Search results for ‘Subject term:"foster care"’ Sort:
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Group treatment of foster children to reduce separation conflicts associated with placement breakdown
- Author:
- PALMER Sally E.
- Journal article citation:
- Child Welfare Journal, 69(3), May 1990, pp.227-238.
- Publisher:
- Child Welfare League of America
Group sessions directed at children's feelings about having been separated from their families indicated important failings in agency practice with both children and their parents.
Child’s adjustment and parent-child contact after child placement into foster care: a systematic review
- Authors:
- POITRAS Karine, PORLIER Sarah, TARABULSY George M.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Public Child Welfare, early cite 22 June 2021,
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Whereas most biological parents have some form of contact with their children following foster placement, the outcomes of parental visitation for child adjustment remain unclear. We conducted a systematic review of the literature to document associations between parent-child contact and foster child’s adjustment. Research databases for social services and psychology were systematically searched for relevant studies. Of 174 potential studies explored, 18 empirical studies were retained. Analysis revealed that parental contact is associated with attachment to the biological parent, but not with academic functioning or attachment to the foster parent. On the other hand, the results on associations between parental contact and behavioral adjustment are more contradictory, and they generally indicate an absence of association between those variables. These findings suggest that other factors are more salient for understanding the adjustment of foster children. (Edited publisher abstract)
Building up secure relationships: analysis of adult-child interactions in foster and adoptive families
- Authors:
- MOLANO Nuria, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 126, 2021, p.106026.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Many children who experience serious adversity with their birth family have to be placed in family-based alternatives, such as foster care, or adoption. Caregivers and parents are then expected to show these children nurturing patterns of relating to others through affectionate and stimulating interactions. These are essential for establishing positive ties within new families. In the present study, we explored the adult-child interactions that took place in 116 families from Spain: 28 long-term non-kin foster families, 34 adoptive families, and a community comparison group made up of 54 families. The interactions between the child and the main caregiver were explored with a micro-analytic approach, which examined in detail the exchange of verbal and non-verbal behaviours in each dyad while they were performing a joint construction task. We sought to analyse these interactions by focusing on the adults’ use of some behaviours that are known to promote a secure attachment. We also aimed to examine the adults’ performances between the different groups. Results revealed that parents and caregivers in every group generally displayed a wide range of attachment-facilitating behaviours. They tended to do this in a consistent and coherent way, developing an interaction pattern that promotes their secure relationship with the child. Contrasts between the groups indicated that foster and adoptive families showed significant differences in relation to the comparison group, as their use of attachment-facilitating behaviours was higher than that of the community dyads. Given the importance of security, belonging and commitment as key factors in the success of family-based care, implications for interventions regarding the quality of adult-child interactions will be discussed. (Edited publisher abstract)
Should the reintegration of children in foster care into their biological families be the only goal of the legislation governing foster care? Factors influencing the relations between parents and their children living in foster care
- Authors:
- CHARTIER Stephanie, BLAVIER Adelaide
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 121, 2021, p.105741.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
The aim of this article was to identify factors that may influence the presence of parents and the possibilities of reunification with their foster children. This study found that there are 4 main areas that influence the presence of parents in their child's life and the possibilities of reunification with them. These include: the quality of the parent-child relationship and the mobilization of parents; the time factor.; parents' pathologies and the consequences on their children; and type of family and family relationship. A majority of parents disengage in the first three years of the placement and especially in the first year. It is therefore essential to carry out intensive work with the parents as soon as possible in order to maximise the possibilities of family reunification or, if necessary, to develop a realistic and adapted project for all parties. Parents' drug addiction generates their absence from their child's life. The accumulation of problems among parents also increases their disengagement from their child's life. The work on parenting must include intensive support in solving the personal problems of the parents of children in care. It is therefore essential to work intensively with the parents at an early stage to maximise the possibilities of reunification on the parents' personal problems and the quality of the parent–child relationship. (Edited publisher abstract)
Mother and baby foster placements: experiences and issues
- Authors:
- ADAMS Paul, BEVAN Sarah
- Journal article citation:
- Adoption and Fostering, 35(2), Summer 2011, pp.32-40.
- Publisher:
- Sage
This paper presents findings from a study examining ‘mother and baby’ fostering in three fostering agencies within the North West London Fostering Consortium. Data were drawn from semi-structured interviews with 8 mother and baby foster carers, supplemented with a brief questionnaire completed by the three participating local authority fostering services. Results indicated that demand for mother and baby fostering was high, and in the majority of cases agencies sought to identify carers to meet specific needs as they arose, rather than assessing general mother and baby foster carers in advance. From the carers’ perspective, factors that contributed to successful placements included clarity about their roles, good social work practice in planning and supporting the placement, and mothers who were positive about being there. Mother and baby carers in particular noted the importance to them of peer support networks. The authors concluded that foster carers needed to be able to recognise and manage the distinct needs of both the mother and the baby, and suggested that educational provision and post-placement support are crucial.
