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The purpose of this study is to determine what factors contribute to a foster family's ability and desire to remain active in fostering after two years. The sample of this research was selected from Bienvenidos Foster Family Agency, a private non-profit social service organization in the Los Angeles County.

The aim of this study is to investigate foster parents' experiences of being a foster parent. It examines the factors surrounding a placement that stand out in the stories. From an emotional sociological perspective, it examines the foster parents' feelings about the placement and how they feel that they can support and meet the child's needs. The purpose is investigated through a qualitative content analysis of two autobiographies, written by foster parents. Previous research shows that children often sit on trauma linked to previous experiences of lack of care, violence or neglect in the home. Trauma stresses the brain and can lead to later emotional, behavioral and cognitive development for the child. Environmental support can help the child to have resilience, partly through support from the family home. Research shows high stress levels in family homes and emphasizes support and education for a high chance of a successful placement. The child often has a relationship with the biological parent that is fraught with anxiety for them to feel good. Their contact is greatly affected by the family home and the biological parent's ability to maintain contact. The results of the study landed in five themes of distinctive features from the books. "Emotions in relation to the child", "Strategies", "Impact on the family", "Connection to the child's biological parents" and "Support". The foster parents show a lot of feelings concerning the children. They strive to do what is best for the child. The goal of helping is close to their heart. This causes the emotions to fluctuate between good self-esteem and bad depending on the child's feelings and behavior. The foster parents experience that it is energy-intensive but that they succeed in meeting the children's needs to a certain extent. They have their clear idea of ​​what the child needs in terms of boundaries, patience and love. A lot of energy is spent trying to understand the children and meet the needs that exist. The relationship with the biological parents also turns out to be a big part of their everyday life. Emotions surrounding the biological parents are manifested in the form of empathy but also restrained anger and concern for the children.

Providing effective foster care is a major undertaking that continues to plague this country. The ultimate goal of substitute care is to provide child victims of maltreatment with a safe and nurturing home environment. The goal of this theory driven research project was to identify ecological factors correlated with effective non-kin family foster care. Various levels of analysis were considered including individual, family and community. The findings of this study identified three factors as significant predictors of effective foster care. Included are implications for social work in the areas of practice, policy, and research.

As a group, youth who have spent time in foster care are far behind the general population in postsecondary educational attainment. Nevertheless, most do hold aspirations for higher education. For those who make it to college, foster care alumni face a variety of obstacles related to successful postsecondary completion. However, it is unclear whether the factors that affect postsecondary success in this population are similar to those identified for other college students or more unique to the distinctive experience of being in foster care. Furthermore, while there is general consensus that higher education is beneficial to foster care alumni in overcoming adversity, no study has examined how foster care alumni who graduate from college actually fare in their adult lives compared with the general population of college graduates, or with those in the general population who did not graduate college. The study aims first to identify the predictors of postsecondary retention and success using survey data from a cross-sectional sample of foster care alumni who received Casey Family Scholarship Program or Orphan Foundation of America Foster Care to Success postsecondary scholarships. Second, the study compares adult outcomes of foster care alumni graduates with general population graduates and general population non-graduates to explore the role higher education plays in these youths' lives. Results are interpreted in relation to Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory, theories of educational persistence and motivation, trauma theory, and theories related to other difficulties of being in foster care. Analyses include bivariate examinations of postsecondary factors and their relation to college disengagement; discrete-time survival analysis of general college retention factors and factors more unique to the foster care population in predicting college graduation; and multivariate comparisons (ANOVA's, ANCOVA's, and chi-squares) of foster youth graduates and non-foster youth graduates and non-graduates in relation to their post-college life circumstances. In bivariate comparisons of general population factors related to retention, five of the nine factors (academic-related skills, institutional commitment, social support, social involvement, and institutional financial support) had at least one indicator with a significant or trend-level relationship with college disengagement. In bivariate comparisons of foster care-specific factors related to retention, four out of the seven factors (maltreatment/ trauma/PTSD, other mental health problems, independent living stability, tangible support) had at least one item with a significant or trend-level relationship with college disengagement. Comparing the two separate factor models, the general population factor group modeled the data slightly better in predicting college graduation than the foster care-specific factor model. No model improvement was found when foster care-specific factors were added into the general population factor model. Both general population and foster care alumni graduates fared more positively than general population non-graduates for three post-college factors: individual income, financial satisfaction, and happiness. Only the general population graduates were found to be faring better than general population non-graduates on a variety of other factors. Foster youth graduates fared less positively than general population graduates on a variety of post-college outcomes. Results have implications for policy and practice regarding the most effective means of supporting postsecondary aspirations of youth with foster care experience.

This study was done to determine whether the recently employed program of Family Group Decision Making (FGDM) is working in the San Bernardino County Department of Children Services (DCS) in the way it was intended to by reunifying children with their parents and reducing children's time in foster care.

No description available.

Child abuse and neglect affect children's mental health and well-being negatively. Despite their significance, these topics are often not discussed or addressed in school interventions and academic achievement. This systematic review aims to explore and describe different school interventions focusing on trauma to improve academic achievement and create safe environments for abused children. Three databases were searched, and four articles were selected for school-aged children who have experienced abuse or are in foster care. The selected articles were analyzed to identify the different interventions employed by schools to support these children. The review results indicate that trauma-informed school interventions are among the most effective approaches for achieving academic goals with abused children. These interventions often involve creating safe and supportive learning environments prioritizing the child's well-being and mental health. Nevertheless, it is essential to highlight the need for future research to evaluate the interventions mentioned and how they might be effective in different contexts and cultures.

Children who are in the foster care system have already faced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) placing them at greater risk for chronic health problems as well as a greater likelihood of experiencing traumatic medical stress. Additional challenges exist for children who are in the foster care system and are hospitalized. Biological and foster parents may not be available to support the child during their hospitalization. Procedures may trigger traumatic stress responses from child abuse or neglect. Pediatric nurses are in a unique position to support children in foster care during hospitalizations. Trauma informed care principles provide a guide for empathetic, family-centered nursing care. However, natural supports for children in foster care are often not available requiring nurses to collaborate in multidisciplinary approaches.

There is a small, methodologically diverse body of research indicating that approximately 20% of families provide disproportionate amounts of foster caregiving, place fewer restrictions on characteristics of children they are willing to foster and actually do foster, and provide caregiving environments as good as or better than those provided by other foster families. Cherry and Orme (2013) conceptualized this phenomenon in terms of the Pareto Principle, also known as the 80-20 rule or the Vital Few, and they refer to these 20% of families as the Vital Few and the remaining 80% as the Useful Many. This review will examine and synthesize the available research on Vital Few foster families and explore next steps in the development of this body of research.