Foster parents are often not equipped to address the difficulties and challenges they face with their foster children. Research has identified the importance of providing foster children with a safe and secure environment. Guided by the theory of adoption and attachment, the purpose of this study was to identify the differences between foster parents who continue with foster child placements and those who do not by examining their perceptions of foster parenting behaviors and their foster parent/child relationships. Participants were recruited using online foster parent forums and foster care agencies. A total of 31 foster parents participated: 13 licensed and 18 not-licensed. The 45-item Parent Behavior Scale (PBS) was used to measure parenting behaviors. The 15-item Child Parent Relationship Scale (CPRS) was used to measure perceived caregiver-child relationships. A MANOVA revealed significant relational differences between the groups. Foster parents who continued to foster children perceived their relationships with their foster child more positively and supportive than did those who did not continue to foster children. No significant differences in parenting behaviors between the groups were identified. Notably, a relationship was found between foster parents' perception of their relationship with their foster children and the combined parenting behavior scales of positive parenting, rules, monitoring, and punishment. These findings can contribute to positive social change in identifying relational factors important to placement longevity. Foster parents trained to meet the challenges are more likely to continue to foster children and provide a safe and secure environment in which foster children can thrive.

This study evaluated instruction and feedback on completion of data collection by licensed specialized Foster Parents caring for children with developmental disabilities and mental health issues. Instructions were delivered at the beginning of the intervention for three licensed specialized Foster Parents by providing them with a Foster Parent Handbook (FPH), and feedback was provided weekly based on the data collected by the Foster Parents. A multiple baseline design across participants was used to demonstrate the effects of instruction with frequent feedback, and an intervention fading phase was conducted by withdrawing the feedback component of the intervention several weeks following the intervention. The results showed an increase for each of the participants from 0% data completion in the baseline phase to 100% data completion in the intervention phase, with mean compliance of 92% during the fading phase. This study provides support for a packaged intervention for increasing data collection by Foster Parents that is less intensive than the traditional behavioral approaches to caregiver training.

abstract: The Arizona state child welfare system has recently experienced an increase in the number of children and youth living in out-of-home care. A lack of licensed foster homes has resulted in many of these children residing in congregate care. This study sought to determine what role, if any, personal and policy bias against five demographic groups (i.e., ethnicity, sexual orientation, marital status for individuals and couples, and educational level) plays in this insufficiency of foster homes. In this pilot study a group of foster and adoption licensing agency executives and directors (n=5) were surveyed and qualitatively interviewed with the aim of discerning if bias is present at the personal and agency policy levels and to seek input for a future study with direct-service staff. Results indicate a discrepancy between personal and policy bias within agencies. Additionally, evidence suggests a policy bias which results in unmarried couples and single parents being perceived as inferior placement options. Implications for future research are discussed. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Social Work 2017

This study was about the motives that foster parents had before they became foster parents, how the motives change over time and their overall thoughts about the motives. The study aimed to increase the understanding of foster parents described motives before the mission and in their present mission. This was done by analysing four autobiographies written by people who have previous experience with being a foster parent, in which they describe their own stories regarding their mission. The result was analysed through findings in previous studies, Self-Determination theory (SDT) and Cognitive-Evaluation theory (CET). The results of this study are that the motives of foster parents change during their mission depending on extrinsic rewards. The motives of foster parents have an underlying purpose. It is important for their continued motivation to experience feelings of competence and autonomy.

The diploma thesis deals with the topic of foster families quality support.The aim of the diploma thesis is to describe how foster parents perceive the support of the accompanying organization and whether the preparation they have gone through in the beginnings prepared them to take the child into care.The research was based on using the technique of semi-structured interviews. The obtained data have been divided into the following categories - preparatory course, support of the accompanying organization and state support.At the end of the diploma thesis, the main research questions are answered, and recommendations for subsequent practice are also give Key words: Accompanying worker, Foster care, Foster parent, Support

Preservice training programs offered in a city in the Pacific Northwest have not been assessed to determine whether they adequately prepare therapeutic foster parents (TFPs). This phenomenological study identified factors that influenced the impact of preservice training on parents' preparation to manage their foster children's behavior, foster parent attrition, and multiple moves of the foster children. Chamberlain, Rork, McNeil, and Christenson's work linking training programs with the success of foster children was used to frame this study. Data were generated from semistructured interviews of 12 certified local TFPs who had completed preservice training and had at least one child placed in their home for at least a weekend. NVivo 10 qualitative analysis software was used to manage the data, which were analyzed via an inductive process. Findings indicated that TFPs felt the training was effective and the information provided was useful in real life situations. Suggestions for improvement included adding additional examples of behavioral issues and personal stories from trainers and facilitating increased interaction among foster parents. TFPs reported that their intrinsic motivations for fostering had more impact on decisions to continue with foster children in their home than did the preservice training. The project generated from the study was a policy recommendation addressed to program stakeholders that could have a significant social impact in developing training to better address behavioral challenges, prevent multiple moves, and promote cultural sensitivity while reinforcing parents' motivation for fostering.

