Permanency in kinship care: an exploration of disruption rates and factors associated with placement disruption

Abstract

Relative households are regularly used as temporary foster families for abused and neglected children. However, for those children who are unable to return to their families of origin, relatives are often called on to provide permanent homes for these children. Little information is available regarding the outcomes of such relative placements. This research utilizes multiple methods and data sources on relative placements in Houston, Texas to explore disruption rates for potentially permanent kinship placements and barriers to achieving permanency with relatives. Results reveal substantial disruption rates (approximately 50%) for children placed in kinship care that do not go home to their original families. Exploratory qualititative analyses revealed that the majority of relatives reportedly wanted to keep the children permanently and did not pose a threat of continued maltreatment to them. However, several familial stressors were present which undermined the stability of these placements. Barriers to permanency include; contact with biological parents, adolescents' rejection of structured environments, special needs children, and health limitations of relatives. These findings support the view that kinship care households are valuable resources. However, they also provide new details regarding the possible unmet needs to relative caregivers that may need to be addressed to enables relatives to represent promising options for permanency.