The following was a research practicum instituted as an actual project for the State of Montana Welfare Department between June, 1970, and May, 1971. The project had a two-fold purpose in being conceived: one purpose was to fulfill a graduate school academic requirement; and the second purpose was to fulfill a responsibility to the people of Montana who would eventually gain some benefits from this project. The series of written documents that follow are the description of that project's conception and actualization in six Montana counties. The first part is the project idea and theory; the next two parts consist of the means by which the project was implemented; and the final two parts constitute the interim and final reports and evaluations of the project.

This study explores the hypothesis that constitutional factors were significant in mediating their successful adjustment. The adjustment of children who in the past would have been viewed as permanently scarred and unable to adjust has provided researchers with an idiosyncratic situation that has also been found in other studies: children have adjusted despite odds against it and children considered to have incurred minimal trauma have had difficulty adjusting.

No description available.

No description available.

The FOster Care Expert System (FOCES) was developed to provide advice to social workers of the Roanoke City Department of Social Services who must select foster care homes for children who cannot remain with their own families. It was implemented using the General pUrpose Expert Shell System (GUESS) and Horn Clause Prolog. The system's design was greatly influenced by unique features of the problem domain. Among the key concerns were: unresolved questions within the social work profession about foster home selection and evaluation, serious methodological and philosophical difficulties associated with defining a good "person-environment fit", and the volatile, free-form narrative nature of the information maintained by social services agencies about children and homes. "Traditional" approaches to knowledge acquisition and representation adopted by developers of expert systems were of limited use. Adaptation of extended "p-norm" Boolean queries previously used in information retrieval work simplified the knowledge representation and matching tasks for this human services application. Evaluation of FOCES' performance, using a small database of children and homes, has shown that the system can select appropriate foster care placements at least as well as some experienced social workers. / Master of Science

The purpose of this study was to gather data relating to motivations of individuals who volunteer to participate as foster parent. By surveying potential, as well as current volunteers, a motivational profile was obtained that will aid in future recruitment and retention efforts.

This study proposed to explore several factors that promote foster parent satisfaction in order to preserve quality foster homes to serve the 532,000 displaced children currently in the child welfare system. A sample of 52 foster parents were surveyed to determine overall satisfaction with their foster care experience at Children's Way Foster Family Agency in San Bernardino, California. It was hypothesized that the higher the level of foster parent satisfaction, the higher rates of retention. A modified version of an existing instrument titled "Foster Parent Satisfaction Survey" was utilized in this study.

In this practice-based research the use of attachment assessments to assist with decision-making about the placement of children in State care is explored. In Aotearoa New Zealand care and protection legislation emphasises the importance of working with families. The central decision-making forum is the Family Group Conference where families, their support people and statutory social workers come together to work out a plan for children considered to be in need of care and protection. This research focused on conflicted situations where agreement could not be reached about where children should live. The research was structured around one over-arching objective: the examination of a specific aspect of practice, namely the use of attachment assessments in decision-making, with a view to identifying elements of best practice. Within this were three other objectives: an exploration of the impact of attachment assessments on decision-making processes; an exploration of the experience of participants in this process; and an examination of perceived outcomes for children who have an assessment completed. In order to achieve these objectives the historical and cultural context influencing these decision-making processes was explored; the theoretical framework underpinning the use of attachment assessments was critically examined; recent literature on children�s experience in foster care was reviewed; the role of assessment in decision-making was explored; and the use of attachment assessments was evaluated from the perspective of social work practitioners. The outcomes of this research indicate that attachment assessments are theoretically sound processes, which provide relevant information that facilitates decision-making in conflicted situations and the achievement of positive outcomes for children. It was, however, found that attachment assessments have an indirect influence by providing a pivotal point in the decision-making process rather than a direct impact. A number of variables influencing outcomes for children were identified and explored: availability of suitable placements; management of contact with birth family; provision of support networks including attention to ongoing cultural connectedness; and support through adolescence. Children�s absence from participation in decision-making was highlighted. I conclude with an outline of guidelines for best practice.

In this practice-based research the use of attachment assessments to assist with decision-making about the placement of children in State care is explored. In Aotearoa New Zealand care and protection legislation emphasises the importance of working with families. The central decision-making forum is the Family Group Conference where families, their support people and statutory social workers come together to work out a plan for children considered to be in need of care and protection. This research focused on conflicted situations where agreement could not be reached about where children should live. The research was structured around one over-arching objective: the examination of a specific aspect of practice, namely the use of attachment assessments in decision-making, with a view to identifying elements of best practice. Within this were three other objectives: an exploration of the impact of attachment assessments on decision-making processes; an exploration of the experience of participants in this process; and an examination of perceived outcomes for children who have an assessment completed. In order to achieve these objectives the historical and cultural context influencing these decision-making processes was explored; the theoretical framework underpinning the use of attachment assessments was critically examined; recent literature on children�s experience in foster care was reviewed; the role of assessment in decision-making was explored; and the use of attachment assessments was evaluated from the perspective of social work practitioners. The outcomes of this research indicate that attachment assessments are theoretically sound processes, which provide relevant information that facilitates decision-making in conflicted situations and the achievement of positive outcomes for children. It was, however, found that attachment assessments have an indirect influence by providing a pivotal point in the decision-making process rather than a direct impact. A number of variables influencing outcomes for children were identified and explored: availability of suitable placements; management of contact with birth family; provision of support networks including attention to ongoing cultural connectedness; and support through adolescence. Children�s absence from participation in decision-making was highlighted. I conclude with an outline of guidelines for best practice.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.