Placement in foster care differs from the one in residential care, essentially because children are integrated in a family environment, which allows the development of a privileged relationship with a carer. Nevertheless,... [ view full abstract ]
Placement in foster care differs from the one in residential care, essentially because children are integrated in a family environment, which allows the development of a privileged relationship with a carer. Nevertheless, looked after children have the legal right to maintain contact with their biological family, as long as there is no risk associated with it. The organisation and occurrence of contact have better outcomes when relationships between foster carers, social workers, biological family and children are perceived as cooperative and when the different stakeholders are committed. There is a growing interest in research on contact in foster care, which may arise from understanding of the impact that it has on child’s development, well-being, placement stability, and individual plan care.
Considering the positive impact that contact with biological family may have on children and young people in foster care, this study intends to explore the association between outcomes of foster care and the existence, or not, of contact between children and young people and their biological family. It analyses the perception that professionals and foster carers have about children’s reactions during and after visits, difficulties and challenges in carrying them out, and placement outcomes. The questionnaires were completed between October 2013 and March 2014, and included almost all children and young people integrated in foster care in the Oporto District, in the Social Security Institute, I.P., and the Private Institution of Social Solidarity “Mundos de Vida”.
The questionnaire had two versions, one filled by fostering services teams and the other by foster carers. It was possible to collect information, from both participants, about a total of 212 children and young people. Through this questionnaire it was possible to collect data about children’s age and sex, duration of the placement, professionals’ frequency of contact with foster carers, evaluation of foster care regarding its outcomes, attitudes of parents towards foster carers at the beginning of the placement and now, characterisation of contact between child or young person and their biological family, difficulties towards contact occurrence, and professionals’ monitoring of the placement.
Children who had contact with their biological family were younger, and the longer they stayed in placement, the greater was the chance of losing contact with them. Professionals, when compared to foster carers, considered that there was a larger number of children and young people that had contact with their families, perceived a higher percentage of children and young people as expressing positive reactions during and after contact with their biological family, and considered a vaster number of cases where placement was successful.
It can be concluded that contact is understood as relevant for the promotion of biological parents’ emotional connection and the child’s identity construction, however it is not determinant for foster care outcomes in Portugal, where long term placement is dominant. Moreover, these data may indicate that there is a lack of communication between the different stakeholders involved in the foster care process, namely professionals from the fostering services teams, foster carers and biological family. Therefore, these differences need to be further analysed so that the implementation and monitoring of contact in practice can be improved.
Key Words: Foster care; Children’s rights; Children’s well-being; Contact with biological family.
