Unaccompanied refugee minors and foster care: A narrative literature review

This article describes the results of a narrative literature review on empirical research examining the outcomes and/or experiences of unaccompanied refugee minors in family foster care. The limited research' in which only 17 references were identified' suggests that family foster care is an important type of care for this group and is associated with better health and psychosocial outcomes compared to other types of care. Nevertheless' breakdown of family foster care placements is a cause for concern. Four groups of factors that influence the course of family foster care placements are discussed' namely' foster family characteristics' differences in expectations between foster parents and refugee youth' cultural differences' and contextual factors. Furthermore' practical implications and suggestions for further research are described.     

The motives of foster parents, their family and work circumstances

Summary In foster care research the focus is generally placed on thechildren, not on the parents who perform the foster care. Inthis article the focus is on foster parents of 10-11 year-oldchildren. They were interviewed about their motives for becomingfoster parents, which were linked to their family and work circumstances.Among the 21 foster families in the study, four different butequally frequent reasons or motives for taking care of fosterchildren from the very beginning could be distinguished: relativeswho feel responsibility for a certain child; couples who wantchildren and do not think they can have children of their own;families where the mother wants to be at home taking care ofbiological as well as foster children instead of having unskilledemployed work outside the home; and parents with grown-up childrenwho want to fill the 'empty nest' by becoming foster parents- combined with a family business at home or close to home.Changing family and work patterns in Sweden do not seem to haveinfluenced foster families as much as families in general. Theworth of acquiring more knowledge about the families involvedin foster care of children and young people in order to improvefoster care and reduce breakdowns of care is discussed.     

What can agencies do to increase foster carer satisfaction?

Stable, long‐term foster care homes are critical to ensuring a safe and nurturing childhood for many children worldwide. Greater foster carer satisfaction is associated with increased carer retention and is therefore critical in securing such stable homes for children. The purpose of this study is to determine which factors associated with foster care agencies contribute to higher levels of foster carer satisfaction. Results from a longitudinal study of 137 foster carers indicate that perceived adequacy of agency support, preplacement training, money to cover placement expenses, and a good match between the carer and the child are predictive of higher foster carer satisfaction. A mediation model further points to the provision of preplacement training as key to ensuring higher levels of satisfaction. Results offer new insights into factors related to foster carer retention and provide guidance to foster care agencies about actions that they can take to maximize the retention of foster carers.     

Assessment of problem behaviour by foster parents and their foster children

This study investigates the level of agreement between foster parents and foster children about problem behaviour and how this is associated with the breakdown of a foster care placement. The study took a sample of foster parents and their foster children (n= 60), who were aged 11–17 years, and analysed the severity of problem behaviour displayed by the foster children within 3 months of placement in the foster family and a year and a half later. The level of agreement was established with the intra‐class correlation coefficient, which represents both the differences in scores and the differences in ranking. This coefficient shows that there is a statistically significant difference in the level of agreement on the Internalizing Problems scale of the Child Behaviour Checklist between the placements that broke down and those that continued. The level of agreement is associated with the severity score, which in turn is associated with the outcome of the foster care placement. To avoid placement breakdown, problem behaviour should also be assessed from the perspective of the foster child.     

The significance of a secure base: a psychosocial model of long-term foster care

ABSTRACT Long‐term foster care has been a much neglected area of social work practice and research. Yet there are obvious challenges that need to be understood when building a family for life in foster care. Is it possible for foster families, where there are no biological or legal ties between carers and children, to provide care, concern and family membership not only through childhood but also into adult life? The study on which this paper is based set out to explore that question by investigating the experiences of 40 adults, aged 18–30, who grew up in foster families. Qualitative interviews were conducted, transcribed and analysed. Theoretical frameworks from attachment and resilience were brought together with concepts such as ‘belonging’ and ‘family membership’ to make sense of the narratives provided. An integrated and dynamic psychosocial model of long‐term foster care was developed, which emphasizes the significance of a secure base and has some important implications for practice.     

