Criteria for the selection of foster families and monitoring of placements.

Abstract

Based on a literature review, this article frames different stages of the foster care process, identifying a set of standardized measures in the American and Portuguese contexts which, if implemented, could contribute towards higher levels of foster success. The article continues with the presentation of a comparative study, based on the application of the Casey Foster Applicant Inventory-Applicant Version (CFAI-A) questionnaire, in the aforementioned contexts. Taking a comparative analyses of CFAI-A's psychometric characteristics in four different samples as a starting point, one discovered that despite the fact that the questionnaire was adapted to Portuguese reality, it kept the quality values presented on the American samples. It specifically shows significant values regarding reliability and validity. This questionnaire, which aims to assess the potential of foster families, also supports the technical staff's decision making process regarding the monitoring and support of foster families, while it also promotes a better decision in the placement process towards the child's integration and development.

Introduction

The experience of living in a stable, secure and ‘normal’ family environment, associated with the creation of new affective bonds, and whenever possible the preservation of the emotional ties that the child carries from his/her past, may aid the construction of resilience, the physical and psychological recovery, and the discovery of a path leading the child to his/her well-being and integral development.

The terms and purpose of foster care must be subjected to continuous assessment, requiring a constant communication between the main actors of the measure and a collection of updated data able to reflect and evaluate the quality of the placement. This study article presents a set of tools available in the U.S. and Portugal contexts that abide to that purpose, guiding the placement process or supporting the candidates' recruitment and selection.

The selection is the process that determines which families may care for foster children after the initial recruitment. It may be continuous, from spontaneous applications addressed to the social services, and punctual, as in the case of marketing campaigns, which have a certain regularity in systems where foster families have a greater expression. In such cases, the effective use of marketing is increasingly more necessary to “capture” the interest of potential candidates, conducting the recruitment in the medium/long run according to a predefined strategy, which should be periodically assessed and subjected to scientific research (Sellick, Thoburn, & Philpot, 2004). In particular, campaigns or messages should be focused on the characteristics families must have to care for foster children, which may more easily attract people with these traits (Sellick et al., 2004).

On the other hand, knowing the lifestyle and characteristics of foster families helps setting potential ‘targets’ for the campaign (Triseliotis, Borland, & Hill, 2000), if the intention is to expand the list of foster families with the same profile. In situations where there is a shortage of foster families, the same authors suggest that marketing campaigns should be directed to specific groups, such as people under 40, people living alone, people working in social institutions, childless or without any dependent children and people who are unemployed.

In fact, the entrance of women in the labour market in full-time positions, precarious employment and labour pressure, the increase of divorces and marital separations currently affect the typical profile of foster families, which is: married couples where the woman doesn't work or is only part-time employed (Berridge, 1997, Sinclair et al., 2004). Indeed, “We cannot do good if we have no time to do it” (Kelly & Gilligan, 2000, p.10). Unlike what happens in adoption cases, where many applications are spontaneous and no marketing campaigns are required, in the case of foster care “there are less families willing to foster than children in need of fostering” (Amorós & Palacios, 2004, p.102). Thus, the same authors concluded that marketing and recruitment campaigns are the key elements to reduce the shortage of foster families; Berridge (1997) furthermore adds the retention of foster parents in the system. Triseliotis, Sellick, and Short (1995) go as far as saying that “increased support to retain existing carers seems preferable to continued new recruitment”, naturally referring to the British system, where this measure achieved a large expression (p.41).

Marketing campaigns should be planned and also clearly define the demographic group of potential foster families, as well as also for the modality(ies) of foster care, the messages to be conveyed and the means and resources that are to be used (Amorós & Palacios, 2004). The weaker the culture of foster care is in a system, the greater the need for generalist campaigns, i.e., directed towards the entire population, “to achieve a double objective: raising awareness and attracting potential candidates” (Amorós & Palacios, 2004, p.150). Triseliotis et al. (1995) underline the need to avoid using “vague and overtly sentimental material, which often proves counter-productive” (p.42).

Once a family is recruited, after an initial contact is established, it's necessary to provide basic information about the modality and to establish the socio-economic conditions of the potential candidates, their motivations, personal profile and family dynamics, as well as health level and criminal record.

The duration, procedures, activities, and final decision of the selection process vary according to the model. This may be subdivided into sequential phases, include individual interviews and with the entire family, imply one or more home visits, can include succession number of meetings or the enrolment on a training course. Furthermore, it may also include the thorough filling of questionnaires or other assessment tools which are being studied by this article. As soon as the candidates' motivations are confirmed and the requirements established by the selection criteria are met, the final approval may be the responsibility of the foster care team, of a different or institution of the social services authorities, or even administrative commissions representing different groups or entities within the community.

