Family-Centered Practice with Foster-Parent Families

1996 ◽  
Vol 77 (9) ◽  
pp. 545-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Jean McFadden
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Family Care ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Critical Issues ◽  
Family Style ◽  
Specialized Foster Care ◽  
Work Done ◽  
Family Centered

Foster parents face many stresses in their family life, whether they provide kinship care, general foster care, specialized foster care, or treatment family care. Critical issues include maintaining open boundaries while sustaining cohesion and integrity of the core family structure. Pressures from the agency, the community, the foster child, and his or her parents affect the way in which this family style functions. Focusing on the work done by family-centered practitioners with foster parents facing various types of developmental and situational crises, the author examines the responses of foster families to the multiple and chronic experiences of loss that they face. Guidelines for practitioners include placement issues, therapeutic issues, and knowledge of systems that clinicians need to work effectively with foster-parent families. Case materials illustrate the crises of dismemberment and demoralization as well as the crisis of accession.

scholarly journals Foster Parents’ Parenting and the Social-Emotional Development and Adaptive Functioning of Children in Foster Care: A PRISMA-Guided Literature Review and Meta-Analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabrina Chodura ◽  
Arnold Lohaus ◽  
Tabea Symanzik ◽  
Nina Heinrichs ◽  
Kerstin Konrad
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Child Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Developmental Outcomes ◽  
Parenting Behavior ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Children In Foster Care ◽  
Increased Risk

AbstractChildren in foster care (CFC) are at increased risk for negative developmental outcomes. Given the potential influence of foster parents’ parenting on the development of CFC, this literature review and meta-analysis provide an initial overview of how parenting factors in foster families relate to CFC’s developmental outcomes. We aimed to explore (1) whether foster parents’ parenting conceptualizations are related differently to various CFC developmental outcome variables and (2) how characteristics of foster parents and CFC moderate these associations. Following the recommendations of the PRISMA statement, we searched four databases in 2017 (with an update in May 2020). Forty-three primary studies were coded manually. The interrater agreement was 92.1%. Parenting variables were specified as parenting behavior, style, and goals and were distinguished further into functional and dysfunctional parenting. CFC development was divided into adaptive (including cognitive) development and maladaptive development. Meta-analyses could be performed for foster parenting behavior and developmental outcomes, as well as for functional parenting goals and maladaptive socioemotional outcomes in CFC. Associations between functional parenting behavior and adaptive child development were positive and negative for maladaptive child development, respectively. For dysfunctional, parenting effects were in the opposite direction. All effects were small to moderate. Similar results were found descriptively in the associations of parenting style and child developmental outcomes. We found similar effect sizes and directions of the associations between parenting behavior in foster families and the child’s developmental outcomes as those previously reported for biological families. These findings provide strong support for the significant role of parenting in foster families regarding children’s development in foster care.

scholarly journals Contact with biological parents following placement in foster care: Associations with preschool child externalizing behavior

2021 ◽  
pp. 135910452110492
Author(s):  
Karine Poitras ◽  
George M. Tarabulsy ◽  
Natalia Varela Pulido
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Behavior Problems ◽  
Externalizing Behavior ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Externalizing Behavior Problems ◽  
Foster Child ◽  
Child Externalizing Behavior ◽  
Biological Parents ◽  
Child Externalizing

Externalizing behavior problems are a salient issue in the context of child protection services, where associations with placement stability and caregiving behavior have been documented. Moreover, although research on the association between contact with biological parents and foster child externalizing behavior problems is scarce and has yielded mixed results, several studies have shown links between the two variables. The purpose of this study is to determine the association of face-to-face contact with biological parents and externalized behaviors, while taking into account placement instability and foster parent interactive sensitivity. Fifty preschoolers and their foster parents were visited at home. Child externalizing behavior problems were self-reported by foster parents, foster parent sensitivity was measured via play observations, and information relative to placement was collected through interviews with biological parents and gathered from social services data. Results reveal that more frequent contact with biological parents and lower levels of foster parent sensitivity are independently linked to greater levels of externalizing behavior problems even after controlling for placement instability. Discussion focuses on the importance of children’s relationship experiences during foster care and the necessity to investigate their role to more clearly understand foster child socioemotional development.

