The trouble with foster care: the impact of stressful 'events' on foster carers

Abstract

The article draws on the first stages of a large-scale longitudinal study into foster care with 'looked after' children. It uses data supplied by 950 foster carers in response to a postal questionnaire designed to document the proportions who had experienced one or more of six potentially stressful 'events': breakdowns or disruptions, allegations, relationship with birth parents, family tensions, 'tug of love' cases, and other disagreements with social services. The article uses carers' comments to describe their reaction to the 'events'. It then examines the relationship between the 'events' and measures of carer stress, satisfaction with fostering, and intentions to continue fostering. Overall, two-thirds of the sample had experienced one or more of these 'events' and these were associated with a measure of mental ill-health and with attitudes towards continuing fostering. At any one time, around six out of ten of the children looked after by local authorities are placed with foster carers (Department of Health, 1997). Although the numbers of foster children (currently around 33,000) have remained fairly constant (Berridge, 1997), they constitute a proportion of those in the care system which has roughly doubled since the 1970s. So it seems likely that foster carers are having to cope with more troubled and more challenging children (Warren, 1997), at the same time as they negotiate the treacherous waters between the Scylla of family needs

Does Emotional Resilience Enhance Foster Placement Stability? A Qualitative Investigation

“…The negative impact of a foster child on the family was the only consistent reason these foster carers gave for ending a placement; something mirrored in other studies (Brown & Bednar, 2006;Jones & Morrissette, 1999;Wilson et al, 2000). It is possible that the increased likelihood of placement breakdown is caused by impairment of parenting skills which are adversely affected by foster carer stress (Farmer et al, 2005).…”

“…4, No. 3; to have a detrimental effect on foster carer well-being (Wilson, Sinclair, & Gibbs, 2000), were included in the interview schedule. All the interviews involved the foster carer and researcher, with the exception of the interview with "Diane" where a last minute cancellation of a contact visit meant that her 18 month old foster child was present.…”

Australian foster carers’ negotiations of intimacy with agency workers, birth families and children

“…Yet the question that must be asked in this regard is whether impartiality is the only way of undertaking investigations. Research with foster carers suggests that when an investigation occurs, is it the clinical objectivity and lack of sharing of information that typically occurs that can result in some carers terminating a placement, even if the allegation is not substantiated (Wilson, Sinclair & Gibbs, 2000). This would appear to indicate that it is the act of objectification that is the point of concern, rather than the right of the system of investigate.…”

Acknowledging the Complexity of Processes Leading to Foster Care Breakdown

“…Yet, too often, foster care placements intended to be long term are terminated unexpectedly early (Kindler, Helmig, Meysen, & Jurczyk, 2011;Wilson, Sinclair, & Gibbs, 2000). Few studies have identified factors leading to unexpected breakdown and fewer still have translated such findings into practical guidance for professionals (Rock, Michelson, Thomson, & Day, 2013;Semanchin Jones & Wells, 2008).…”