Predictors of school engagement in foster children: A longitudinal study

Anouk Goemans, Mitch van Geel, Tom F. Wilderjans, Joost R. van Ginkel, Paul Vedder - Children and Youth Services Review

The current study reports the findings of a three-wave longitudinal study wherein the researchers examined the development of school engagement and analyzed which factors were predictive of school engagement in a sample of 363 Dutch foster children.

A study of depression, externalizing, and internalizing behaviors among adolescents living in institutional homes

Archana Vinnakota, Ravneet Kaur - International Journal of Applied & Basic Medical Research

The objectives of the study were to describe and study the extent of depression in adolescent boys and girls living in institutional homes and to study the association between depression and externalizing and Internalizing behaviors among adolescents in institutional homes.

A comparative study of self esteem and level of depression in adolescents living in orphanage home and those living with parents

Priyanka, Dr. Ashok Parasar, Dr. Roshan Lal Dewangan - International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Research

The aim of the current study was to find out level of self-esteem and of depression in adolescents living in orphanage home and to see the differences in self-esteem and depression level in orphan children and children living with parents.

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Needs and preferences of parents of adolescents with multiple and complex needs in residential care

Helena Van den Steene, Dirk van West & Inge Glazemakers - Child & Family Social Work

Drawing upon in‐depth interviews with 12 parents of adolescent girls with multiple and complex needs in residential child welfare, this exploratory study describes parents' own needs and preferences with regard to care delivery.

Medical foster care for children with chronic critical illness: Identifying strengths and challenges

Rebecca R. Seltzer, Erin P. Williams, Pamela K. Donohue, Renee D. Boss - Children and Youth Services Review

The authors of this study sought to better understand the potential strengths and challenges of medical foster care (MFC) as a placement setting for children with chronic critical illness (CCI).

Adoptive parents' evaluation of expectations and children's behavior problems: The mediational role of parenting stress and parental satisfaction Author links open overlay panel

Marta Santos-Nunes, Isabel Narciso, Salomé Vieira-Santos, Magda Sofia Roberto - Children and Youth Services Review

This study aimed to test the impact of parents' evaluation of expectations on their child's behavioral problem by investigating a sequential mediation effect of parenting stress and parental satisfaction.

Cumulative risk effect of household dysfunction for child maltreatment after intensive intervention of the child protection system in Japan: a longitudinal analysis

Hirotsuna Ohashi, Ichiro Wada, Yui Yamaoka, Ryoko Nakajima-Yamaguchi, Yasukazu Ogai and Nobuaki Morita - Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine

The authors of this study estimated the effect of household dysfunction (i.e., interparental violence, caregiver mental health problems, and caregiver substance abuse) on child maltreatment to understand how to advance the current framework of child welfare.

Caregiver–Adolescent Disagreement on the Mental Health of Youth in Foster Care: The Moderating Role of the Caregiver Relationship

Lenore M. McWey, Ming Cui, Ashley N. Cooper, Thomas Ledermann - Child Maltreatment

The goal of this study was to investigate the levels of disagreement on adolescent mental health symptoms among caregivers and adolescents in foster care, to examine factors associated with caregiver–adolescent discrepancies, and the potential moderating role of caregiver–child closeness on the link between the length of time the youth lived with caregivers and discrepancies regarding adolescent mental health symptoms.

Institutional Care is Associated With Changes in Brain Electrical Activity: Results From a Longitudinal, Randomized Control Trial of Children in Romania

Ranjan Debnath, Alva Tang, George A. Buzzell, Nathan A. Fox, Charles H. Zeanah, Charles A. Nelson - Biological Psychiatry

This study from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP) examines the brain electrical activity of children and young people who have been institutionalized.

Professional foster families in the reunification process—Polish experience

Jan P. Basiaga, Anna Róg, Beata Zięba‐Kołodziej - Child & Family Social Work

This study examined the extent to which professional foster families fulfil their tasks to reintegrate families, what attitudes professional foster families assume towards the idea of reintegration, and to what extent and how professional foster families support a child separated from his or her family and parents in the process of reintegration.

