Higher Institute for Family Sciences:
Centre of Knowledge on and for Families

What we do
The Higher Institute for Family Sciences has three major tasks:

1. Conducting applied and practice oriented research on the living conditions of families, the position of children and adolescents in families and in society, on family relations and intergenerational relations. Added to the study of policies supporting families materially, in their relationships and in their educational role.
2. Disseminating the results of scientific research on families and family policy, both on the national and European level.
   We mainly target two groups: professionals working with families and the families themselves. For the latter task the institute closely cooperates with the Flemish League of Families.
3. Offering short training programs to Bachelors in Family Sciences and other professionals working with families, without excluding a broader public. As such lifelong learning is stimulated and know–how on families, relationships and education is further disseminated.

Who we are
The Higher Institute for Family Sciences is a member institute of the consortium ‘Hogeschool–Universiteit Brussel’, with colleges located in Brussels and in Ghent. The Higher Institute conducts research on families and their living conditions and how to improve these. Conferences, publications and short training programs disseminate the research results. Organizations wanting know–how on family relations and on how to develop them, are invited to introduce research assignments or other types of cooperation.

There exists a close cooperation with the training course ‘Bachelor in Family Sciences’ and other educational programs at the ‘Hogeschool–Universiteit Brussel'.

For innovative and relevant research of high quality, we foster communication and consent with other institutes and organizations professionally working with families. In each project we pursue active cooperation with interested partners. This avoids redundant work, stimulates synergism and augments value in creating and disseminating know–how on families.

What can we offer your organization?
Researchers and staff of the Higher Institute for Family Sciences look forward to answering your demands for information and to receiving your research and/or cooperation proposals. We consider every proposal and its relevance to our mission and tasks, taking into account the financial means of the applying organization. This consultation might result in a joint project submitted to Flemish or European authorities for financial support.

Services we can offer are, for example:

• Development and organization of a client survey assessing how children and parents appreciate the services of out–of school child care facilities.
• Your organization supports families in need. You do everything you can to avoid that the children should be placed in custody but you realize that these families miss the support of informal networks. You are looking for methodologies and strategies to help these families strengthen their social network. You also want to find out if any international projects in this field might inspire you.
• In the information shop for parental support a lot of requests for information deal with the education of adolescents: how to improve the communication between youngsters and their parents? You plan to organize a training program on these topics and you are looking for an expert to develop and teach this course. You also seek assistance to edit an information dossier with concrete tips for parents.
• A group of schools plan to invest more in its communication with the parents and wants to support the teachers in this matter. How can they best take on this task and what kind of assistance best suits this purpose?

References (200X – 2011):

• Design, set up and updating of www.gidsvoorgezinnen.be guiding parents and social workers to services and institutions who support and inform families.
• Assessment of the implementation of investments by local authorities in parental support. This study was carried out under supervision of Kind en Gezin (Child and Family), the Flemish governmental agency that focuses on preventive treatment and guidance of young children.
  Investigation of location – based services, designed to localize and follow vulnerable persons, with pedagogical and ethical evaluation of such practices.
• Design, set–up and updating of FamCompass, a portfolio–instrument to assess family related knowledge and competences (www.famcompass.eu).
• Annual follow–up and analysis of family policy in Flanders. Yearly, we report on changes in family policies and policies with relevance for families in Flanders. At the International Day of Families Conference (15th May), the report is published and presented.

Team members
The team is composed of experienced scientists covering a wide variety of know–how and experience:

• Koen Baeten, Ma Philosophy and Family and Sexuality Sciences
• Gerd De Clerck, Ma Ethical Sciences
• Joris Dewispelaere, PhD in Psychology
• Kathleen Emmery, Ma Criminology
• Gaby Jennes, Director, Ma Social Sciences
• Dirk Luyten, PhD in Social Sciences
• Patrick Meurs, PhD in Psychology
• Kristien Nys, PhD in Pedagogical Sciences
• Adelheid Rigo, PhD in Philosophy and Master of Clinical Psychology
• Pieter Rondelez, Ma Political Sciences (European Studies) and Ma Conflict and Development
• Hans Van Crombrugge, PhD in Pedagogical Sciences
• Lut Verstappen, Ma History and Gender Studies
• Claire Wiewauters, Ma Pedagogical Sciences

Contact us
Do you want to know more about our projects? Do you want to be invited to our activities?
Mail: info@hig.be
Website: www.hig.be
Tel: 0032(0)2240.68.40 or 240.68.46 or skype to ‘defactorij’.
Address: Huart-Hamoirlaan 136, 1030 Brussels (Belgium)