Abstract:
The perceptions and motivations that workers have in their work and work environment are important determinants of the quality of work they do. For people who work in residential institutions where children who have
lost the care of their parents receive care, these perceptions and motivations become a crucial part in determining
the quality of services or care the children are given. This study set out to explore the perceptions and motivations
of caregivers in the institutional context in Ghana. Adopting a qualitative, phenomenological approach, data were
collected from 35 caregivers in two children's homes in Ghana through participant observations, focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. It emerged that caregivers perceived the children in their care first as children
of God and then as children of white men and were predominantly motivated by their religious convictions to
keep doing ‘the work of God’. Other motivations included personal life situations and economic aspects of the
job. Implications for the workers and children in this environment are discussed.