Promoting Successful Transitions Beyond Institutional Care: A Programme-based Service Delivery Model Linked to a Case Management System

Pamhidzayi Berejena Mhongera, Antoinette Lombard - Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk

This paper reports on findings from an evaluation study of two institutions providing transition programmes to adolescent girls transitioning from institutional care in Zimbabwe.

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Serving clients and the community better: A mixed‐methods analysis of benefits experienced when organizations collaborate in child welfare

Marianna L. Colvin & Shari E. Miller - Child & Family Social Work

Data from extensive qualitative interviews (n = 67) and a survey instrument (n = 80) are used in this study to examine the perceived benefits experienced when organizations interact in community‐wide child welfare practice.

Children with disabilities: Deprivation of liberty in the name of care and treatment

Shantha Rau Barriga, Jane Buchanan, Emina Ćerimović, Kriti Sharma - Human Rights Watch

This article focuses on the confinement of children with disabilities to institutions, social care centers, psychiatric hospitals, and informal traditional healing centers in which children may be detained on the basis of their disability and with no other options for care.

Residential child care workers: Relationship based practice in a culture of fear

Teresa Brown, Karen Winter, Nicola Carr - Child & Family Social Work

In a contemporary context dominated by reports of the historical institutional abuse of children and young people in residential children's homes, and where the voice of workers is largely absent, this study explores the views and experiences of 26 workers in the Republic of Ireland regarding relationship‐based practice.

Explaining Self-Reported Resilience in Child-Protection Social Work: The Role of Organisational Factors, Demographic Information and Job Characteristics

Paula McFadden, John Mallett, Anne Campbell, Brian Taylor - The British Journal of Social Work

This paper presents results from a cross-sectional survey and reports findings from a sample of 162 Northern Irish social workers.

“It’s Better Late Than Never”: A Community-Based HIV Research and Training Response to Supporting Mothers Living with HIV Who Have Child Welfare Involvement

Saara Greene, Allyson Ion, Gary Dumbrill, Doe O'Brien Teengs, Kerrigan Beaver, and Mary-Elizabeth Vaccaro - Journal of Law and Social Policy

This paper presents the qualitative analysis of pre- and post- focus groups with Children’s Aid Societies (CAS) workers who participated in the Positive Parenting Pilot Project (P4) and the emerging practice implications for working with families living with and affected by HIV.

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Anti-Black Racism, Bio-Power, and Governmentality: Deconstructing the Suffering of Black Families Involved with Child Welfare

Doret Phillips - Journal of Law and Social Policy

This article focuses on how colonialism, anti-Black racism and white supremacy are embodied by Ontario’s child welfare system in relation to narratives of suffering experienced by Black families involved with this sector.

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Giidosendiwag (We Walk Together): Creating Culturally Based Supports for Urban Indigenous Youth in Care

Nancy Stevens, Rachel Charles, Lorena Snyder - Journal of Law and Social Policy

In Ontario, as elsewhere in the country, there are limited Indigenous-specific resources to assist in strengthening Indigenous youth, families, and communities. This article explores how that might be changed by using the Anishnaabeg Youth in Transition Program at Niijkiwendidaa Anishnaabekwewag Services Circle, based in Peterborough, Ontario, as one model of service delivery.

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Round Table Expert Meeting Children’s Care and DHS/MICS Data: Final Meeting Report

Better Care Network

The Better Care Network (BCN) and the Child Protection Monitoring and Evaluation Reference Group (MERG) organized a two-day round table meeting between 9-11 September 2014, to explore how data regarding the living and care situations of children can be better used to provide insight into their vulnerability, and to guide more targeted policies, services and interventions on their behalf.

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Round Table Meeting on children’s care and DHS/MICS data: Background Note

Florence Martin, Better Care Network

The aim of this initiative is to inform the development of an inter-agency technical brief that explains what household level data is available through DHS and MICS that is critical to better understanding and monitoring of trends and patterns in children’s living arrangements and care status, and how the data can and should be extracted and used to inform policy and programmes at country and international levels. 

