Article
Foster parent involvement in service planning: Does it increase job satisfaction?

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0190-7409(98)00010-3Get rights and content

Abstract

A substantial decline in the number of qualified foster homes and a sharp increase in the number of children in need of foster care has led child welfare professionals to place greater emphasis on foster parent retention. While agencies can do little to retain foster parents who leave the system for personal reasons, those who leave because of dissatisfaction with agency policies and practices can be retained if the reasons for their dissatisfaction are identified and eliminated. One factor commonly identified as being responsible for foster parent dissatisfaction is lack of foster parent involvement in service planning. This study examines the role of foster parents in service planning and uses survey data collected from New York State foster parents to determine if participation in the service planning process increases job satisfaction as hypothesized. The study's findings provide evidence that the quality of foster parent involvement in service planning has a positive effect on job satisfaction. The study also identifies factors that enhance the quality of involvement in service planning and increase the level of foster parent satisfaction.

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      Bad collaboration with the foster care worker, amongst others deriving from a lack of information or respect, results in foster parents feeling undervalued. It reduces satisfaction and the desire to welcome new foster children, and sometimes results in the ending of the foster care engagement (Denby, Rindfleisch, & Bean, 1999; Hudson & Levasseur, 2002; MacGregor, Rodger, Cummings, & Leschied, 2006; Rhodes et al., 2003; Sanchirico, Lau, Jablonka, & Russel, 1998). Support regarding the parenting of the foster child is also needed (Denby et al., 1999; Hudson & Levasseur, 2002; Vanschoonlandt et al., 2014).

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      Foster parents would also like to be a stronger voice in decisions made regarding the children in their care. They spend the most time with children, likely being able to provide the most insight into their functioning; as a result, it makes sense they should have a more valued contribution to team decision-making (Buehler, Rhodes, Orme, & Cuddeback, 2006; Hudson & Levasseur, 2002; Sanchirico et al., 1998; Stukes-Chipungu & Bent-Goodley, 2004). MacGregor et al. (2006) also indicate that some foster parents perceive department workers as not trusting their abilities to manage the children in their care, nor do they provide full information, which influences decisions to continue as foster parents.

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      This last finding regarding the value that foster parents place on their involvement in case-level decision-making aligns with past research. Sanchirico, Lau, Jablonka, and Russell (1998) identified the importance of this variable in their quantitative study of foster parent satisfaction, while MacGregor, Rodger, Cummings, and Leschied (2006) revealed a similar theme in their qualitative study of foster parent perceptions. On the other hand, some of the non-significant results in this study conflict with past research.

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    This study was supported by New York State Department of Social Services Contract CM00346. The authors thank the staff of the New York State Department of Social Services for their participation in, and support of, this research.

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