotel where he and
his father lived: “I don’t like him. He just lay around. He got drunk all of the time. He stole from me.
He hit me bad.” The Department of Social Services subsequently placed Tran in a foster home with Mr.
O’Leary, one of the county’s most experienced and reputable foster parents.

Mr. O’Leary’s home is located in a quiet, middle-class neighborhood in the hills. The house itself is
spacious and lovely. Books and art from around the world adorn the walls. As Mr. O’Leary says,
“They’re there for storytelling and knowledge that there are other worlds out there to explore.” He bought
big comfortable furniture so the four adolescent boys in his care would enjoy spending time in the house’s
common spaces, as well as their private bedrooms. Mr. O’Leary clearly strives for an orderly home
atmosphere and in his efforts to achieve that goal, he regularly solicits support from social workers,
therapists, and volunteer mentors.

During the interview, Tran reported that he doesn’t like Mr. O’Leary because “he talks too much and
thinks he knows everything.” Tran also perceives that Mr. O’Leary has consistently low expectations for
Tran’s future, while Tran himself believes that he will finish high school, go to college, have a job when
he’s older, and generally stay out of trouble. In spite of his criticisms of Mr. O’Leary, Tran said that he
likes the people with whom he lives and is proud of his new home. When asked if he wants Mr.
O’Leary’s home to be permanent, Tran replied, “Yes, my father can’t get at me here, and there’s nowhere
else to go.”

Prior to the interview, Mr. O’Leary told the interviewer that Tran steals from the other boys, regularly
beats up on a developmentally delayed fifteen-year-old boy who also lives in the home, and is frequently
involved in physical fights outside of the home. The Department of Social Services and Juvenile
Probation Department are currently conducting two separate investigations into Tran’s behavior. During
the interview, Tran reported that physical fighting, stealing, drug deals, and arrests frequently occur in
Mr. O’Leary’s home, but Tran did not identify himself as the perpetrator. Tran also said that although he
feels safer in Mr. O’Leary’s home than in his father’s home, he still feels “not at all safe” in Mr.
O’Leary’s home. Out of any place in the world, he feels most safe in church. At the conclusion of our
interview with Tran, we asked, “If you were in charge here, what is one thing you would change around
here to keep kids safe?” He recommended that Mr. O’Leary give personal keys to the boys for their
bedrooms, install metal bars on the windows, and purchase an alarm system for the house.

Questions:
1. What are the positive aspects of Tran’s experience in out-of-home care?
2. What are your concerns?
3. How would you address your concerns?
4. What services or community resources would improve the quality of Tran’s experience?
5. What ethnic/cultural considerations seem particularly relevant?

(taken from http://cssr.berkeley.edu/pdfs/vignettes.pdf)