Summary

Child welfare caseworkers and foster parents are key adults supporting children and youth involved with the child welfare system. COVID-19 has exacerbated existing challenges in the child welfare system. Serving children during a pandemic is unchartered territory for both groups, and limited knowledge and resources could reduce their self-efficacy and ability to perform their roles effectively. As such, there are important opportunities for family scientists to engage in child welfare research. This poster highlights a growing collaboration between a state DHS agency and a land grant-institution. The aims are to share how COVID-19 has affected child welfare caseworkers and foster parents and provide recommendations to mitigate these challenges now and in the aftermath of the pandemic. Although COVID-19 has created new challenges, the pandemic has likely put a spotlight on existing barriers to service delivery and potentially new ways for service delivery.  

Objectives

• To analyze the impact of COVID-19 on child welfare caseworkers and foster parents on themselves, their roles, and the children and families they serve. 
• To synthesize specific areas of need for child welfare workers and foster parents, especially in the midst of the pandemic. 
• To identify potential strategies to address the needs of child welfare case workers and foster parents in order to retain these critical adults and better support families involved with the child welfare system.

Subject Codes: foster care, COVID-19, well-being
Population Codes: foster parent, inclusive of adults
Method and Approach Codes: qualitative methodology, quantitative methodology, concept/construct development

Summary

Child welfare caseworkers and foster parents are key adults supporting children and youth involved with the child welfare system. COVID-19 has exacerbated existing challenges in the child welfare system. Serving children during a pandemic is unchartered territory for both groups, and limited knowledge and resources could reduce their self-efficacy and ability to perform their roles effectively. As such, there are important opportunities for family scientists to engage in child welfare research. This poster highlights a growing collaboration between a state DHS agency and a land grant-institution. The aims are to share how COVID-19 has affected child welfare caseworkers and foster parents and provide recommendations to mitigate these challenges now and in the aftermath of the pandemic. Although COVID-19 has created new challenges, the pandemic has likely put a spotlight on existing barriers to service delivery and potentially new ways for service delivery.  

Objectives

• To analyze the impact of COVID-19 on child welfare caseworkers and foster parents on themselves, their roles, and the children and families they serve. 
• To synthesize specific areas of need for child welfare workers and foster parents, especially in the midst of the pandemic. 
• To identify potential strategies to address the needs of child welfare case workers and foster parents in order to retain these critical adults and better support families involved with the child welfare system.

Subject Codes: foster care, COVID-19, well-being
Population Codes: foster parent, inclusive of adults
Method and Approach Codes: qualitative methodology, quantitative methodology, concept/construct development

Summary

Child welfare caseworkers and foster parents are key adults supporting children and youth involved with the child welfare system. COVID-19 has exacerbated existing challenges in the child welfare system. Serving children during a pandemic is unchartered territory for both groups, and limited knowledge and resources could reduce their self-efficacy and ability to perform their roles effectively. As such, there are important opportunities for family scientists to engage in child welfare research. This poster highlights a growing collaboration between a state DHS agency and a land grant-institution. The aims are to share how COVID-19 has affected child welfare caseworkers and foster parents and provide recommendations to mitigate these challenges now and in the aftermath of the pandemic. Although COVID-19 has created new challenges, the pandemic has likely put a spotlight on existing barriers to service delivery and potentially new ways for service delivery.  

Objectives

• To analyze the impact of COVID-19 on child welfare caseworkers and foster parents on themselves, their roles, and the children and families they serve. 
• To synthesize specific areas of need for child welfare workers and foster parents, especially in the midst of the pandemic. 
• To identify potential strategies to address the needs of child welfare case workers and foster parents in order to retain these critical adults and better support families involved with the child welfare system.

