Sexual and reproductive health policies for foster youth in California: A qualitative study of child welfare professionals' experiences and perceptions of policies

Child welfare professionals and foster parents increasingly suggest the importance of establishing clear and consistent policies and procedures to address the sexual and reproductive health of youth in foster care. The present study examines the content and context of such policies across 18 California counties through a search of publically available county policy documents, and surveys and expert interviews with child welfare professionals (N = 22). A policy framework for agenda setting and policymaking was used to guide the data collection and analysis process. Child welfare professionals were aware of multiple sources of information, support and services for foster youths' sexual and reproductive health, though few practiced in counties with formal policies that outline the resources and support that youth should receive. Participants demonstrated widespread recognition that issues of youth sexual and reproductive health were significant; posing challenges to youth, foster parents and child welfare staff. Identified policy solutions included: 1) training for social workers and foster parents; 2) collaborative partnerships with public health nurses and community providers; 3) data tracking and monitoring of outcomes to assess youth needs and evaluate the impact of programs and policies; and 4) involvement by advocacy organizations in defining problems and advocating for improved services and support for youth in care. Social workers largely perceived that support from child welfare administrators and policy leaders is necessary to prioritize this issue and initiate policy formation. Additional research is needed to further examine the impact of policy mandates on social workers, foster parents and youth in foster care.     

An analysis of the relationship between parenting self-efficacy,the quality of parenting,and parental and child emotional health

ABSTRACT

The relationship between parenting self-efficacy, the quality of parenting, and parental and child emotional health has been conducted with Caucasian families and young children. The purpose of this study was to examine these relationships in ethnically diverse and impoverished families with children who have behavior problems. We examined the relationships between parenting self-efficacy, parenting practices, child externalizing problems, and caregiver depression. Participants included 213 caregivers of children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), who rated their parenting self-efficacy and completed questionnaires on parenting practices (APQ and FAD); child externalizing behaviors (Iowa Connors Inattention and ODD subscales); and caregiver depression (CESD). Data were examined using Chi-Square tests, a Linear Regression, and a One-Way ANOVA. Results demonstrate parenting self-efficacy was positively associated with positive parenting and inversely associated with inconsistent discipline. Among parents who perceived themselves as being a “better than average parent,” there was a greater percentage of youth who met cutoff for inattention problems as compared to youth who did not meet this cutoff. Lastly, depression scores were lowest for caregivers identifying as below average parents. This study underscores the need for involving parents and enhancing parenting self-efficacy in interventions targeting Disruptive Behavior Disorders.     

HIV/AIDS and homelessness

This article describes the results of research on the demographic, housing, psychosocial characteristics, and service needs of a sample of homeless people with HIV disease. Results show that respondents are similar in demographic and housing characteristics to the general homeless population. On average, respondents report high levels of stress and depression, moderate satisfaction with perceived social support availability, moderate beliefs in their ability to influence health related outcomes, moderate levels of self-efficacy, and low levels of physical and psychosocial disability. A range of services was identified as both helpful and useful in supporting a stable living arrangement. Implications for social policy, service provision, and research are discussed.     

Social and psychological resources among homeless youth: protection against risk for physical victimization?

ABSTRACT

This study examines child physical abuse, social and psychological resources, and street physical victimization among 150 homeless youth from the Midwest. Path analyses results show that males have higher self-efficacy than females, while older youth and those who experienced less child physical abuse reported higher self-esteem. Self-efficacy and self-esteem were positively associated with social support as was being younger and having experienced less child physical abuse. Younger respondents reported fewer difficulties obtaining basic necessities, and those who had less trouble finding these necessities experienced less street physical victimization. Females, younger youth, and those who experienced less child physical abuse reported lower rates of physical victimization. Agencies should be aware that many youth experiencing homelessness have trouble obtaining basic necessities, which increases risk for victimization. Moreover, the ability to obtain necessities appears to override the influential role of social support, further affirming the foundational importance of agencies helping youth meet their basic needs.     