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Explaining the Economic Disparity Gap in the Rate of Substantiated Child Maltreatment in Canada

David Rothwell, Jaime Wegner-Lohin, Elizabeth Fast, Kaila de Boer, Nico Trocmé, Barbara Fallon, and Tonino Esposito - Journal of Law and Social Policy

The purpose of this study is to understand the prevalence of economic hardship in the child welfare system and explain the economic disparity gap.

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Guatemala: A Un Año de la Masacre de las Niñas

CEN

Esta llamada a la acción se propone activar, o profundizar y fortalecer —según el estado de avance en cada país— apuntan a poner fin al acogimiento de niños y niñas en centros residenciales sin que éste responda a los principios de necesidad e idoneidad encuadrados en las Directrices de Naciones Unidas sobre las modalidades de cuidado alternativo de los niños.

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Professional dilemmas and occupational constraints in child welfare workers' relationships with children and youth in foster care

Robert Lindahl & Anders Bruhn - Children and Youth Services Review

The aim of this article is to study child welfare workers' individual and collective experiences of and expectations about their occupational role and responsibilities in their administrative and relational work with children and youth in foster care.

Preparedness for Emancipation of Youth Leaving Alternative Care in Serbia

Anita Burgund Isakov and Jasna Hrnčić - International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies

In order to define what support is necessary for the successful emancipation of young people leaving alternative care in Serbia, this study of 150 young people in care aims to analyse both their preparedness for leaving alternative care, and whether the type of placement (kinship, foster, or residential) makes a difference to the level of preparedness.

Orphans and Scholastic Performance in Mankweng Circuit: Policy implications for Limpopo Province

M Magampa, T Sodi and K Sobane - Human Sciences Research Council

This policy brief draws from the findings of a study which investigated the academic performance of orphaned learners aged between eight and ten years from ten public primary schools in Mankweng Circuit of Limpopo Province, South Africa.

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Child Living Conditions and Orphanhood Status in Uganda: an Extension of the Application of the Intrinsic Value Approach to Child Poverty Measurement

Cyprian Misinde - Child Indicators Research

In this study Child Living Conditions which take on many dimensions are computed using the intrinsic value approach. The authors tested the hypothesis that the average living conditions of orphans were less than the average living conditions of non-orphans in Uganda in 2011.

Children’s experiences of violence: Evidence from the Young Lives study in Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam

Kirrily Pells and Virginia Morrow - Young Lives

In this summative report from Young Lives, an international study of childhood poverty, authors Kirrily Pells and Virginia Morrow highlight the study’s key findings on violence affecting children, exploring what children say about violence, how it affects them, and the key themes that emerge from a systematic analysis of the children’s accounts from study countries of Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam.

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Using a Systems Approach at the Community-level in a Human Resource Constrained Context: The Youthpower Action Project in Mozambique

4Children, Catholic Relief Services

This case study is one in a series of case studies highlighting different aspects of a case management system and referral mechanisms utilized by OVC programs. The case study presents a program in Mozambique that could be identified as a hub and spoke model of referral mechanism.

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Working in Partnership to Improve Children’s Safety and Well-being: The May’khethele Programme in South Africa

Coordinating Comprehensive Care for Children (4Children), Catholic Relief Services

This case study is one in a series of case studies highlighting different aspects of a case management system and referral mechanisms utilized by OVC programs. The case study looks at the work of the Children in Distress Network (CINDI) in the uMgungundlovu District of KwaZulu-Natal Province (KZN) of South Africa.

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A golden thread? The relationship between supervision, practice, and family engagement in child and family social work

David Wilkins, Amy Lynch, Vivi Antonopoulou - Child & Family Social Work

In this study, using paired observations of group supervision and family meetings alongside interviews with parents, the authors explored the link between supervision, practice, and engagement.

Is kinship failing? Views on informal support by families in contact with social services in Ghana

Esmeranda Manful & Ebenezer Cudjoe - Child & Family Social Work

This paper asks the question "what contribution are kin and other informal social support networks providing to the care and safety of children of such families?" The paper presents findings from 15 families receiving services from the Department of Social Welfare in Sekondi, Ghana.