Subject Codes: foster care, COVID-19, well-being
Population Codes: foster parent, inclusive of adults
Method and Approach Codes: qualitative methodology, quantitative methodology, concept/construct development

Summary
Current U.S. foster care policies aim to limit the length of time a child spends in foster care; however, there is limited contemporary research on predictors of length of time in foster care. This study tested if more frequent contact with biological parents predicted less time in foster care and better mental health outcomes using three waves of data from the National Survey on Child and Adolescent Well-Being II (NSCAW II), a nationally representative dataset of youth involved with the child welfare system. Findings showed that more contact with biological mothers was associated with fewer days in foster care. Older children and black youth experienced more cumulative days in foster care compared to younger children and white youth. In addition, more frequent contact with both mothers and fathers was associated with fewer mental health symptoms. Findings will be discussed in light of contemporary U.S. polices and best-practices.

Objectives

• To determine if more frequent contact with biological parents predicts less time children spend in foster care.
• To assess if the frequency of contact children have with their biological parents is associated with their mental health outcomes over time.
• To link research findings with current U.S. foster care policies.

Subject Codes: fostercare, family policy, abuse/neglect
Population Codes: foster child, Nationally representative, U.S.
Method and Approach Codes: longitudinal research, quantitative methodology, outcomes-based research

Summary
Siblings in foster care have provided youth with emotional well-being, natural supports, and have been associated with increased resilience. Despite the potential protective factors that siblings provide, many siblings are separated. The current literature does not adequately capture the perspectives of former foster children. This study aims to: (a) to share the experiences of youth in foster care, (b) identified perceived barriers of sibling relationships while in foster care, and (c) provide suggestions for policy changes. Eleven former foster youth completed semi-structured telephone interviews. Interviews were analyzed using thematic-analysis. The majority of participants felt that the foster care system was not supportive of sibling relationships, participants noted several barriers they thought needed to be addressed and called on social workers and foster parents to advocate for sibling relationships. Suggested policy changes include: mandatory contact information for siblings, prioritization of placing siblings together, and recruitment of foster families for sibling groups.

Objectives

• Participants will be able to describe what former foster youth experienced regarding their sibling relationships while in foster care.
• Participants will be able to identify barriers to placing and maintaining sibling relationships in foster care.
• Participants will be able to translate ideas shared from former youth for the promotion of sibling relationships into suggestions for policy change

Subject Codes: fostercare, relationships, family policy
Population Codes: foster child, siblings, U.S.
Method and Approach Codes: qualitative methodology, thematic analysis, empowerment

Summary
Many foster children, especially those of color, experience placement instability in foster care, which can increase the likelihood of adverse outcomes (e.g., poor academic performance, mental health and behavioral problems), potentially due to difficulties forming secure attachments with temporary caregivers. While previous scholars have explored reasons for placement disruptions (e.g., stress and lack of support of foster parents), specific potential policy changes have received little attention. This poster  seeks to establish whether rates of foster care placement instability at the state level are correlated to foster care reimbursement rates in order to determine whether or not increasing reimbursement rates may result in greater placement stability. This will help policymakers determine whether to focus on monetary or non-monetary supports for foster parents in order to encourage stability. This poster will also compare placement stability toethnic density of each state's foster care population to discover whether further systemic change is needed.

Objectives

• To determine whether there is a correlation between foster care placement instability and foster parent reimbursement rates
• To determine whether policymakers should focus on monetary or non-monetary supports to increase placement stability
• To determine whether there is a correlation between foster care placement instability and ethnic density of foster care populations

Subject Codes: fostercare, family policy, ethnicity
Population Codes: foster parent, People of Color, U.S.
Method and Approach Codes: policy/policy analysis, secondary data analysis, regression: linear (simple, multiple, hierarchical)

Summary
Among families who are not involved in the child welfare system, coparenting has been identified as a significant factor associated with child adjustment (Teubert & Pinquart, 2010). As foster families typically lack a shared family history, high quality coparenting is likely important to promoting a cooperative family climate and fostering adjustments that contribute to family functioning and child wellbeing (Minuchin et al., 2007). However, the authors were unable to identify research that has examined how foster parent coparenting is associated with mental/behavioral health of children in foster care. The current study addresses an important gap in the literature by examining: (a) whether foster parent coparenting quality is associated with internalizing and externalizing behaviors of foster children; and (b) whether placement duration moderates the association between coparenting and child behavior. Implications for research, practice, and policy are addressed.