scholarly journals Topical questions of the substitute family care in the Czech Republic with a special attention to the process of foster families preparation

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 03002
Author(s):  
Iva Junova ◽  
Gabriela Slaninova
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Foster Care ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Family Care ◽  
Professional Preparation ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Natural Family ◽  
The Social

Authors deal with the substitute family care in the Czech Republic. Attention is concentrated on a conception of the substitute family care as a form of a children care in that children are raised by “substitute” parents in an ambience that is very similar to a natural family life. In the Czech Republic, the substitute family care is always preferred to an institutional upbringing. The aim of the article is to describe the system of the substitute family care in the Czech Republic and to introduce a foster care as one of the institutes of the substitute family care. Authors paid attention to a foster care and to a temporary foster care in the context of a professional preparation of foster families. The professionally led preparation in the Czech Republic is legally regulated by performing some law provisions of the social and legal children protection.

Sibling Relationship in Foster Care: Foster Parent Perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (9) ◽  
pp. 2590-2614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armeda Stevenson Wojciak ◽  
Bryan P. Range ◽  
Dumayi M. Gutierrez ◽  
Nathan A. Hough ◽  
Casey M. Gamboni
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Sibling Relationships ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Sibling Relationship ◽  
Parent Perspective ◽  
The Past ◽  
Semistructured Interviews ◽  
Youth In Foster Care

The sibling relationships of youth in foster care has garnered increased attention over the past few years indicating the potential protective role these relationships can have. Despite this growth, very little is known about how foster parents perceive the sibling relationships of youth in foster care and ways to promote these relationships. Thematic analysis was used to analyze semistructured interviews of 15 foster parents. Three major areas emerged as a result of the analysis: (a) the experience of sibling relationships in foster care, (b) how sibling relationships should be treated in foster care, and (c) ways to promote sibling relationships. All of the foster parents in this study discussed the importance of sibling relationships for the youth in their care and offer ways to promote these relationships through collaboration and education. Implications for foster parent training and child welfare practice are discussed.

scholarly journals Pomoc i wsparcie dla rodzin zastępczych w środowisku lokalnym

2016 ◽  
pp. 397-414
Author(s):  
Magda Urbańska
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Specialized Training ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Orphaned Children ◽  
Natural Family ◽  
Family Foster Care ◽  
The City

A family is the basic envi­ronment of education and childcare. However, when parents are not able to fulfil care and educational functions, tasks of a natural family are performed by foster care, carried out among by fos­ter families. Admitting of the child to the own family is preceded by a process of qualifications and specialized training, organized for foster families by the or­ganizer of family foster care. But even the best theoretical training cannot pro­tect against a variety of behavioral prob­lems and care which foster parents en­counter, hence it becomes necessary to support and assistance the families who take the trouble to care for abandoned and orphaned children. The article pres­ents the measures implemented to sup­port foster families in the local commu­nity for the actions taken in 2012–2013 in the city of Rzeszów by the organizer of family foster care.

scholarly journals Foster parents' understanding of the foster child's perspective: Does it matter and can it be changed?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Wendy Joan Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Behaviour Problems ◽  
Parent Child Relationship ◽  
Child Relationship ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Parent Child