Maintain, Strengthen, Expand - How the EU Can Support the Transition from Institutional to Family- and Community-Based Care in the Next Multiannual Financial Framework

Opening Doors for Europe's Children

This publication from Opening Doors for Europe's Children calls upon the EU to maintain, strengthen and expand the use of funds so they make a greater impact and go further to eliminate institutions for children across Europe and beyond.

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Between Professional Norms and Professionalism Risk Assessment and Decision-Making of Arab Social Workers Regarding Children at Risk

Hani Nouman, Guy Enosh, Amal Jarjoura - Research on Social Work Practice

This study examined the four factors that might bias child risk assessment and recommendation of treatment for children at high risk among Arab social workers in Israel.

A Call to Action to Leave No Child Behind: An open letter in support of a 2019 Rights of the Child resolution on children without parental care

The signatories of this open letter (including SOS Children's Villages, Better Care Network, and other partners) seek your support in calling for the 2019 United Nations General Assembly resolution on the Rights of the Child to focus on children without parental care

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Cambodia's Stolen Children: Fraud and Corruption in the Inter-Country Adoption System

Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO)

This report from the Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) presents the stories of three Cambodian women whose children had been adopted overseas at different times over the last 15 years and exposes corrupt and fraudulent practices in Cambodia's Inter-country adoption system. 

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An inspection of how the Home Office considers the ‘best interests’ of unaccompanied asylum seeking children August-December 2017

Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration

This inspection by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration in the UK examined how the Home Office considers the ‘best interests’ of unaccompanied asylum seeking children.

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Multiple traumas and resilience among street children in Haiti: Psychopathology of survival

Jude Mary Cénat, Daniel Derivois, Martine Hébert, Laetitia Mélissande Amédée, Amira Karray - Child Abuse & Neglect

This article aimed to investigate traumas experienced by street children and their coping and resilience strategies used to deal with adversities in a logic of survival, relying on a mixed method approach.

“We are caregivers, too”: Foster siblings' difficulties, strengths, and needs for support

Maria Luisa Raineri, Valentina Calcaterra, Fabio Folgheraiter - Child & Family Social Work

Drawing on qualitative data collected from 15 foster siblings and 14 foster parents, this paper presents birth children's experiences with the beginning of foster care, their perceptions of the positive and negative aspects of living with a foster child, and their suggestions for foster parents, foster children, and professionals.

STRONG: A Comprehensive Resource for Trainers - Teaching the Strengthening Families Protective Factor Framework to Parents and Professionals

Maureen Durning & Jane Zink - Butterfly Trainings that Transform

This resource provides guidance for training professionals and parents on the Strengthening Families Protective Factor Framework.

Protective Factors Action Sheet

The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP)

This guide from the Center for the Study of Social Policy's Strengthening Families project aims to provide case workers and practitioners with information on: building parental resilience and capacity, enhancing and leveraging parents' social connections, providing information on child development, connecting parents to resources, offering concrete support to parents in times of need, and more.

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Shared Family Care: Providing Services to Parents and Children Placed Together in Out-of-Home Care

Price Amy, Richard P. Barth - Family Foster Care in the Next Century

This article, a chapter from the book Family Foster Care in the Next Century, describes several innovative types of shared family care arrangements that demonstrate promise in the protection of children and the promotion of family well-being.

Completing the Evaluation Triangle for the Next Century: Measuring Child “Well-Being” in Family Foster Care

James P. Gleeson, Altshuler Sandra J. - Family Foster Care in the Next Century

This article, a chapter in the book Family Foster Care in the Next Century, describes how child well-being has been conceptualized and measured in research on family foster care, and discusses the essential dimensions that should be included in a useful measure of child well-being.

Troubled teens and challenged caregivers: Characteristics associated with the decision to provide child welfare services to adolescents in Ontario, Canada

Bryn King, Barbara Fallon, Joanne Filippelli, Tara Black, Carolyn O'Connor - Children and Youth Services Review

This study uses data from the provincially representative Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (OIS-2013) to identify the characteristics of the alleged maltreatment, functioning concerns, caregiver risk factors, and socioeconomic conditions associated with the decision to provide ongoing child welfare services to adolescents and their families.

