Functional outcomes of adolescent mothers emancipating from the foster care system

Background and Objectives. Older adolescents in foster care exhibit higher rates of pregnancy and childbirth compared to peers in the general population. Little research examines the combined experience of parenthood and... [ view full abstract ]

Background and Objectives. Older adolescents in foster care exhibit higher rates of pregnancy and childbirth compared to peers in the general population. Little research examines the combined experience of parenthood and “aging-out” of foster care. The goal of the present study is to examine educational, vocational and economic self-sufficiency outcomes of adolescent mothers transitioning from foster care to independence.

Method. We conducted a secondary analysis of data from the Chafee Independent Living Evaluation Project. Our sample consisted of 238 females residing in a large metropolitan area in California. At three assessment points (i.e. ages 17, 18 and 19), participants were asked if they had given birth during a designated reporting period. At age 19, youths` educational, vocational and economic self-sufficiency outcomes were recorded. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to examine the relationship between childbirth and youths` functional outcomes during the period of transition to adulthood.

Results. By age 19, 29% of girls had at least one child. Hispanics, and those residing in congregate care at age 17, were more likely to report childbirth. At age 19, adolescent mothers fared worse than non-mothers on nearly every indicator studied. They were less likely to obtain a high school diploma/GED (44.9% vs. 72.2%; χ2=14.69, p<.001), to enroll in college (8.7% vs. 51.5%; χ2=35.89, p<.001) and to have work experience (69.6% vs. 88.2%; χ2=10.61, p<.01). Furthermore, they were more likely to report homelessness (20.3% vs. 9.5%; χ2=4.27, p<.05) and financial difficulties (81.8% vs. 63.9%; χ2=5.89, p<.05). Multivariate analyses revealed that childbirth status contributed significantly to each functional indicator controlling for race/ethnicity, placement instability and independent living services receipt.

Conclusions and Implications. Findings indicate that adolescent mothers who emancipate from foster care are a particularly vulnerable population, requiring unique supports during the period of transition to adulthood. Interventions targeting these youth are sorely needed.