Almost always, kin have a relationship with a child that predates the agency's involvement. It is this tension that leads to the controversies surrounding kinship care. Controversies Kinship caregivers are different than foster parents. The Californiabased study included 246 kin providers and 354 foster providers. The children in their care averaged 8 years of age.
Dramatic differences exist between the two groups.
Kinship providers were twice as likely to be single parents than were foster parents, fewer had high school diplomas, and they were almost four times more likely to report being in poor health than were foster parents. Nine percent of kinship care families had received training in the last year, as compared to 33 percent of foster parents. Kinship caregivers are also different in their perceptions of permanency for the child. Many believed this would cause hard feelings in the family system, be confusing to the child, and be too expensive. However, almost all reported being committed to the child until he or she reached adulthood or was able to live independently.