What does “recovery” from mental illness and addiction mean? Perspectives from child protection social workers and from parents living with mental distress

Anne Lorraine Scott, Kelly Pope, Donald Quick, Bella Aitken, Adele Parkinson - Children and Youth Services Review

This paper analyzes the perspectives of eleven social workers doing child protection work and examines the accounts of thirteen parents living with mental illness or addiction who have been involved in child custody investigations in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Substantiated Child Maltreatment: Which factors do workers focus on when making this critical decision?

Stoddart J.K., Fallon B., Trocmé N., Fluke J. - Children and Youth Services Review

Utilizing data from the Ontario Incidence study 2013, this paper examines what child, family and environmental characteristics workers paid attention to when making the determination that a child had experienced maltreatment.

Lost in Transition? The mitigating role of social capital in negotiating life after care of youth from Romania and England

Georgiana Trif - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) thesis, University of Kent

This study examined care leavers' own safety net and how they negotiate independent living, aimed at understanding strategies used to negotiate independent living through the lenses of social capital and social networks.

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2018 Prevention Resource Guide: Keeping Children Safe and Families Strong in Supportive Communities

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau - Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, Child Welfare Information Gateway, & the FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention

The 2018 Prevention Resource Guide was designed to support service providers as they work with families to promote child well-being and prevent child maltreatment.

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Descriptions from Motherless Infants’ Caregivers in an Institution in Rural Tanzania

Kari Vik (KV), Vickfarajaeli Zebedayo Daudi (VZD), Lusajo Joel Kajula (LJK), Rolf Rohde (RR), Omary Said Ubuguyu (OSU), Joseph Ndukusi Saibulu (JNS) - Infancy and Caring

This paper aims at describing how caregivers at an institution for motherless infants in rural Tanzania perceive infancy, caring and sensitivity in their everyday context.

Stakeholder perceptions of barriers and facilitators to sexual health discussions between foster and kinship caregivers and foster youth: A qualitative study

Jessica Serrano, Julia M. Crouch, Katie Albertson, Kym R. Ahrens - Children and Youth Services Review

This study explored stakeholder perceptions of barriers and facilitators to conversations about sexual health between foster/kinship caregivers and youth in foster care, with the goal of developing a brief, scalable sexual health training for caregivers.

Drawing the threads together: How emerging technologies can help integrate the health care needs of children and young people in out-of-home care

Helen-Louise Usher , Ryan Mills, Perrin Moss, Frank Tracey - International Journal of Integrated Care

This presentation describes the progress of the "Children and Young People in Out-of-Home Care Innovation Fund Integrated Care " project currently being undertaken by Children's Health Queensland.

Unaccompanied Minors: Exploring Needs and Resources to Plan Socio-educational Programs into School Settings

Alessandra Augelli, Linda Lombi and Pierpaolo Triani - Italian Journal of Sociology of Education

The focus of this paper is an evaluation of educational projects which have been designed and operated for the reception of unaccompanied minors in a series of Italian schools.

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Best Practices in the Reception of Unaccompanied Minors in Italy

Nicoletta Pavesi and Giovanni Giulio Valtolina - The Twenty-third Italian Report on Migrations 2017

In this chapter from the The Twenty-third Italian Report on Migrations 2017, the authors provide a picture of the presences and characteristics of the unaccompanied minors present in the EU countries, and in particular in Italy, to then illustrate the main innovations introduced by law 47, approved on 7 April 2017.

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Psychological Well-Being, Risk, and Resilience of Youth in Out-Of-Home Care and Former Foster Youth

Elizabeth J. Greeno, Lisa Fedina, Bethany R. Lee, Jill Farrell, Deborah Harburger - Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma

This study assesses psychological well-being, risk, and resilience of youth currently in-care and former foster youth and how preparation for independent living affects these factors.