With multiple options and paths according to the reality of each national, regional or local context, one element seems to be rather consensual: that each candidate family is to make a self-assessment, learn their motivations and decide whether or not, on that particular moment, the proper conditions to become a foster family are in place, in detriment of an external assessment that could represent a judgment (Triseliotis et al., 1995). Assessing families is not the idea or mission of the selection process, but rather to only inquire whether or not families can provide the necessary conditions to foster children in danger and can perform an extremely difficult, complex and unpredictable task. The attachment pattern that characterizes the candidate to foster may be a sign that an adult may become an able foster parent, with an autonomous and reflexive spirit (Walker, 2008).

Colton and Williams (2006) identify four main motivations for fostering, which call for different responses. If the motivation is based on the desire to nurture and love a child, adoption will be more appropriate; if duty and obligation are the predominant feelings, this pattern can be mostly found in foster families with family ties to the child, i.e. kinship care; the altruistic desire to help a child or a family in need can be found in most foster families without family ties; and finally, if the objective is to improve personal situation, by exploiting the child or the system, a small minority of people is identified that should be repelled by the recruitment process.

The initial training period is particularly important if candidates are to perform this reflection; it should constitute an educational area for adults that confronts perspectives, theoretical models and praxes of those who are experienced on this field, anticipating difficulties and obstacles that will arise in the process, dispelling doubts regarding the principles and goals of this measure and regarding the role of each actor. Training is, undoubtedly, “a privileged space to develop complex skills, but also to differentiate the parental role from the professional foster care” (Bosse-Platière, Dethier, Fleury, & Pasquier, 1999, p.12). This is the recognition that such complex and difficult task cannot be performed without due preparations. Fostering needs “more than pure commitment, it also requires knowledge and skills” (Triseliotis et al., 1995, p.46).

Lowe (1999) highlights the formation of two other groups, apart from foster parents: the sons and daughters of foster parents who distinct and specific needs from parents' and the members of the foster care team, who are in charge of the recruitment, training and supervision of foster families. The time the child will be staying, the cessation of the stay, and the contact with the biological family are example of concrete issues that must be discussed and provisioned for. The attachment, the child's development and the reversibility of initial damage, removal issues, academic records, financial issues and the relationship with the foster care team are some examples of the contents that may integrate the initial training or ongoing training processes, which should include, also and whenever possible, the participation of the foster parents.

The attendance of initial training and the approval as a foster family is an ecological transition, in many ways similar to getting a new job (Bronfenbrenner, 1996). A good adaptation to the new role and the concurring state of wellbeing are largely dependent on the cooperation and the trust that the foster family maintains with the social service team, on the type of communication established between them, and on the information, advice, and experience the foster family has before entering this new environment, i.e., before beginning the fostering process.

The preparation for the placement ideally implies a selection and a choice. The selection of a group of potential foster parents, if different options are available, should bear in mind the child's characteristics, ethnicity, social class, religion and culture, as well as background history and the challenges he/she represents. It should also consider other factors, such as the place where the foster care will take place and the estimated permanence period (Triseliotis et al., 2000, Schofield et al., 2000). Obviously, one must not omit the foster family's profile and willingness, and also the child's needs and motivation, which may be expressed by the child himself/herself, regarding the foster family's profile. On one hand, because “it is much easier to teach new skills than to change long-established attitudes and values” (Sellick et al., 2004, p.99); on the other hand, without the involvement and direct work with the child, there is a greater risk of compromising the fostering process (Romaine, Turley, & Tuckey, 2007). The choice amplifies the child's integration probabilities and, therefore, the stability of the process.

Integration is a meeting between two sides, which is more likely to be successful when based on knowledge, desire and acceptance (Delgado, 2008). Sinclair, Wilson, and Gibbs (2005) talk about ‘fitting in’ or the child's adaptation to the family's lifestyle and empathy, when there is the establishment of bonds and sharing. Schofield et al. (2000, p.294) refer to the quality of the relationship between the foster parent and the child that needs to be “sufficiently good”, i.e., mutually rewarding. If one wants adaption and the quality of relation to increase, one must pay attention to options, points of views and choices of both foster families and children (The Fostering Network & Karim, 2003).