The unknown soldiers of foster care: Foster care as loss for the foster parents’ own children

Abstract

This paper explores the effects of the foster care experience on foster parents’ biological children. In spite of having been accepted for over 40 years as the best form of residential care for most children and adolescents requiring alternative living arrangements, very little research has been done into the foster care experience. Almost nothing is known about the effects of foster care on either the foster family as a unit or its individual members, yet one of the major concerns foster parents present is the effect of the foster care experience on their own children. This concern leads many experienced foster families to leave foster care and many potential foster families to decide not to foster. This paper discusses the losses experienced by the children of foster parents.     

Factors associated with placement breakdown initiated by foster parents – empirical findings from Germany

This study investigates the effects of covariates on the probability of placement breakdown in non‐kinship family foster care. Breakdowns are distinguished according to the initiator: children, carers, foster parents and the local child welfare authorities. The children concerned had entered foster care at ages ranging from 0 to a maximum of 17 years (n = 14 171). A significantly higher risk of breakdown on the initiative of the foster parents is found in male children, children whose parents receive financial support, children whose parents were removed from the register of carers, children who were between 6 and 15 years old when they joined the foster family, children who had earlier lived in a different foster family or residential care, children from patchwork families and children whose joining of a foster family was the result of disruptive social behaviour. Two‐thirds of the children from non‐kinship family foster care who stay in the foster family was ended on the initiative of the foster parents are subsequently looked after in residential care. That is three times the rate for all terminated foster relationships. Breakdowns on the initiative of the foster parents thus indicate a high risk of unstable care history developing and accordingly necessitate prevention strategies.     

No place like home: lessons learned and lessons forgotten –the Children Act 1948

The Children Act 1948 emphasizes foster care as the alternative provision for children who cannot be cared for by their own families; it also underlines the responsibility of the state to provide good alternative homes where necessary. The Act reflects contemporary developments in psychological thinking about the importance of attachment relationships, and a recognition, derived in part from the experiences of evacuation, of the harmful effects on children of separation from their families. However, greater awareness, from the 1970s on, of the deficiencies of the state as parent and the complexity of relationships between children, their birth parents and foster families led to the promulgation of 'inclusive' and 'task-centred' models of foster care, reflected in the shift of nomenclature from foster 'parenting' to foster 'caring'. These approaches may, however, be in danger of minimizing both the attachment needs of many children and young people within the foster placement and the parenting role which is appropriate in many placements. A model of foster care, derived directly from the first Children Act, which stresses these core relationships, should be developed alongside that which emphasizes task-centred, time-limited provision.     

Are children in foster care in better psychological health than children in institutions? What factors influence the outcome?

The aim of this study was to compare the psychological health of children in foster care with that of children in institutional care. Social workers were asked to assess the psychological health of the children as well as several other criteria on the basis of an analysis grid. Our sample consisted of 568 children placed in foster care and 661 children placed in institutions. Our results show that children in care who lived longer with their birth parents have a lower psychological health. Furthermore, the psychological health of children in residential care is lower than children placed in foster families. As children in institution are placed later than children in foster families, this may partially explain the lower psychological health of children in residential care. As a result, children in residential care have experienced more abuse and neglect and witnessed more domestic violence than children in foster care. In addition, children in residential care have more poor-quality contacts with their birth parents than children in foster family. These contacts negatively influence their psychological health. Finally, the factor that most influences the psychological health of children in care is the quality of the relationship with the people who care for them on a daily basis. Again, children placed in foster families have better-quality relationships with their foster families than children placed in institutions.     

Intergenerational pathways leading to foster care placement of foster care alumni's children

This study examined a path model that postulated intergenerational relationships between biological parent psychosocial functioning and foster care alumni mental health, economic status and social support; and from these to the likelihood of children of foster care alumni being placed in foster care. The sample included 742 adults who spent time in foster care as children with a private foster care agency and who reported having at least one biological child. A full pathway was found between poorer father's functioning to greater alumni depression, which was in turn associated with negative social support, and then a greater likelihood of child out‐of‐home placement. Other parent to alumni paths were that poorer father functioning was associated with alumni anxiety and post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and poorer mother's mental health was associated with PTSD; however, anxiety and PTSD were not implicated as precursors of foster care placement of the child. Findings support the need for increased practice and policy support to address the mental health needs of parents of children in or at risk of foster care, as well as the children themselves, as family history may have a lasting influence on quality of life, even when children are raised apart from biological parents.     

