scholarly journals The Subjective Well-Being of Portuguese Children in Foster Care, Residential Care and Children Living with their Families: Challenges and Implications for a Child Care System Still Focused on Institutionalization

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-84
Author(s):  
Paulo Delgado ◽  
João M. S. Carvalho ◽  
Carme Montserrat ◽  
Joan Llosada-Gistau
Keyword(s):  
Child Care ◽  
Foster Care ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Children In Foster Care ◽  
Care System

scholarly journals Children’s perceptions about contact and subjective well-being in residential and foster care

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
João M. S. Carvalho ◽  
Paulo Delgado
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Placement Stability ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Children In Foster Care ◽  
Phone Calls

Contact between children in foster and residential care and their birth families have an impact on children’s development and on placement stability. Contact is also important for their social relationships and sense of belonging and well-being. The aim of this study was, from children’s point of view, to describe, analyse and compare contact in residential care and foster care in terms of its frequency, visit location, feelings during and after the visits, visit difficulties, happiness with their placement, their self-confidence, future perception about their lives, and perception of their subjective well-being. We used a sample of 145 children in residential care and all the children in foster care (39), aged between 11 and 15, from the same four Portuguese districts. Results indicated that children in residential care had more contact and visits with their parents than children in foster care, being phone calls the most used way to contact the children. The majority of the children presented joy or satisfaction during parents’ visits and more diffuse feelings after the visit. Also, most of children would like to have more visits and just a minority present some difficulties in their fulfilment. Nevertheless, children in foster care had more self-confidence, optimism in relation to their future, happiness in relation to their placement and higher subjective well-being than children in residential care. In summary, it seemed that the type of placement for children at risk is more important to their future than the existence of contact with their parents.

EDUCATION WELL-BEING: COURT OUTCOME MEASURES FOR CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE

2012 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora E. Sydow ◽  
Victor E. Flango
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Outcome Measures ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children In Foster Care

scholarly journals Characteristics of Children in Foster Care, Family-Style Group Care, and Residential Care: A Scoping Review

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 2357-2371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harmke Leloux-Opmeer ◽  
Chris Kuiper ◽  
Hanna Swaab ◽  
Evert Scholte
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Group Care ◽  
Children In Foster Care ◽  
Care Family ◽  
Family Style

Randomized Trial of PMTO in Foster Care: Six-Month Child Well-Being Outcomes

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 206-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Becci A. Akin ◽  
Kyle Lang ◽  
Thomas P. McDonald ◽  
Yueqi Yan ◽  
Todd Little
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Analysis Of Covariance ◽  
High Risk Population ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Prosocial Skills ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Cohen’S D ◽  
Children In Foster Care ◽  
Cohen's D

Objective: This study tested the effectiveness of Parent Management Training, Oregon (PMTO) model on child social–emotional well-being. Methods: Using a randomized controlled design and three measures of social–emotional well-being, the study investigated effectiveness of PMTO with families of children in foster care with serious emotional disturbance (SED). Participants included children (3–16 years) and parents who were randomly assigned to PMTO ( n = 461) or services as usual ( n = 457). Study condition was known to participants and assessors. Six months after baseline, analysis of covariance models examined the intervention’s overall effect and time interactions using intent-to-treat analysis. Follow-up analyses identified salient predictors of well-being. Results: PMTO demonstrated small but significant positive effects on three primary outcomes: social–emotional functioning (Cohen’s d = .31), problem behaviors (Cohen’s d = .09), and prosocial skills (Cohen’s d = .09). Conclusion: Results suggest that PMTO was effective at improving short-term social–emotional well-being in a high-risk population of children with SED.

scholarly journals Attitudes and decision-making in the child protection system

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 2-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Delgado ◽  
Vânia S. Pinto ◽  
João M. S. Carvalho
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Foster Care ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Family Environment ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Fundamental Rights ◽  
Protection System ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Rights Of The Child

In the contexts of family neglect or maltreatment, the State intervenes by safeguarding the development and well-being of the child or young person in danger. In more severe situations, the intervention may lead to the child’s removal from the family. The Portuguese Law on the Protection of Children and Young People in Danger (Law 142/2015 of September 8th) favours the placement of the child in a family environment, especially for children up to the age of six. Despite this, in Portugal, in 2015, 8 600 children were in out-of-home care, only 3.5% of which were placed in foster care, while the remaining children were in residential care. Therefore, one of the fundamental rights of the child – living in a family environment – is compromised in practice. This study aims to understand the decision-making process of 200 higher education students in domains related to child protection, and those of 200 professionals who are responsible for providing case assessments and recommendations for intervention in the Portuguese child protection system. Using the Child Welfare Attitudes Questionnaire (Davidson-Arad & Benbenishty, 2008, 2010), the study aimed to identify the participants’ attitudes regarding removal of at-risk children from home, reunification and optimal duration of alternative care, children’s and parents’ participation in the decision-making process, and assessment of foster care and residential care, with the purpose of promoting children’s development and well-being. We concluded that both sets of participants (professionals and students) can be divided in two groups, one which is pro-removal and the other, which is less so. In comparison with students, professionals less often favour the removal of the child and more often defend reunification. There are no significant differences among participants regarding their opinion about the role of foster and residential care, and the participation of the child in the decision-making process. However, professionals tend to support parents’ participation in the decision-making process more than students do. Finally, we present some implications of our findings for the practice of child protection.

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