The set of data participants have before the process is begun and the initial contacts (whenever possible) determines their decision, posture, expectations and reaction to future obstacles; thus, it partially determines the placement's success probability. If the children they foster are considerably different from the type of children originally intended, the foster processes would be more difficult (Sellick et al., 2004). The rupture is undesirable, because a smaller number of different placements are associated with a better future performance in several dimensions of adulthood (McDonald, Allen, Westerfelt, & Piliavin, 1996).

After the child is integrated in the foster family and during the stay, the social service team shall be responsible for supporting, helping, promoting and assessing the placement until its end, regardless of what causes the process to be finished. The process does not end with the child's placement; it rather combines during the monitoring period support with assessment (Schofield et al., 2000).

This placement monitoring, consisting of a set of voluntary and intentional procedures or activities, tries to ensure that the foster family has the necessary conditions for the child's proper development, to track the evolution of the child's biological family and to continuously analyze the conditions or assumptions that are the basis for that child's life project. It's, first and foremost, a moral obligation for the complexity, the risks, the vulnerability, the time and the tasks that foster care represents, to which one must add the amount that is paid to foster families that in certain cases is not sufficient to make ends meet (Sinclair et al., 2004). This is a good practice that promotes the maintenance of foster families and the prevention of disruptions. Hence, the monitoring can't be restricted to the support given to the foster family and the child; it must also include working directly with the biological family, trying to encourage changes that are necessary for reunification, often combining, and support with pressure.

When it became evident that foster families have a significant impact on the development of the children they foster, one realized that new questionnaires, intervention plans, supervised training and adequate support should be explored to achieve a stable and quality placement (Buehler et al., 2003, Direcção-Geral da Segurança Social (n.d.), Militão, 2007, Rhodes, Orme, Cox and Buehler, 2003).

For this purpose, many investigations were carried out towards the establishment and improvement of standardized measures that allowed for an access to foster families' different features of, thus allowing the improvement of the services rendered by training and supporting (Orme, Cuddeback, Buehler, Cox, & Le Prohn, 2007), in order to promote a better correspondence between the child that needs to be fostered and the family that will foster (Fisher et al., 2000, Wilson, 2006). In Table 1, some of the main measurement instruments applicable in the U.S. context are synthesized. Although these come from studies with different variables, they share the same purpose, to understand and not only assess the features of the foster family. The table highlights instruments that were developed for the population framed within the foster care process, although some have been adapted to this reality later.

A different type of more complex questionnaires allows access to new variables, resulting from the combination of several characteristics that are normally measured separately. In this set, one may emphasize the measures that assess the psychosocial functioning of the family and of the couple, which will be highly relevant for the emotional and behavioural adjustment of the foster child. It's possible to access this variable from scales that include the quality of parenting, family and marital functioning and home environment, foster families' mental health, and availability of social support (Orme, Buehler, McSurdy, Rhodes, Cox, & Patterson, 2005; K. Rhodes et al., 2003; K.W. Rhodes, Orme, Cox, Coakley, & Cuddeback, 2003). On the other hand, the Parental Psychological Control Scale (PPCS) assesses the psychosocial control of foster families (Barber, 1996, Bogenschneider et al., 1997).

The Potential for Foster Parenthood Scale (PFPS) (Orme, Buelher, et al., 2003, Stone and Stone, 1983, Touliatos and Lindholm, 1977, Touliatos and Lindholm, 1981, 1981) is a tool that should be filled out by social services professionals that comprise the foster family's potential to promote a successful foster care. There is also a version of this test that should be filled out by the foster parents, Foster Parent Potential Scale (FPPS), with the same objective.

Within this line of research CHAP (The Casey Home Assessment Protocol) can also be highlighted. This consists of a set of standardized measures with the goal of identifying the skills of the foster parents and the relevant areas for future development and support, ensuring, this way, a quality fostering for the child. This questionnaire assess the following areas: decision to foster, family history, physical and mental health, family functioning, parenting style, family and foster resources, social support, cultural competency, and ability to meet challenges (Orme, Cox, Rhodes, Coakley, Cuddeback, & Buehler, 2003; K. W. Rhodes et al., 2003).

This last inventory is closely linked with CFAI (Casey Foster Applicant Inventory), which also tries to define the potential to perform a quality foster care. Both scales have two versions: one to be filled out by the candidate and another filled out by the technician. The CFAI-Applicant version allows access to the candidate's perception of their own fostering potential by using six subscales: foster child development (FCD), challenging children (CC), worker/agency challenges (WAC), coparenting (CP), integration foster children (IFC) and kinship care (KC) (Orme et al., 2007).