Who returns home? Study on placement outcomes of Flemish foster children

Until recently, Flemish family foster care was a temporary measure with as its most important goal, the reunification of the foster child with the birth parents. To date, nothing is known on the number of reunifications, nor has any study been undertaken into the factors (child, parent, foster parent and foster care process) associated with reunification. Case files of 127 foster children who exited foster care in 2007 were analysed. Dependent variables were type of foster care placement outcome (reunification, successful placement without reunification or breakdown) and place of residence after placement ending (with birth parents, extended family, foster family, residential care or living independently). After placement ending, only 40% of foster children went living with their parents, including foster children who were reunified (26%) and foster children who moved to their parents after a placement breakdown (14%). Characteristics of the foster children, and in particular absence of problem behaviour, were associated mainly with a return home. This may indicate that too much attention is paid to the functioning of the foster child and too little to improving the competencies of the parents and the (future) home environment.     

Adoption by foster carers: a profile of interest and outcomes

This paper looks at the issue of adoption by foster carers and in particular its financial aspects. The findings stem from a wider study of remuneration and performance in foster care. Drawing on a survey of 1181 foster carers, this paper examines the characteristics of those who have considered adoption. The outcomes of such consideration, including the part played by financial concerns and anticipated loss of support in decisions to proceed with adoption or not, are also examined. The findings reveal a significant level of interest in adoption on the part of foster carers, to which three particular sets of characteristics are found to be associated. First, interest is greater among those more extensively involved in foster care in terms of experience, specialisms and range of placements offered. Second, it is associated with relatively less concern with payment and less ‘professional’ views of foster care. Third, there is evidence that adoption is more commonly pursued by those who feel less valued by social workers. Fears of losing financial help and support were cited as reasons by more than half of all foster carers who had considered but not pursued adoption.     

Foster care placement breakdown in the Netherlands and Flanders: Prevalence,precursors, and associated factors

Family foster care is the option of choice for children in need of out‐of‐home care in Flanders and the Netherlands. Foster care is however a vulnerable intervention, and questions can be raised as to its efficacy. Although the literature on placement breakdown has made significant progress during the last years, empirical knowledge regarding breakdown in Flanders and the Netherlands remains scant. Consequently, this study aimed at investigating prevalence and precursors of breakdowns in long‐term foster care, the duration of placement before breakdown, and the association of child and placement characteristics with breakdown. Case files of 271 Dutch and 309 Flemish foster children were analysed with a coding scheme designed for this study. After 6 years, 398 placements had terminated: 169 placements broke down and 229 placements ended positively. Placements broke down mainly because of behavioural problems of the foster child, foster parents' parenting problems, and conflicts between birth and foster parents. Foster children with behavioural problems, older foster children, foster children denied treatment, and foster children in care because of sexual abuse were more at risk of breakdown. Assessing these factors is important when evaluating the appropriateness of a family foster care placement.     

The relationship between foster care families and birth families in a child welfare context: The determining factors

Children placed in foster care families usually continue to see their birth parents in supervised and home visits. These children deal with the fact that they belonged to two families in a context where the relationship between the two families is sometimes complex and tense. Based on 45 semi‐structured interviews conducted with foster care families and kinship foster care families, the present study examines the relationship between foster care parents and birth parents in a placement context, and focuses on the factors affecting the nature and quality of this relationship. The results showed that the quality of the relationship dynamics varies according to the following: how well and how often the parent–child visits took place, the birth parents' characteristics, and the foster carers' attitudes. The results also showed that placements in kinship foster care families were more likely to result in conflict and tension between the two parties than placements in regular foster care families.     

