Foster Care, Permanency, and Risk of Prison Entry

Abstract

Objective: (1) Examine associations of foster care exit type (e.g., reunification with birth family, adoption, guardianship/permanent relative placement, or emancipation from care) with risk of entry into state prison; (2) Examine racial disparities in those associations. Method: With data on over 10,000 Wisconsin youth who entered foster care in mid- to late-childhood, we present imprisonment rates in young adulthood by race, sex, and foster care exit type. Proportional hazards models with a robust set of covariates compared prison entry rates among the most common exit types—reunification, aging out, and guardianship/permanent relative placement. Results: Nearly 13 percent of the sample experienced imprisonment in young adulthood. Compared with emancipated youth, hazard of imprisonment was 1.58–1.96 times higher among reunified youth. Differences were largely unexplained by observed individual, family, or foster care characteristics. Imprisonment rates were similar for emancipated youth and youth exiting to guardianship/permanent relative placement. Hazard of imprisonment for reunified Black youth was twice that of reunified white youth, but racial differences in prison entry were statistically non-significant among emancipated youth. Conclusion: Efforts to reduce incarceration risk for all youth in foster care are needed. Reunified youth may benefit from services and supports currently provided primarily to emancipated youth.

The Centrality of Child Maltreatment to Criminology

“…Traditional criminological theories would arguably suggest that permanency is consistent with reducing crime and delinquency because emancipation implies a lack of a permanent committed caregiver and often follows unstable living arrangements while in care, including more frequent changes in schools and neighborhoods, which the reduces potential for other stable prosocial influences. However, that study of several thousand youth entering foster care in Wisconsin found a higher risk of prison entry for reunified youth, in both bivariate analyses and multivariate analyses accounting for differences in settings and experiences within foster care (Font et al 2021). Although that study was based on a single state, their findings align with other research indicating that reunification from foster care may increase juvenile justice involvement ( Jonson-Reid & Barth 2000) and behavioral problems (Bellamy 2008).…”

“…A renewed emphasis on testing mechanisms and heterogeneity in foster care effects is especially urgent for two reasons. First, the subgroup of children with high levels of emotional and behavioral disturbance (those at greater risk for crime and delinquency) are the least likely to have positive experiences in foster care-less stability, more time in congregate care (versus nonrelative family or kinship foster care), and lower rates of permanency through adoption or guardianshipwhich may augment risks of crime and delinquency (Font et al 2021, Ryan et al 2008, Ryan & Testa 2005. Second, foster care objectives are poorly aligned with, or contrary to, strategies for preventing crime and delinquency, despite the CWS goals of safety, permanency, and wellbeing seeming to be consistent with delinquency prevention.…”

“…High rates of post-reunification maltreatment (Connell et al 2009) and the dearth of evidence on the effectiveness of family reunification services may imply that children are returned to family environments that are not substantively different from when they were removed. A recent study of the risk of prison entry among youth entering foster care in middle to late childhood considered whether legal permanency through reunification or permanent custody with a relative reduces risk compared with aging out (Font et al 2021). Traditional criminological theories would arguably suggest that permanency is consistent with reducing crime and delinquency because emancipation implies a lack of a permanent committed caregiver and often follows unstable living arrangements while in care, including more frequent changes in schools and neighborhoods, which the reduces potential for other stable prosocial influences.…”

A Meta-Regression of Racial Disparities in Wellbeing Outcomes During and After Foster Care

“…Department of Health and Human Services, 2020). Given large and persistent racial disparities in neighborhood disadvantage (Reardon et al, 2015), income and wealth, and family structure (McLanahan & Percheski, 2008), racial disparities in outcomes may be larger after discharge than within foster care as children are placed in environments with vastly different resources (Font et al, 2021). Our analysis does find some evidence that gaps in negative outcomes are larger for Black FCIPs than White FCIPs in studies of minors who have exited foster care than in studies of individuals in foster care at the time of outcome measurement, but it is based on a small number of studies.…”

A Mixed-Methods Study Exploring the Educational Experiences of Foster Youth and Foster Parents During COVID-19

“…The scoping review and interviews suggested that learning losses occur when schools are closed for lengthy periods of time, and this was supported by foster parent responses on the survey. Since children and youth come into foster care lagging behind educationally (Font et al, 2021 ; Sullivan et al, 2010 ; Vacca, 2008 ), COVID-19 school closures had the potential to widen the learning gap. Despite concerted efforts by foster parents and teachers, foster parents reported that engaging youth in foster care with online learning was very challenging.…”