Kinship versus Nonrelative Foster Care: Type of Placement and Child Wellbeing
Outline
I. Introduction
1. The demand for foster care is increasing, with around 1.3% of the children
population in the child welfare system.
2. A rise in demand recorded since 2011 has been driven by the rise in opioid-related
deaths, leading to a 10,000 growth in number of children in foster care since 2011
(Patrick et al., 2019).
3. The wellbeing of children taken from their families is a major concern for the
federal and state governments.
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4. While there are many ways through which the child welfare system can improve
the wellbeing of children in foster care, what is of utmost importance is whom
and where the child is placed.
5. There are two types of placement
a. Kinship care refers to formal placement of a child who has been removed
from their families due to maltreatment or delinquency with adults with
relations to the kid, either through adoption, marriage, or blood.
b. Non-relative replacement involves placement with adults licensed by state
wards to provide foster care.
6. Thesis Statement:
a. Why is kinship care in the best interest of the child
i. Ease of visit with the family
ii. The family knows the child
b. Why is non-relative foster care in the best interest of the child
i. Family has not passed the home study
ii. There is no family available for the child currently
I. Foster Care and Child Wellbeing
A. Children who enter the foster care system have a higher risk of developing mental
health problems.
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i. Estimates suggest that past trauma, including violence, abuse and
mistreatment are a risk factor for mental health problems (Fergeus et al.,
2018).
ii. Children who enter the foster care system have four times higher
risk of developing mental health disorders (Fergeus et al., 2018).
iii. If these mental health problems are not treatment, they may lead to
considerable suffering, and long term behavioral problems (Fergeus et al.,
2018).
B. Foster care placement provides an opportunity to enhance the wellbeing of the
child.
i. Kinship and foster carers play a critical role in the lives of children under
their care (Fergus et al., 2018).
ii. The resources, skills and knowledge they possess is essential in
connecting children under their care to appropriate mental health care
(Fergus et al., 2018).
iii. Carers also provide supportive relationships, which can allow
children to overcome their past trauma (Fergus et al., 2018).
C. The wellbeing of children after placement depends on the skills and resources of
the foster carers.
i. Lack of resources, skills and knowledge may reduce the ability of the
carers to provide supportive care.
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ii. Research evidence show that educating foster carers on trauma-
informed parenting can improve their ability to respond to the needs of the
children under their care (Murray et al., 2019).
iii. Psychosocial interventions have also been shown to improve the
ability of carers and children to respond to children misbehavior (Kemmis-
Riggs, Dickes & McAloon, 2018).
II. Factors Contributing to Type of Placement
A. A number of child selection factors determine type of placement
i. Placement decisions do not occur in vacuum. Rather they occur within a
policy context, and largely depend on the characteristics of the child (Font,
2015).
ii. Children who enter kinship care often have advantageous
characteristics relative to those who enter non-relative care. These
characteristics include higher cognitive abilities and fewer behavioral
problems. Furthermore, they have lower risk of disability, or health
problems, and are more likely to enter the children welfare system due to
neglect (Font, 2015).
iii. Existing policies support placement in kinship care rather than
nonrelative care, with having relatives being an important antecedent for
kinship placement. It is only in circumstances where the relatives of the
child are unavailable that the child is placed in non-relative care (Font,
2015).
III. Type of Placement and Children Outcomes
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A. Type of placement determines placement stability
i. There is a general assumption that kinship placement is associated with
high placement stability relative to nonrelative placement (Font, 2015).
ii. One potential explanation is that kinship placement allows for the
replication of the child’s ecological context (Osborne et al., 2021).