In the Portuguese context, the recruitment, selection and training of foster parents, carried out by social services (Serviço de Adopções e Colocações Familiares, n.d.) were used to be supported by a set of guidelines, including specifically: spouses' age and experience in married life, stable financial position, house with enough room and appropriate sanitary facilities, physical and emotional health, good family environment, family relations, respect for the child's natural family and origins, socio-professional status and educational ability. It also included the assessment of the reasons behind the application and the ability to collaborate with the foster care team. These guidelines sought to assess the candidates' ability to materialize a foster care with quality.

In order to summarize the characteristics of the child to be fostered, experts used a Ficha de Resumo das Crianças /Jovens em Colocação Familiar (Programa Acolhimento Familiar, 1994), which is integrated by the areas: composition of the natural family, grounds of the request, reason behind the placement, child development aspects, school situation, health status, relationship with the biological family, legal status and foreseen referral.

Both procedures, for the child and for the foster family, allow access to features from both candidates, which enables technicians to perform a better correspondence.

Regarding the characterization of the child and the foster family technicians may use the Guião de Entrevistas para crianças e jovens from Projecto Acolhimento Familiar (Machado, 1997) which focused on: the characterization of the biological family and personal situation, the characterization of the foster family and subsequent integration, favourite friend/confidant, characterization of himself/herself, his/her daily life and weekends, his feelings towards school, life project and perception of family. Within this line of information gathering, one may also distinguish the Guião de Acompanhamento Técnico às Famílias de Acolhimento which provides opportunity for a detailed characterization during the foster care process and the assessment of the formative capacity of foster families. Similarly the Guião de Acompanhamento Técnico às Crianças/Jovens Acolhidas provides access to actors' perception regarding their own situation and their reality (Militão, 2007).

Regarding the use of standardized measurements in the assessment of foster families, one may mention the use of Escala do Estilo de Funcionamento Familiar (Programa Acolhimento Familiar, 1994) that allows the identification of such characteristics as commitment, appreciation, time, sense of determination, communication, expectations, mobilization, problem solving, flexibility, and positivism.

A small group of Portuguese researchers have shown interest in the process of foster care and in its unique characteristics.

Tribuna and Relvas (2007) elaborated a Questionário Sócio-demográfico designed to establish the socio-demographic status of foster families, the teenager being fostered and the fostering conditions.

One may also emphasize the development of the Questionário aplicado aos Técnicos do Serviço Social, which aims to reach the dilemmas and controversial aspects of the foster process, including the problems the technicians are faced with daily in this reality, its advantages and disadvantages and its strengths and weaknesses, thus investigating the changes that could, should or would be introduced where applying the process to the practical reality (Delgado, 2007).

Other questionnaires have been created such as Questionário de Acolhimento Familiar, made of two versions: the children's version, which evaluates the foster children inclusion, the impact of the placement impact in education and their thoughts on the fostering process; and the foster parents' version that analyzes the children's inclusion, the perception of education and the opinions about foster care process (Delgado, 2006).

The Escala de Percepção da Relação Familiar allows some understanding on the acceptance level, involvement in school work, emotional support, expectations and autonomy (Peixoto, 1999).

Other investigations have been based on the adaptations of American questionnaires. One may underline: the Escala de Adaptabilidade e Coesão Familiar (FACES II — Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, Olson et al., 1982), which allows the operationalization of the following dimensions: family cohesion, family type, marital and family adaptability to the fostering process; Escala de Recursos Familiares (Family Strengths Scale, Olson et al. 1982) that accesses to issues related to the transmission of values, dialogue, beliefs, family understanding and family resources, in order to prevent stressful situations; and Escala de Comunicação Pais–Adolescentes (Parent–Adolescent Communication Scale, Barnes & Olson, 1982) which evaluates global communication and the dimensions of a communication open to difficulties (in Tribuna & Relvas 2007).

The Casey Foster Applicant Inventory-Applicant Version (CFAI-A), previously mentioned intends to evaluate the potential of foster parents in promoting a successful placement, being composed by six subscales: the development of the foster child on an educational level and involvement with biological parents (FCD-A), the development of the foster child at a social level and the transmission of rules (FCD-B), challenging children (CC), worker/agency challenges (WAC), coparenting (CP) and integration foster children (IFC) (Pinto, 2008).

This questionnaire confronts candidates to foster parents with the usual challenges; assists the technicians' decisions regarding the monitoring and support of foster families; and promotes a better decision regarding the placement of the child in a particular family after considering his/her characteristics (Orme et al., 2007). After attesting its importance, one decided to make a more detailed exposition of the psychometric qualities of this questionnaire, performing a comparative analysis between the American and the Portuguese researches.