Twenty years of foster care in Spain: Profiles, patterns and outcomes

Abstract

This article presents data from the first nationwide study in this area, with the aim of analyzing its level of establishment and in order to make comparisons with the situation in other countries. We analyzed a sample of 649 cases, covering both kinship and non-kinship foster care. With the help of child welfare staff we analyzed the cases and considered variables in relation to the profiles of the children, their birth families and the foster caregivers, as well as some basic data on processes and outcomes. In general, the results indicate substantial differences with respect to other countries, especially in view of the high levels of stability and permanence of children in foster care. However, non-kinship care is scarcely established (15%, compared to 85% for kinship care), and the article analyzes some of the possible reasons for this. Kinship care differs from non-kinship care in many aspects, including some as important as greater rates of family reunification and a lower rate of placement disruptions. Due to the fact that non-kinship care frequently becomes a long-term placement, and even in many cases ending with adoption by caregivers, they tend to take on no more than a single experience of foster care.