Beyond ‘stages of change:’ using readiness for change and caregiver-reported problems to identify meaningful subgroups in a child welfare sample

Abstract

The identification of subgroups within child welfare is an important task. Subgroups that have distinct characteristics are likely to respond to services in different ways. In other fields, client readiness for change, as conceptualized by the ‘stages of change’ (SOC; Prochaska & DiClemente, 1984, 1986, 1992), has been used to classify clients. Though the SOC model has gained widespread popularity, empirical research has produced varying results, perhaps because the model decontextualizes client motivation. Readiness for change is likely to vary across problem and context. The current study enhances the SOC by identifying subgroups that are defined by readiness for change and other variables that reflect the context and problems of child welfare clients. The University of Rhode Island Change Assessment scale and measures of social desirability bias, depression, economic problems, parenting problems, and household drug use were included in interviews with a sample of 263 primary caregivers receiving in-home child welfare services. Using cluster analyses, five distinct subgroups that differ significantly on readiness for change and other included variables are identified. Tests of between-group differences indicate that clusters also vary on case characteristics. The implications of these findings for child welfare practice, policy, and research are discussed.