Objectives

• Participants will be able to identify the benefits of quality coparenting on child outcomes.
• Participants will be able to describe primary findings and limitations of recent foster parent coparenting research.
• Participants will be able to describe findings and implications of foster parent coparenting on child outcomes.

Subject Codes: fostercare, mental health, coparenting
Population Codes: foster parent, foster child, couples/coupled
Method and Approach Codes: regression: linear (simple, multiple, hierarchical), quantitative methodology,

Summary
More than 430,000 children are in foster care yearly in the US. A foster home can provide a safe place to develop favorable physical, social, and emotional outcomes for children who have experienced difficulties in their original families. However, foster caregivers often face multiples challenges, which may lead them to discontinue foster care or close their home to future children. One half to two-thirds of foster parents discontinue foster care practices within one year of having their first foster child placed in their home. Given the potential benefits that foster caregivers provide, we aim to understand how different factors might contribute to the retention and satisfaction of foster caregivers. Although satisfaction and certain agency factors are linked with retention, it is unclear how parenting characteristics impact the decision to continue. We invoke ecological theory which posits that both immediate and distal environments have impacts on the day-to-day life of individuals.

Objectives

• Understand which demographic, parenting, and agency characteristics are associated with foster parent retention and level of satisfaction.
• Determine if foster caregivers differ in the level of fostering challenges they experience
• Measure group differences in overall foster experience, satisfaction with foster care, and willingness to continue fostering

Subject Codes: fostercare, parenting,
Population Codes: foster parent, U.S.,
Method and Approach Codes: regression: linear (simple, multiple, hierarchical), structural equation modeling (SEM),

Summary
Overrepresentation of Indigenous children and youth in the Canadian child welfare system is a well-documented in research. This phenomenon is rooted within a painful history of aggressive family separation and removal of Indigenous children. Although current research on this topic explores individual factors for Indigenous youth in the welfare system, there is no comprehensive examination of how these factors impact each other and the possible outcomes for youth. Through a human ecological framework, the current study aims to explore the experiences of trauma among Indigenous youth in child welfare system and understand the relationships between the early traumatic experiences in the child welfare system on Indigenous youth’s outcomes. Findings of the study show that trauma experienced within systems surrounding Indigenous youth, particularly of the exosystem and macrosystem, during their experience in the child welfare system significantly impact their outcomes. In response, impactful changes at the policy level are suggested.

Objectives

• To explore experiences of trauma among Indigenous youth during and prior to entering the Canadian child welfare system.
• To reveal the relationships between the early traumatic experiences in the Canadian child welfare system on Indigenous youth’s outcomes.
• To examine possible implications for change at the policy level of the Canadian child welfare system.

Subject Codes: family policy, racism, trauma
Population Codes: indigenous, foster child, intergenerational
Method and Approach Codes: qualitative methodology, theory [identify specific theory below], Family Science

Summary
We present new research and offer recommendations that focus on the intersection of policy and family life for individuals and families in child welfare systems, including birth parents, children in foster care, kinship/foster caregivers, and sex-trafficking victims. Together, these papers will help researchers, practitioners, and policymakers better understand and support families by offering new insights regarding the contexts, resources, and needs of individuals and families facing adversity before and during COVID-19, as well as the unintentional consequences of policies and practices designed to support them. Voices of stakeholders throughout the child welfare system are incorporated e.g., family members, caregivers, caseworkers, supervisors, licensing and program administrators, therapists, and attorneys. Informed by family systems theory and qualitative and quantitative methodologies, these papers contribute new knowledge regarding potential strengths and supports offered through the child welfare system in this moment, as well as struggles caused by disconnects between policies and practice.

Objectives

• To evaluate the effectiveness of current child welfare policies in supporting vulnerable and underserved children and families
• To identify resources and strengths that foster positive outcomes for vulnerable children and families
• To recommend improvements in policies and practices designed to serve individuals and families in child welfare systems

Subject Codes: adoption, fostercare, human trafficking
Population Codes: non-clinical practitioners, foster parent, biological parent
Method and Approach Codes: applied research, content analysis, mixed-methodology