Foster Care | Better Care Network

Foster Care

The term “foster care” is used in a variety of ways, and, consequently, it often causes confusion and miscommunication. In the industrialized world it is generally used to refer to formal, temporary placements made by the State with families that are trained, monitored and compensated at some level. In many developing countries, however, fostering is kinship care or other placement with a family, the objective(s) of which may include the care of the child, the child’s access to education, and/or the child’s doing some type of work for the foster family.

Such care is informal and unregulated by the State. Foster care can also be understood as formal care, typically provided by adults who are not related to the child, but may include formalized kinship care. It is usually for a limited period until the child can return home or move into a more permanent placement such as adoption.

In emergency situations, such as armed conflict, informal fostering often occurs spontaneously when a family takes in an unaccompanied child. Also, in some emergency situations, agencies have organized a quasi-formal type of foster care to ensure immediate, family-based care for unaccompanied children. Such foster care should be formally arranged by the local authority or child protection organisation and include assessing each child’s best interests; screening, training, and monitoring of caretakers; and planning for the longer term needs of each child.

Foster care can provide the advantages of family-based care within a child’s own community. In some situations, particularly spontaneous care initiated during an emergency, it can become de facto adoption in settings where State child protection services and formalization of care arrangements are very limited or do not exist.

Foster care plays an important role in a situation where a child’s own family is not providing adequately for his or her care. It can provide protection and care for the child while the family situation is improved, with the eventual aim of family reunification.

It is vital that children are provided opportunities to express their wishes and concerns regarding with whom they live and have contact. The appointment of a legal guardian is a means of ensuring their opinions are taken into account.

Foster caretakers often receive support to meet the child’s needs and prevent placement breakdown. This may include parenting guidance and access to basic services for the child. Payment for care requires thoughtful consideration and should not encourage the separation of children from their families, or the use of a child for financial gain. All placements should be regulated to ensure the standards of care protect the child and encourage her development.

This body of literature provides examples from around the world of spontaneous, informal and formal fostering. It includes guidance on standards of care and child care policy.

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The View of Minority Youth on Cultural Continuity When Developing Their Identity in Majority Foster Homes

Tina Hansen, 09 Aug 2023

In this article, the focus is on youth with minority backgrounds living in majority foster homes and their views on cultural continuity. What is important for these young people when developing their identity in foster homes? The study is based on qualitative interviews with nine adolescents from minority
backgrounds who live in majority foster homes, which are homes in which one or both foster parents have ethnic Norwegian backgrounds. The analysis was conducted using a hermeneutic phenomenology methodology and shows that youth do not necessarily want cultural continuity in the sense of living in a culturally “matched” foster home.

Tracing the Evolution of Alternative Care for Children in India in the Last Decade and the Way Forward

Maninder Kaur, Nilima Mehta, Subhadeep Adhikary, Anamika Viswanath, 04 Aug 2023

This paper intends to capture the landscape of alternative care and its evolution in India, drawing from the review of the legal and policy framework, existing literature, and detailed discussions with Civil Society Organisations(CSOs) and State functionaries.

Attachment Disorder Symptoms in Foster Children: Development and Associations With Attachment Security

Josephine D. Kliewer‑Neumann, Janin Zimmermann, Ina Bovenschen, Sandra Gabler, Katrin Lang, Gottfried Spangler, Katja Nowacki, 02 Aug 2023

This longitudinal study aims at investigating the attachment disorder symptoms during the first year of placement in foster care. The participants
were recruited through German social services departments around Dortmund, the Ruhr valley, and the Metropolitan region of Nuremberg.

Foster Care Better than Orphanage Care: Family Important

Alison Knopf, 17 Jul 2023

Abstract:

brown university child and adolescent psychopharmacology

An Exploration of the Self-Care Practices of Foster Carers in Australia

Mia Gowan, Nicole Peel, Emma Elcombe, Stacy Blythe, 16 Jul 2023

This study contributes to emerging research on the self-care practices of foster carers in Australia and worldwide.

Through a Relational Lens: Reflections About Foster Care Experience in Italian Emancipated Foster Youth

Paola Cardinali, Fabiola Bizzi, Laura Migliorini, 12 Jul 2023

This study aimed to investigate relational outcomes of Italian emancipated foster youth across open-ended reflections about their perceptions of their relationships with the biological and foster family, with partner and peers.

Foster Care in Hungary and Poland – Comparative Analysis

Witold Mandrysz, Laszlo Patyan, 10 Jul 2023

This article presents the development, current status and contemporary challenges of foster care in Poland and Hungary.

Foster Care, Kinship Care, and the Transition to Adulthood: Do Child Welfare System Processes Explain Differences in Outcomes?

Kierra M.P. Sattler, Toria Herd, Sarah A. Font, 01 Jul 2023

This study examines early adulthood outcomes—incarceration and teen parenthood—among youth in Wisconsin who entered foster care in early-to-middle childhood (ages 5–10).

“Foster Care is a Roller Coaster”: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Foster Parent Experiences with Caregiving

Taylor Dowdy-Hazlett, Shelby L. Clark , 23 Jun 2023

This U.S.-based mixed-methods study explored foster parent satisfaction with intent to turnover and disrupt placement in 362 foster parents through regression analyses. It included foster parents in six mid-Southwestern states who participated in an online survey between June 2021 and January 2022.

Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal

“Foster Care is a Roller Coaster”: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Foster Parent Experiences with Caregiving

Taylor Dowdy-Hazlett, Shelby L. Clark , 22 Jun 2023

This mixed-methods study included foster parents in six mid-Southwestern states in the U.S. foster parents serve a critical role in the child welfare system; however, many report being dissatisfied with their role. As such, dissatisfied foster parents are at risk of disruption and turnover, ultimately resulting in placement moves for youth in care. Placement moves have negative impacts on youth well-being, prompting a need to explore issues related to placement longevity related to foster parent satisfaction.

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