Foster Family Characteristics and Behavioral and Emotional Problems of Foster Children: A Narrative Review*

Foster Family Characteristics and Behavioral and Emotional Problems of Foster Children: A Narrative Review* The purpose of this article is to review the literature on the foster family characteristics that are thought to contribute to the behavioral and emotional problems of foster children. The review is shaped by an understanding of the personal and familial factors associated with children's problem behaviors in the general population. These factors include parenting, the family home environment, family functioning, marital functioning, family demography, child temperament, parents' mental health, and social support. Limitations within the existing research on these foster family characteristics are noted, and suggestions for future research are provided. Despite trends away from out-of-home placement (Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau, 1997; Pecora, Whittaker, Maluccio, Barth, & Plotnick, 1992), the number of children removed from their homes and placed in foster care is large and increasing. In 1982 there were 262,000 children in care. In 1996 507,000 children were in foster care, and 725,000 children were served by the foster care system at some time during that year (Tatara, 1998). Many children in foster care have significant behavioral and emotional problems (e.g., Heflinger, Simpkins, & Combs-Orme, 2000; Pilowsky, 1995), and many of them are at risk for developing additional problems because of a history of child abuse and neglect, family poverty, or parental mental health problems (e.g., Blumberg, Landsverk, Ellis-MacLeod, Ganger, & Culver, 1996; Courtney, Piliavin, & Wright, 1997; Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau, 1997; Horwitz, Simms, Farrington, 1994; Rosenfeld et al., 1997; Schmidt-Tieszen & McDonald, 1998; Stein, Rae-Grant, Ackland, & Avison, 1994; Takayama, Wolfe, & Coulter, 1998). In addition to familial risk factors for behavioral and emotional problems, foster placement itself may be a risk factor for such problems (e.g., adjustment to a new family, placement disruptions). However, the link between foster care placement and child problem behaviors is not well established, and the causal direction of this relationship is unclear (Fanshel, Finch, & Grundy, 1990; Fanshel & Shinn, 1978; Pardeck, 1984; J. Rowe, Cain, Hundleby, & Keane, 1984). Foster Families In 1996, approximately three fourths of the children in foster care were placed with foster families (Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System, 1997, Table 08-C), the remainder being in other types of care, such as residential or group homes. On a day-to-day basis, foster families are the front-line service providers for these children and form the foundation of substitute care services in the United States. As Fanshel and Shinn (1978) observed, "We can think of no greater influence on the well-being of foster children while they are in care than those who directly minister to their needs" (p. 496). Foster family services are increasingly crucial because federal and state resources for child welfare services have not kept pace with the critical needs of foster children. Hiring freezes, low pay, and difficult working conditions have led to caseworker shortages, less experienced and educated caseworkers, high caseloads, and high burnout and turnover rates among caseworkers (Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau, 1997; Department of Health and Human Services, National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1995; General Accounting Office, 1995). Also, a large proportion of foster children with behavioral and emotional problems who are referred for mental health services to treat urgent needs do not receive such services (Blumberg et al., 1996; Risley-Curtiss, Combs-Orme, Chernoff, & Heisler, 1996). This proportion of children with behavioral and emotional problems might increase in the near future because of recent efforts to move children quickly through the foster care system. …