Love and money: payment, motivation and the fostering task

Although the payment of foster carers has attracted greater attention in recent writing and research, coverage of the issues has been limited. In this study, based on interviews with 20 female carers, the place of payment within foster care is explored in greater depth. The focus is on charting how carers perceive their task as ‘parenting’ or ‘job’, whether and how they experience payment as compensation or as an appropriate reward for their skills. Also examined are the ways in which payment may impact upon the practice of foster care, for example in decision making over the taking or ending of placements and the provision of aftercare support for care leavers. The study highlights the distinctive nature of foster care as an institution that straddles the public and private domains, and examines the resulting complexities. It concludes by suggesting that while payment issues provide important threads that run throughout foster care, their influence is ultimately limited by the latter's base within the family.     

Group Work with Natural Parents in Permanency Planning

Group work with parents of children in foster care has good potential as a complement to casework services in permanency planning. An underused social work service in child welfare, group work has rarely been provided to natural parents. It can be utilized differentially along the foster care continuum from needs identification through aftercare to provide parents information, support and training specific to foster care. Reports of group work services for abusing parents, parents of children in residential treatment and special programs for natural parents provide relevant information for design of group work with natural parents. An example of a group of parents whose children are in foster home placement is presented. Special considerations for providing group services to natural parents are highlighted. Group work appears to have positive effects on the providing agency as well as on parent group participants. Issues regarding group work in permanency planning include the risk of its misuse through agency-imposed agendas and/or agency determined timetables for individual and group development. It will be helpful to study what group services with which parents at which points in the foster care continuum assist permanency planning efforts.     

Supporting foster and kinship carers to promote the mental health of children

The majority of children and young people removed from the care of their parents by the state of Victoria, Australia, reside in foster or kinship care. These children have experienced a broad range of adverse conditions and are up to 4 times more likely to experience problems with mental health than their mainstream peers. This paper draws on the perspectives of foster and kinship carers, describing the disconnection between their role as mental health advocates and their interest in early intervention in a field which is dominated by crisis and the historic marginalisation of foster and kinship carers. Thirty‐one foster and kinship carers across greater metropolitan Melbourne, Australia, contributed to this study through interviews and focus groups. Participants demonstrated a practical understanding of mental health and an ability to identify a range of conditions that have an adverse impact on the mental health of children and young people in their care. The paper concludes that there is a lack of systemic support and even a range of barriers that affect the capacity of foster and kinship carers to promote the mental health and well‐being of the children and young people in their care.     

Foster care assessment: an exploratory study of the placement assessment process in Flanders and the Netherlands

Family foster care placement decision‐making has a weak scientific underpinning. The identification of clusters of foster children (groups of foster children with similar characteristics) can help improve decision quality. In this study, we investigated if foster children could indeed be clustered, which problems were identified at the time of placement and what might be the influence of placement history. Two clusters of foster children were found: (i) young children with coinciding parental child‐rearing incapacity and familial problems, and (ii) older children with child problems. At the time of placement, familial problems were more often identified in younger children with a placement history. These findings stress the importance of approaching foster care assessment as part of a dynamic decision‐making process. It is key to finding the most appropriate situation for the child. At the same time, it must be decided how the desired situation can be realized, wherein placement decisions are based on an appraisal of whether or not a foster placement is an appropriate solution. In conjunction with this, it needs to be decided how the parents can be supported towards reunification, or whether or not long‐term foster care is the best option for the child, and if so what conditions need to be met.     

We care about care: advice by children in care for children in care,foster parents and child welfare workers about the transition into foster care

Twenty children in foster care, ages 8 to 15 years, provided advice to children in care, foster parents and child welfare workers about ways to assist service delivery during the transition into foster care. The children discussed the importance of tending to experiences such as foster home expectations, the importance of time and information, the new foster/parent–child relationship, coping with stress, the ability to be engaged in decision‐making, the benefits of foster care and the need to build a trusting and personal relationship between children in care and their caregivers. The importance of listening to children's experiences of the transition into foster care and incorporating their advice into future research, policy and practice will be discussed.