Breakdown of care: the case of Danish teenage placements

This article analyses the breakdown of teenage placements in Denmark from survey data on 227 teenagers placed in care during 2004. We explore frequencies of breakdown, time of breakdown occurrence and factors possibly causing breakdown. These are factors related to (i) the teenager, (ii) the parents, (iii) the care environment and (iv) the casework process. Results show that 26 per cent of the teenagers in the study experienced placement breakdown. Thirty per cent of these breakdowns occurred within the first 4 months of placement. A factor significantly increasing probability of breakdown was emotional problems of the teenager. A factor significantly reducing placement breakdown was the teenager having continuity with the same caseworker throughout the placement. System- and policy-related factors also proved to have an influence on breakdown rates. We discuss possible policy implications of these findings.