<p>Socio-emotional outcomes for children placed in care are more positive when foster parents have a secure state of mind regarding attachment and are able to think about the child’s unique psychological perspective (Dozier, Stovall, Albus & Bates, 2001; Schofield & Beek, 2005a). One aspect of parents’ thinking about the child has been conceptualised as mind-mindedness (Meins, 1998) and is measured by the proportion of mind-related comments made when a parent is asked to describe their child. The first study examines whether foster parent’s mind-mindedness and attachment perceptions, amongst other child and foster parent characteristics, are positively associated with the foster parent-child relationship and the child’s emotional and behavioural outcomes.  The study found that foster parents with higher mind-mindedness had foster children with fewer behaviour problems and this relationship was enhanced by foster parents having positive attachment perceptions. Moreover, foster parent mind-mindedness was not related to the quality of the parent-child relationship, except when parents had positive attachment perceptions. Regarding the child’s placement characteristics, the number of previous placements the child had experienced predicted the child’s emotional and behaviour problems and the age at which the child was placed predicted the quality of the foster parent-child relationship. The best placement predictors of both outcome variables considered together were the age at which the child was placed and short term placements.  Drawing on attachment theory, and guided by the findings of study one, the author developed a a training programme and a Relational Learning Framework (RLF) to assist foster parents and foster care practitioners to understand the child’s psychological perspective. The second study employed a multiple- baseline design to evaluate the effectiveness of the RLF guided training programme. Statistically significant improvements were found regarding parents’ reports of children’s behaviour problems, parents’ daily stress, the attachment relationship and children’s overall functioning at post-test. However, at follow-up, only the children’s overall functioning remained significantly improved, although increases in positive mind-mindedness became statistically significant, relative to post-test. Some foster parents showed decreases in wellbeing scores, relative to their scores at pre- and post-test.  The third study used a pre- post-test design to evaluate the effectiveness of the training programme to assist foster care practitioners to apply the RLF in their clinical practice and to deliver the training programme to foster parents. At post-test, practitioners’ empathy and reflectiveness showed a statistically significant increase but no statistically significant increases were found in practitioners’ mind-mindedness. The training was rated highly by participants and a thematic analysis of diary entries showed that they used the RLF in their practice, were able to help foster parents understand the child’s perspective, and reported positive therapeutic gains from utilising these techniques.  The research provides preliminary evidence that foster parent mind-mindedness, in conjunction with attachment perceptions, is associated with the child’s emotional and behaviour problems and the foster parent-child relationship. The results from the intervention study with foster parents showed initially promising gains, which were not maintained at follow-up, and the results from the foster care practitioners study indicated improvements in practitioners’ empathy and reflectiveness, as well as positive outcomes of using the training material.</p>

scholarly journals Foster parents' understanding of the foster child's perspective: Does it matter and can it be changed?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Wendy Joan Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Training Programme ◽  
Behaviour Problems ◽  
Parent Child Relationship ◽  
Child Relationship ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Parent Child

<p>Socio-emotional outcomes for children placed in care are more positive when foster parents have a secure state of mind regarding attachment and are able to think about the child’s unique psychological perspective (Dozier, Stovall, Albus & Bates, 2001; Schofield & Beek, 2005a). One aspect of parents’ thinking about the child has been conceptualised as mind-mindedness (Meins, 1998) and is measured by the proportion of mind-related comments made when a parent is asked to describe their child. The first study examines whether foster parent’s mind-mindedness and attachment perceptions, amongst other child and foster parent characteristics, are positively associated with the foster parent-child relationship and the child’s emotional and behavioural outcomes.  The study found that foster parents with higher mind-mindedness had foster children with fewer behaviour problems and this relationship was enhanced by foster parents having positive attachment perceptions. Moreover, foster parent mind-mindedness was not related to the quality of the parent-child relationship, except when parents had positive attachment perceptions. Regarding the child’s placement characteristics, the number of previous placements the child had experienced predicted the child’s emotional and behaviour problems and the age at which the child was placed predicted the quality of the foster parent-child relationship. The best placement predictors of both outcome variables considered together were the age at which the child was placed and short term placements.  Drawing on attachment theory, and guided by the findings of study one, the author developed a a training programme and a Relational Learning Framework (RLF) to assist foster parents and foster care practitioners to understand the child’s psychological perspective. The second study employed a multiple- baseline design to evaluate the effectiveness of the RLF guided training programme. Statistically significant improvements were found regarding parents’ reports of children’s behaviour problems, parents’ daily stress, the attachment relationship and children’s overall functioning at post-test. However, at follow-up, only the children’s overall functioning remained significantly improved, although increases in positive mind-mindedness became statistically significant, relative to post-test. Some foster parents showed decreases in wellbeing scores, relative to their scores at pre- and post-test.  The third study used a pre- post-test design to evaluate the effectiveness of the training programme to assist foster care practitioners to apply the RLF in their clinical practice and to deliver the training programme to foster parents. At post-test, practitioners’ empathy and reflectiveness showed a statistically significant increase but no statistically significant increases were found in practitioners’ mind-mindedness. The training was rated highly by participants and a thematic analysis of diary entries showed that they used the RLF in their practice, were able to help foster parents understand the child’s perspective, and reported positive therapeutic gains from utilising these techniques.  The research provides preliminary evidence that foster parent mind-mindedness, in conjunction with attachment perceptions, is associated with the child’s emotional and behaviour problems and the foster parent-child relationship. The results from the intervention study with foster parents showed initially promising gains, which were not maintained at follow-up, and the results from the foster care practitioners study indicated improvements in practitioners’ empathy and reflectiveness, as well as positive outcomes of using the training material.</p>

scholarly journals CREATING NORMALCY: FOSTER CARE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH WITH DISABILITIES AND MEDICAL FRAGILITY IN GERMANY