The purpose of this study is to better understand, from a foster parent perspective, how the integration process of the foster child is carried out in the foster family. The purpose is to identify the challenges and success factors in the process. The study is based on a qualitative method. The data consist of interviews with six foster families. The study’s theoretical framework is mostly based on system theory and also on the theory of ambivalence. The results show that most of our families considered five factors to be important in order to facilitate the integration process. The foster family needs to bond with the foster child, let the foster child in into the family system, open up and be who they really are, respect each other and reserve time to be able to satisfy the needs of foster child. The results emphasize that the foster parents should treat the foster child in the same way as the biological child.  We have also been able to identify factors that may have an impact on integration, like the age of the foster child. Our results suggest that foster parents experience different varieties of ambivalence to both the foster child and the foster child's biological parents. Those children who have a poor relationship with their biological parents and are of relatively young age tend to be over-integrated in the foster family.

In 2015, over 427,000 children were in foster care and the largest population were in California's system. Of those children, more than 9,400 were prescribed psychotropic medications. Increases of psychotropic medication use have led to investigations and findings of medication oversights in foster care. Medication oversights included medication nonadherence, which was linked to an increase of problematic behaviors in foster children. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the issues of medication adherence for foster care providers who care for foster children of mild to chronic health concerns who were prescribed medications and experienced multiple placements. By utilizing the health belief model as a guide to formulate the research question and interview questions, an understanding of how the beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors of foster care providers were impacting proper medication adherence behaviors began to manifest. Data gathered through semistructured interviews of foster care providers were analyzed to code and identify themes. The results of this phenomenological study revealed the perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes of foster care providers related to medication adherence behaviors. Multiple barriers to medication adherence for foster children included systemic interferences, limited health information, limited knowledge regarding medications and medication side effects, and child refusal. These findings may be used to create educational trainings, inform policymakers, and develop regulations for medication use in foster care, which could bring about positive change by increasing the potential for better health outcomes for foster children.

The thesis titled "Comparison of institutes of spare parental care from terms of the needs of the child and the caregivers" is focusing on the issue of spare parental care and caring of other person than a parent from the view of the needs of children and the caregivers. There are two strikingly similar institutions in the practice which have their own characteristics. The aim of my thesis is to describe, explain and specify differences these institutes and to show how it is accepted by caregivers. For specifics of long- term foster care and other individuals in this thesis is considered mainly a way of material security of the state, the method of cooperation with the non-profit sector, law institutes, experienced caregivers and the issue of cooperation with original family. In the empirical part was conducted quantitative research through a questionnaire that focused on the experiences and skills of the caregivers. The work also deals with quantitative research when caregivers share their views and experiences. The main finding is that the persons taking care of the foster care institute have greater knowledge about the new rights and obligations arising from the amendment Law of social and legal protection of children. Foster parents are more often missing general information about other forms of...

The aim of this study was to develop, implement and evaluate a social work empowerment programme for foster parents of sexually abused children. This thesis consists of five sections: SECTION A: Contains the problem statement, objectives and research methodology, the limitations of the study and definitions of key words. The problem statement was formulated as follows: There is no existing scientifically developed and implemented social work empowerment programme for foster parents of sexually abused children available in South Africa. This problem statement resulted in the development of four research objectives. The intervention research model was utilised and implemented within a mixed methodology paradigm. Focus group discussions and the single system design generated quantitative and qualitative data. SECTION B: Consists of four articles combined together, form the research report on the achievement of the objectives. The four articles are: Article 1: The implication of sexual abuse for foster care. The aim of this article is to establish the implications of sexual abuse for foster care by means of a literature study. The impact of child sexual abuse depends on various factors like the age of the child, the amount of force used, the relationship between the child and the perpetrator, and the period over which the abuse took place. The impact of sexual abuse on the child also varies depending on the individual child. In order for the foster parent to assist the foster child to heal from the trauma of child sexual abuse, it is necessary for the foster parent to have knowledge of and insight into such impact on the foster child. Article 2: The empowerment needs of foster parents of sexually abused children. The aim of this article is to establish the empowerment needs of foster parents of sexually abused children. A focus group discussion was used as a method to collect relevant qualitative data. Five (N=5) foster parents with foster children that have been sexually abused, identified from the caseload of a Child Welfare Society in White River and formed part of the discussion group. From the discussion group two categories, namely feelings, experiences and challenges of foster parents of sexually abused foster children and the needs of foster parents of sexually abused foster children were identified. Ten themes and sub-themes were derived and identified. Article 3: The development and implementation of a social work empowerment programme for foster parents of sexually abused children. The aim of this article is to develop and implement a social work empowerment programme for foster parents of sexually abused children. A nine session programme was developed according to the needs identified in the previous article, and implemented over three days to seven (N=7) foster parents, selected according to a non-probability sampling method. It was presented through psychosocial group work as method. Article 4: The evaluation of a social work empowerment programme for foster parents of sexually abused children. The aim of this article was to evaluate the social work empowerment programme and the effect of the programme on the psychosocial functioning of the foster parents of sexually abused children. A single system design was followed to collect data. Three standardised instruments were utilised during pre- and post-test. A self- developed questionnaire was used to gather qualitative data. SECTION C: Summative findings, conclusions and recommendations and contribution of the study. SECTION D: Addendums. SECTION E: Compound list of references. / Thesis (PhD (Social Work))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013