Childhood crises--who to tell?

This study describes an investigation of community attitudes in Christchurch towards sources of help for children in crisis situations. To whom the child turns is particularly important when a child is unable or unwilling to ask a parent for help. The children sampled showed a preference for informal sources of support (such as friends, relatives, rather than formal, such as teachers, crisis-counsellors, doctors). Most professionals believed children should use their services in preference to those of other professions. The adults rated formal sources of support, particularly teachers, much higher than the children. Of the formal services crisis-counsellors, and in particular the Childhelp Line, a 24-hour telephone counselling service for children, was the most preferred. The findings tend to demonstrate the value of a child-oriented crisis line to the community.