Role Of Foster Parents Research Articles

The Power of Information:

This article explores the interactions of African-American foster parents with child welfare agencies. Data from the 1980 Survey of Foster Parents in Eight States were used in assessing the information exchange patterns between two groups of foster parents-traditional and extended-and child welfare workers. Findings show that traditional foster parents request and receive more information about general agency policies and services as well as the role of foster parenting than the extended types of foster families. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of recruitment and differences in expectations child welfare workers and foster parents have about the role and function of foster parents and the delivery of services in the child welfare field. Empowerment strategies are recommended to increase the power of foster parents, especially among related foster parents.

The role of the kinship foster parent: A comparison of the role conceptions of relative and non-relative foster parents

This article reports the results of a research study on the role conceptions of relative foster parents. The sample of 82 Relative and 98 Non-Relative foster families was drawn from the foster parent population of The Casey Family Program. Demographic differences between the foster families are presented. Relative foster parents were significantly more likely to state that they were responsible for ensuring the foster child's continued contact with his or her birth parents than were non-relative foster parents. Recommendations for practice include the need to clarify the foster parent role for all foster families.

Book Reviews

Journal Article Book Reviews Get access Preparing Adolescents for Life After Foster Care: The Central Role of Foster Parents. Edited by Anthony N. Maluccio, Robin Krieger, and Barbra Pine. Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of America, 1990, 225 pp., $24.95. John Wadsworth John Wadsworth University of Iowa Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Journal of Pediatric Psychology, Volume 17, Issue 4, August 1992, Pages 508–510, https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/17.4.508 Published: 01 August 1992

Preparing adolescents for life after foster care: the central role of foster parents

Preparing adolescents for life after foster care: the central role of foster parents

Book reviews

The Catholic University of America. By C. Joseph Nuesse. Washington, DC: The Catholic University Press, 1990. 508 pp. $39.95 (cloth); $19.95 (paper). Preparing Adolescents for Life after Foster Care: The Central Role of Foster Parents. By Anthony N. Maluccio, Robin Krieger, and Barbara A. Pine, eds. Washington, DC: Child Welfare League of America, 1990. 225 pp. $24.95 (paper). When Your Spouse Dies. By Cathleen L. Curry. Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 1990. 127 pp. $5.95 (paper). Rebuilding the Nest; A New Commitment to the American Family. By David Blankenhom, Steven Bayme, and Jean Bethke Elshtain, eds. Milwaukee, WI: Family Service America, 1990. 261 pp., $16.95 (paper).

Chapter 16: PATH:

Established in 1972 in Minnesota, the PATH program is relatively unique in being a foster parent membership organization in which foster parents elect a board of directors responsible for establishing agency policies. Seven charcteristics of the program are the central role of foster parents, individually developed treatment, goal orientation, close foster parent-social worker relationship, educational support, network of support relationships, and professional expectations.

Permanency planning and foster parenting: Implications for recruitment, selection, training, and retention

Literature concerning permanency planning has focused primarily on program design, administrative issues, and improving caseworker skills. However, considering that children in foster care have more contact with foster parents than anyone else, the relationship between permanency planning and foster parenting is a central question that needs attention. This article identifies reasons for the exclusion of foster parents in permanency planning and addresses the issues of foster parent role ambiguity and the changing role of foster parents. The article describes a model to recruit, select, train, and retain foster parents as team members in permanency planning and describes how this model is being implemented. Finally, policy, program, and practice issues that require further clarification and consideration are explored.

A systematic skills approach to the selection and training of foster parents as mental health paraprofessionals, I: Project overview and selection component

This is the first of two articles describing a systematic skills approach to the selection and training of foster parents who will function as mental health paraprofessionals. This article presents an overview of the project and a discussion of the selection component. The selection component is based on a definition of the role of foster parents in terms of the level of their helping skills and the quality of the family emotional climate. These two dimensions are assessed by the Group Assessment of Interpersonal Traits and the Family Concept Test. Results from a pilot study suggesting the efficacy of the Family Concept Test as a selection instrument are presented.