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 132-151
Author(s):  
Friedegard Föltz
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Special Needs ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children And Youth ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
Tailored Approach ◽  
Depth Interviews

In the area of foster care concerning children and youth with special needs due to disability or medical fragility, there is a paucity of knowledge and research. In Germany, these groups in foster care who have high special needs are an invisible and neglected population at risk. These children and youth are mostly cared for in residential homes; however, some are living in foster families and benefit from a familial setting. The purpose of the study was to understand how foster parents manage their lives with a child or youth who has special needs, and how they meet the challenges that arise. The qualitative research design used the method of narrative inquiry through in-depth interviews, which were conducted in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt with 19 foster parents from 15 families. Within the framework of grounded theory, the author developed a theoretical structure of the strategies foster parents use for coping. Results showed that foster parents dealt with this new and often unpredictable situation by applying one of three patterns of strategies — action-, resource-, or reflection-oriented — based on their personal experiences and worldview. Understanding these behavioral patterns gives administrative and supportive entities like child welfare systems and agencies a unique and tailored approach to recruit, retain, train, and counsel foster families adequately, and to strengthen their well-being and their ability to perform well for themselves and their children and youth.

Taking Care Triple P for Foster Parents With Young Children in Foster Care: Results of a 1-Year Randomized Trial

2020 ◽  
pp. 088626052090919
Author(s):  
Ann-Katrin Job ◽  
Daniela Ehrenberg ◽  
Peter Hilpert ◽  
Vanessa Reindl ◽  
Arnold Lohaus ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Foster Care ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Challenging Behaviors ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Triple P ◽  
Group Training ◽  
Foster Families ◽  
Parent Group ◽  
Children In Foster Care

Young children with a history of maltreatment or neglect in foster families often confront their caregivers with particularly challenging behaviors. This may lead to more parenting stress, an increased risk for the child in foster care to experience further maltreatment, and placement disruptions. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to investigate the efficacy of a parent group training tailored to the special needs of foster families. We hypothesized significant short- and long-term improvements regarding foster parents’ parenting competencies, child mental health problems, and related outcomes. Eighty-one families with 87 children in foster care aged 2 to 7 years participated in the trial. For the intervention study, 44 randomly selected families (54%) were offered to participate in the parent group training. Intervention and control group families were reassessed three times over a period of 1 year. Contrary to our expectations, we found no advantages of the intervention group compared with the usual care control group on any outcome measure. Instead, we found some significant changes in both groups across time. Placement into foster care is associated with some favorable outcomes for children in foster care. Additional support for foster families beyond the services delivered in the youth welfare system to foster parents was not associated with more favorable outcomes. The present intervention is likely associated with a low risk of harm but also with a high likelihood of a lack of significant benefits for foster parents and their young children going beyond feeling satisfied about the delivered services. Participating foster families showed favorable baseline results on parenting measures which may have impeded intervention effects to unfold on these proximal variables.

Recruiting Foster Parents: Socio∽Economic Characteristics of Foster Parents of Intellectually Handicapped & Non∽Intellectually Handicapped Children in Queensland

1983 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 3-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jill Volard
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Foster Care ◽  
Foster Parents ◽  
Foster Parent ◽  
Parent Population ◽  
Handicapped Children ◽  
The United Kingdom

Although there have been a number of studies carried out over the years about various characteristics of foster parents, most of them have been undertaken in the U.S.A. and the United Kingdom. Very little research has been done in Australia about foster care in general, recruiting foster parents, or about foster parents of intellectually handicapped children. This lack of Australian research raises questions as to whether findings of studies in other countries can be generalised to all foster care situations. It cannot automatically be assumed, for example, that the Australian foster parent population is the same as abroad, and yet for years workers in Australia have tended to rely on overseas statistics as a basis for decisions on foster care.

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