The Influence of Perceived Parenting Style and Contraceptive Self-Efficacy on College Student Contraceptive Use

ABSTRACT

Few studies have examined the influence that parenting style has on the contraceptive use of college students. The current study explored the relationships between perceived parenting style, contraceptive attitudes, contraceptive self-efficacy, and contraceptive use in 270 college students. Analyses revealed that perceived parenting style had a relationship with contraceptive attitudes and when combined with contraceptive self-efficacy predicted contraceptive use. Findings suggest that for college students, both internal and external influences on beliefs contribute to contraceptive use and the parent–child relationship remains influential. Further research should explore specific aspects of parent–child communication that increase self-efficacy and subsequent contraceptive use. The implications of current results could inform the delivery of parent education and student sexual health programs.     

Factors related to meeting physical activity guidelines in active college students: A social cognitive perspective

Objective: To examine the relations of sex, exercise self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and social support with meeting physical activity guidelines (PAGs). Participants: Three hundred ninety-six college students participated in this study in the summer 2013. Methods: Students completed online questionnaires that assessed physical activity behaviors and psychosocial factors (ie, self-efficacy, outcome expectancies, and social support). Students' physical activity profile was categorized as meeting no PAGs, meeting aerobic PAGs only, meeting muscle-strengthening PAGs only, or meeting both PAGs. Results: A multinomial logistic regression revealed that students' sex and psychosocial factors significantly affected the odds of meeting any and all PAGs. Sex significantly moderated the relationship between outcome expectancy and meeting aerobic PAGs and between outcome expectancy meeting muscle-strengthening PAGs. Conclusions: Results indicate that interventions designed to increase psychosocial factors may increase the likelihood of students meeting any and all PAGs. Social support may be especially beneficial for increasing muscle-strengthening activity.     

The Use of Online Social Support by Foster Families

ABSTRACT

The extent to which foster families utilize social support on the Internet is examined in a sample of 34 foster families in a digital divide intervention program and a comparison sample of 30 foster families who were not part of the program. In spite of increased Internet access, the frequency of using online social support is low. A minority of parents and children increased their use of the Internet to give and receive help, communicate with other foster families and e-mail with their foster care worker. More than half of foster youth have used the Internet to stay in touch with friends and relatives and have “made a new friend” over the Internet. Implications for child welfare practice and for further research are discussed.     

American College Health Association

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this cross-sectional investigation was to examine (1) gender differences in osteoporosis-related knowledge and beliefs and (2) if these beliefs could predict vigorous physical activity behavior in university students. Participants: Male (n = 176) and female (n = 351) university students participated in the study. Methods: Participants completed self-report measures of osteoporosis knowledge and health beliefs and vigorous physical activity. Results: Regardless of gender, osteoporosis knowledge was relatively poor. Women reported higher knowledge, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, and calcium barriers, and lower exercise self-efficacy than men. Regression analyses showed that for women, perceived susceptibility, health motivation, and exercise self-efficacy predicted vigorous physical activity, whereas for men, exercise barriers was the only predictor. Conclusions: Gender differences in osteoporosis health beliefs appear to be greater in older adults than college-aged students. Interventions designed to increase vigorous physical activity may want to target different beliefs for men and women.     

The need to do it all: Exploring the ways in which treatment foster parents enact their complex role

