Partnering with Current and Former Foster Youth: Current Practices and Future Directions

Abstract

Young people with foster care experience are often asked to provide input on policy, legislative, and research decisions at various levels of the child welfare system, indicating a shift toward centering lived experiences of service users in decision-making processes. Although vital to ethical work, current youth-adult partnership practices in the child welfare system often inappropriately engage individuals with lived experience. We highlight common values, attitudes, and practices within the child welfare system that may impede collaborative, meaningful, and effective partnerships with system-involved youth and young adults and describe subsequent harms that can occur as a result of these interactions. Finally, we provide several recommendations aimed at increasing authentic engagement and collaboration with young people with lived foster care experience.