In need of attention
- Author:
- PHILPOT Terry
- Journal article citation:
- Community Care, 20.6.02, 2002, pp.34-35.
- Publisher:
- Reed Business Information
Looks at the needs of birth children of parents who foster.
Improving behaviors and placement stability for young foster children: an open trial of Parent-Child Care (PC-CARE) in the child welfare system
- Authors:
- HAWK Brandi N., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 119, 2020, p.105614.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Young children in the foster system, who have experienced various traumas, are at risk for mental health problems, particularly externalizing and trauma-related behaviors. Such problems are related to placement instability and future difficulties. Many interventions for foster children take months to implement and tend to target only children with moderate to severe behavior problems. This study presents preliminary findings from a county-wide implementation of Parent-Child Care (PC-CARE), a 7-session dyadic intervention, as a secondary prevention service for all children aged 1–5 years in new foster placements, with the goal of improving children’s behavioral adjustment and placement stability. Method: Participants included 153 children aged 1–5 years (50% male) who participated in at least one PC-CARE session with their foster caregivers in the first 90 days of placement. Results: Children who completed PC-CARE showed significant decreases in trauma and behavior symptoms and increases in positive behaviors (i.e., initiative, self-regulation), and caregiver-child relationships from pre- to post-intervention. Children who completed PC-CARE showed more placement stability and fewer placements disruptions to another foster home at one- and six-months post-intervention than children who did not complete PC-CARE. Conclusion: PC-CARE appears to be a promising secondary prevention service within child welfare associated with improvements in children’s adjustment to new foster placements and increased placement stability. (Edited publisher abstract)
Effects of the ‘Circle of Security’ group parenting program (COS-P) with foster carers: an observational study
- Authors:
- KRISHNAMOORTHY Govind, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 115, 2020, p.105082.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
The Circle of Security-Parent DVD program (COS-P) is a widely used parenting intervention that is gaining popularity globally as it is currently being delivered across several continents. Despite the uptake of COS-P, there is limited research on its effectiveness for specific groups. This study presents a multi-site evaluation of a group delivery of the eight-week COS-P program to foster carers (n = 54) of 6–12 year-old children in an urban community as facilitated by community-based providers from a specialist child and youth mental health services (n = 2). Three measures, the Parent Stress Index, the Parent Child Relationship Inventory, and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, were used to assess functioning via a pre-post treatment design. Foster carers who participated in COS-P reported reductions in levels of emotional and behavioural difficulties for the children in their care. They also reported reductions in parent–child dysfunctional interactions and parental distress. Finally, program completion appeared to be associated with a reduction in foster carers’ perceptions of their foster child as being difficult to take care of, and with lower levels of overall stress related to their role as a foster carer. These findings, and their implications for service delivery and future research, are discussed. (Edited publisher abstract)
Disenfranchised grief: the emotional impact experienced by foster carers on the cessation of a placement
- Authors:
- LYNES David, SITOE Angela
- Journal article citation:
- Adoption and Fostering, 43(1), 2019, pp.22-34.
- Publisher:
- Sage
This study uses a qualitative approach to explore the experiences of 22 UK foster carers when a child is ‘moved on’ from a placement, focusing specifically on their experiences of loss. In most cases participants report loving the child as their own and describe their surprise at the profundity of their feelings of loss and grief when living through the child’s departure. These emotions can be fruitfully perceived as ‘disenfranchised grief’ in that its severity was unexpected and was not recognised as legitimate by the carers’ social group or professionals working with them. As a result, their loss was neither perceived as legitimate nor given a vehicle for expression. In some cases, participants report that the experience changed their approach to caring for children and even resulted in them ceasing to foster. The implications for practice include preparing foster carers to expect a grief response when their children move on, to recognise that this might be disenfranchised and to enhance peer and professional support during that process. (Publisher abstract)
Balancing between caregiving and professionalism: women's narratives on fostering a victim of maternal sexual abuse
- Authors:
- WUBS Dorijn, BATSTRA Laura, GRIETENS Hans
- Journal article citation:
- Child and Family Social Work, 23(4), 2018, pp.757-764.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The impact of sexual abuse on children is enormous, particularly when a child is abused sexually by a mother figure. In order to gain insight into the experiences of this rarely studied group, the life stories of four foster mothers of victims of maternal sexual abuse were collected. The narratives were coded inductively, and several topics concerning foster motherhood were studied more in‐depth. Four key themes emerged in the women's narratives: their attitude towards the abusing female, the foster child's sexual behaviour towards the foster mother, the emotional and physical distance of the foster mothers towards their foster child, and lastly, their sense of responsibility. The four foster mothers continuously balance between fostering their foster child as a parent and responding as a professional caregiver. The consequences of being a foster mother of a victim of maternal sexual abuse should be more socially acknowledged. (Publisher abstract)