Treatment foster care (TFC) is an appealing approach for treating youth with emotional and behavioral disorders because it combines the potential for intensive interventions with opportunities for growth and development in a family-based setting. To accomplish this, TFC requires treatment foster parents to simultaneously play roles of both substitute caregiver/parent and front-line professional. This requires that treatment foster parents excel at both the behaviorally focused elements of an interventionist while simultaneously enacting the more relationally-based aspects of a parent. To date there has been little in the literature to explore the extent to which practicing treatment foster parents actually utilize both behavioral and relational approaches in their work with youth. This paper uses baseline data from a randomized trial (n = 247) to explore eight potential approaches that treatment foster parents might use (including: monitoring/supervision, approaches to discipline, consistency of responses to behaviors, time together, adult-child conflict, positive affect towards the child, perspective taking/empathy building, and communication) as well as a measure of their own assessment of their role. Results show that treatment foster parents recognize the complexities of their role, and most view themselves more as parents than as treatment providers. Substantial variation was evident on all examined dimensions of the treatment parent role (except supervision/monitoring). Variations in treatment parent approaches were most significantly related to child's age and their own view of their role. The paper concludes with discussion of implications and directions for future research.     

Underserved parents,underserved youth: Considering foster parent willingness to foster substance-using adolescents

Adolescents involved with foster care are five times more likely to receive a drug dependence diagnosis when compared to adolescents in the general population. Prior research has shown that substance use is often hidden from providers, negating any chance for treatment and almost guaranteeing poor post-foster care outcomes. There are virtually no studies that examine the willingness (and its determinants) to foster youth with substance abuse problems. The current study conducted a nationally-distributed survey of 752 currently licensed foster care parents that assessed willingness to foster youth overall and by type of drug used, and possible correlates of this decision (e.g., home factors, system factors, and individual foster parent factors such as ratings of perceived difficulty in fostering this population). Overall, willingness to foster a youth involved with alcohol and other drugs (AOD) was contingent upon the types of drugs used. The odds that a parent would foster an AOD-involved youth were significantly increased by being licensed as a treatment foster home, having fostered an AOD-involved youth in the past, having AOD-specific training and past agency-support when needed, and self-efficacy with respect to positive impact. Surprisingly, when religion played a large part in the decision to foster any child, the odds of willingness to foster an AOD-involved youth dropped significantly. These results suggest that a large proportion of AOD-involved youth who find themselves in the foster care system will not have foster families willing to parent them, thereby forcing placement into a variety of congregate care facilities (e.g., residential treatment facilities, group homes). Specific ways in which the system can address these issues to improve placement and permanency efforts are provided.     

Do Foster Parents and Care Workers Recognize the Needs of Youth in Family Foster Care with a History of Sexual Abuse?

Children in family foster care have the right to participate in decisions regarding their life, however, adults often advocate on behalf of children. This Q methodological study explored whether shared perspectives among foster parents and care workers resemble shared perspectives of youth regarding the psychosocial needs experienced by youth with a history of sexual abuse. Participants sorted a set of statement cards according to what they thought was most important for youth. By-person factor analyses examined how the Q sorts of foster parents and care workers related to those of youth. The results showed that foster parents mostly recognized the group of youth who value an instrumental relationship with their carers, while care workers mostly recognized the group of youth who value support of both foster and birth parents with regard to their preparation for independent living. The two youth groups characterized by ambivalence and autonomy were barely recognized. Results are discussed in light of the expected roles of foster parents and care workers, and youth’s contact with birth parents. Lastly, this study highlights the importance of youth participation, because youth offer unique and varying perspectives about their needs.     

“It's really overwhelming”: Parent and service provider perspectives of parents aging out of foster care

Rates of pregnancy and parenthood among current and former foster youth are two to three times higher than non-foster youth peers. Repeat pregnancies among young mothers aging out of foster care also occur at higher rates than peers not involved with the child welfare system. Furthermore, mothers aging out of foster care demonstrate high levels of parenting stress and risk for child maltreatment. Indeed, this population is in significant need of help; however, beyond anecdotal evidence, little is known about the needs and day-to day experiences of this population. In order to tailor interventions to meet the needs of parents aging out, the perspectives of stakeholders must be taken into account. Using qualitative data gathered from separate small group interviews with parents aging out and service providers, this study examined participants' perceptions of parents' daily experiences, strengths, and needs. Findings indicated that parents aging out face overwhelming adversity and stress with little outside financial, emotional, or parenting support from family or friends. Yet, parents also expressed motivation to be good parents, resilience, and the desire to gain effective parenting skills. Although similar themes arose among parent and provider interviews, perceptions differed. Parents expressed hope and optimism in providing for their children while providers expressed systemic failure in preparing parents for independent living. Based on these findings, we conclude that parenting interventions specific to parents aging out may need to address three fundamental and key components: basic needs, social support, and effective parenting techniques.     

