Introduction

Australia’s child protection and criminal justice systems reflect legacies of colonisation, imperialism and globalisation. Contemporary social realities in Australia that see disproportionately large numbers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and those with care experience involved with the criminal justice system are indicative of this legacy. This chapter introduces the theoretical influences and research design deployed in our study. Four theoretical approaches inform our analytical framework – structural determinants from Scraton’s work, psychological theories of trauma, Indigenous ontologies and intersectionality. Our approach combines an individual and a structural lens. This chapter outlines definitions of out-of-home care and the terminology used in this book. It concludes with an overview of our research design and a road map of the book.