Developmental delay in young children in child welfare by initial placement type

Abstract

AbstractEstimates of developmental delay in children in out‐of‐home foster care range from 13–62%. Overlooked in these studies are comparisons of developmental delay differentiated by a child's initial placement type (i.e., biological parent, kinship care, or nonrelative foster care) following evaluation for possible abuse and/or neglect. The developmental status of children residing in these different placement types warrants further scrutiny by clinicians and policy makers, especially due to the recent trend towards family preservation efforts and the growing use of kinship care. Data were collected on 798 children, ages 3–36 months, who were admitted to San Diego's sole emergency shelter/receiving facility from April 1, 1998 through June 30, 1999 for investigation of alleged maltreatment. Children admitted received a physical exam and developmental screening using the Denver Developmental Screening Test (Denver‐II). Sixty two percent of children (491) scored “suspect” on the Denver Developmental Screening Test II (Denver‐II). Of these children, 73% received a developmental evaluation using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II (Bayley‐II). Over 34% of these children evaluated scored more than 2 standard deviations below the mean on at least one component of the Bayley‐II regardless of placement type. Although children with “suspect” scores on the Denver‐II were more likely to be placed in nonrelative foster care (p < .013), there was no difference between placement types for children with delay on the Bayley‐II. Results for children released to their biological parent(s) should be viewed as preliminary, because these children were less likely to receive an evaluation compared to other children. However, results suggest that young children placed in kinship care are as likely to be developmentally delayed, based on the Bayley‐II, as those children placed in nonrelative foster care. Given concerns in the literature that children in kinship care receive fewer services than children in nonrelative foster care, this finding bears further investigation. ©2002 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.