Remaining home: Well-being outcomes and co-occurring parental substance use following a maltreatment investigation in middle childhood

PurposeThe purpose of the study is to understand differences in child well-being related to parental substance use among children ages 6–12 who were investigated for maltreatment but not removed from their homes. Children with a substance-using parent in the home are compared to those without a substance-using parent in the home.MethodsLongitudinal data from waves 1 and 3 of the second National Study of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW II) are used. NSCAW II is a national sample of families with children and youth aged birth to 17.5 investigated by child protective services (CPS). A subset of the data (analyzed with domain analysis methods) is used for this study (n = 575). Eight well-being outcomes from four domains (cognitive development, physical health, psychological/behavioral development and social/emotional competence) are analyzed.FindingsWe hypothesized that (among children investigated for maltreatment and not removed from home) children whose parents used substances would exhibit lower mean levels of well-being at thirty-six months follow-up compared to those whose parents did not use. Unexpectedly, we found no significant differences in well-being levels between children with parents in the home using substances and those without.ConclusionsChildren with substance-using parents may be able to remain at home over an extended period after investigation, while maintaining well-being levels similar to children at home with parents not using substances. If an effective safety plan can be put in place, this option may provide a path to maintaining safety, permanency and well-being for such children without placement in out-of-home care.     

Confronting Cruelty

Abstract

The present article reports on a study of the attitudes and behaviour of young people towards help-seeking during times of emotional distress and, in particular, when contemplating suicide. Twent- one young people aged between 16 and 24 years, as well as six parents and 14 youth service providers who lived in ‘Subcity’, a metropolitan community, were interviewed about their understandings of youth suicide and effective interventions. Nearly all the young people, service providers and parents identified a range of barriers that impede or prevent young people from asking for help when they need it most, including issues related to trust and confidentiality, parental support and fear, stigma and perceived loss of esteem. Implications for social work practice include an emphasis on developing parenting skills and community development related to education about suicide and the provision of appropriate support services.     

Internet Risks for Foster Families Online

ABSTRACT

Foster parents and children (n = 64 families) who participated in a program to reduce the digital divide among foster children were surveyed about difficulties experienced in use of online communications. Providing Internet access to foster families increased Internet use, but was not perceived by parents or children as taking away time from other family or social relationships. A minority of parents and foster youth, however, reported a variety of problems ranging from benign arguments over access to the computer or frustration over equipment failure to serious concerns about children receiving pornography or meeting a sexual predator online. Although the majority of both parents and social workers were confident in their ability to deal with Internet-related problems, approximately one-third had low confidence in their ability to deal with foster family's Internet-related difficulties. Training foster parents on using filtering software to prevent pornography from coming into the child's experience of the Internet significantly reduced problems related to pornography when compared to foster families not in the program. Implications for social work practice are discussed.     

Older Parents Providing Child Care for Adult Children: Does It Pay Off?

This study examined whether past grandparental child care is related to present support from adult children. On the basis of social exchange theory, the authors expected that grandparental child care creates a debt that is repaid in the form of receiving support later in life. Using data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (N = 349 parents, N = 812 adult children), the authors found that grandparents who frequently provided child care for sons in the past more often received instrumental and emotional support from these sons approximately 13 years later than grandparents who less frequently provided child care. Investments in daughters did not pay off. Instrumental support other than child‐care provision did not predict receiving support from either sons or daughters, but emotional support did. These results support the notion of long‐term reciprocity in parent–child relationships, but its importance depends on the child's gender and the type of earlier investment.     

Foster parents exposed to political violence: The role of social support in addressing emotional and functional difficulties

BackgroundBeing a foster parent is stressful. It becomes even more stressful when foster parents face major threats to their own families and to the foster children in their care, such as during war situations. This study focuses on foster parents' reactions to the war with Gaza in southern Israel that took place in 2014. The first goal of this study was to describe posttraumatic symptoms (PTS) and problems in functioning among foster parents following their exposure to the war. The second goal was to identify background and social support predictors of PTS and functioning problems among these parents. The third goal was to examine the role of formal and informal support received by the parents as a moderator of the association between exposure to war events and PTS and problems in functioning.MethodsParticipants were 354 Israeli foster parents who were exposed to the war. Participants completed structured instruments of exposure to war events, PTS, functioning, and social support.ResultsExposure to war events was associated with PTS and related functioning problems. Education and religiosity were correlated with PTS and problems in functioning. Contrary to our hypothesis, more formal social support was associated with more PTS. Social support did not moderate the association between exposure to war events and PTS.DiscussionThe unexpected positive correlation between support and PTS was interpreted as either reflecting the fact that foster care agencies targeted foster parents who were most in need, or as a reflection of the inadequacy of the support they received. The findings indicate that foster parents need support during times of major stressful events such as natural disasters and wars, so that they will be able to help the children in their care. Specialized professional training for foster care workers needs to be implemented. Future longitudinal and mix-methods studies are suggested to help address the limitations of the present study.     

Baseline Characteristics of Dependent Youth Who Have Been Commercially Sexually Exploited: Findings From a Specialized Treatment Program

ABSTRACT

Commercial sexual exploitation of children has emerged as a critical issue within child welfare, but little is currently known about this population or effective treatment approaches to address their unique needs. Children in foster care and runaways are reported to be vulnerable to exploitation because they frequently have unmet needs for family relationships, and they have had inadequate supervision and histories of trauma of which traffickers take advantage. The current article presents data on the demographic characteristics, trauma history, mental and behavioral health needs, physical health needs, and strengths collected on a sample of 87 commercially sexually exploited youth. These youth were served in a specialized treatment program in Miami-Dade County, Florida, for exploited youth involved with the child welfare system. Findings revealed that the youth in this study have high rates of previous sexual abuse (86% of the youth) and other traumatic experiences prior to their exploitation. Youth also exhibited considerable mental and behavioral health needs. Given that few programs emphasize the unique needs of children who have been sexually exploited, recommendations are offered for providing a continuum of specialized housing and treatment services to meet the needs of sexually exploited youth, based on the authors’ experiences working with this population.     

HIV/AIDS and Homelessness

This article describes the results of research on the demographic, housing, psychosocial characteristics, and service needs of a sample of homeless people with HIV disease_ Results show that respondents are similar in demographic and housing characteristics to the general homeless population. On average, respondents report high levels of stress and depression, moderate satisfaction with perceived social support availability, moderate beliefs in their ability to influence health related outcomes, moderate levels of self-efficacy, and low levels ofphysical and psychosocial disability. A range of services was identified as both helpful and useful in supporting a stable living arrangement. Implications for social policy, service provision, and research are discussed.     

Parent-Adolescent Ethnic Identity Discrepancies and Adolescent Psychosocial Maladjustment: A Study of Gender Differences

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of parent–adolescent ethnic identity disparities on the psychosocial adjustment of an ethnically diverse sample (n = 174, female = 96) of adolescents (M = 16.05, SD = 1.30). Findings from this investigation suggest gender differences in links between parent and adolescent acculturation disparities and psychosocial maladjustment. Whereas parent–child conflict regarding affiliating with the dominant group was associated with higher levels of depression and social stress for females, this was not the case for males. Implications for social workers providing services to youth and families struggling to acculturate are discussed.