Systematic Review of the Evaluation of Foster Care Programs.

OBJETIVE: The aim of this study was to conduct an exhaustive synthesis to determine which instruments and variables are most appropriate to evaluate foster care programs (foster, kinship, and professional families). This evaluation includes the children, their foster families, their families of origin, professionals, and foster care technicians. METHOD: The systematic review included randomized, quasi-randomized, longitudinal, and control group studies aimed at evaluating foster care interventions. RESULTS: A total of 86 studies, 138 assessment instruments, 18 constructs, and 73 independent research teams were identified. CONCLUSIONS: (1) although the object of the evaluations was the children, the informants were usually the people in charge of their care; therefore, effort should be made to involve the children in a more participatory way; (2) psychosocial functioning, behavior, and parenting are transversal elements in most evaluations, while quality of life and coping are not sufficiently well incorporated; (3) practical instruments (brief and easy to apply and correct) that are widely used and carry scientific guarantees should be prioritized to ensure the comparability and reliability of the conclusions; and (4) progress should be made in the study of evaluation models for all forms of foster care, including foster, extended, and specialized families.

OBJETIVO: El objetivo es realizar una síntesis exhaustiva que contribuya a determinar qué instrumentos y variables son las más adecuadas para evaluar programas de acogimiento familiar (familias extensas, ajenas y profesionalizadas), incluyendo en esta evaluación a los niños, sus familias acogedoras, sus familias de origen y a los profesionales y técnicos del acogimiento familiar. Método: La revisión sistemática incluyó estudios aleatorizados, cuasialeatorizados, longitudinales y con grupo control dirigidos a evaluar intervenciones de acogimiento familiar. RESULTADOS: Se identificaron 86 estudios, 138 instrumentos de evaluación, 18 constructos y 73 equipos de investigación independientes. CONCLUSIONES: (1) aunque el objeto de las evaluaciones sean los niños, habitualmente los informantes son las personas a cargo de sus cuidados, con lo que se debe hacer un esfuerzo por involucrarlos de forma más participativa; (2) el funcionamiento psicosocial, el comportamiento o la parentalidad son elementos transversales en la mayor parte de evaluaciones, sin embargo la calidad de vida y el afrontamiento no están suficientemente bien incorporados; (3) deben priorizarse instrumentos prácticos (breves y fáciles de aplicar y corregir), de amplio uso y con garantías científicas para asegurar la comparabilidad y fiabilidad de las conclusiones; (4) debe avanzarse en la investigación de modelos de evaluación en todas las modalidades de acogimiento familiar, ya sea en familias ajenas, extensas o especializadas.

"We are not our case files": A qualitative analysis of child welfare professionals' relationships with young adults with foster care experience.

BACKGROUND: Young adults of color with foster care experience are disproportionately represented in foster care in the United States. Developing meaningful connections with child welfare professionals can help young adults develop healthy relationships in emerging adulthood. OBJECTIVE: This exploratory qualitative study addressed how young adults with foster care experience described their relationships with child welfare professionals and the impact of these relationships on their overall mental health and well-being in young adulthood. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A sample of young adults of color, (ages 18-29) with lived experience in foster care from a performing arts program in New York City. METHODS: Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted on 14 semi-structured interviews with young adults of color with prior or ongoing foster care experience. RESULTS: The following themes were identified: safe space to be myself, listen to more than words, and understand my trauma. Child welfare professionals were dropped from support networks if they were disingenuous or did not attend to their own self-care needs. CONCLUSIONS: The study underscores the importance of promoting positive mental health outcomes for young adults through building stronger connections with child welfare professionals. Future research should explore the incorporation of individualized approaches to better serve this population of young adults.

Patience with foster children as a major problem for grandparents in the role of kinship carers aged 60 + and the psychosocial determinants of this deficit.

Kinship care represents the most prevalent form of foster care in Poland. Most commonly, the role of kinship carers is taken on by grandparents, who may struggle with various problems, needs and deficits in this role. The aim of this study was to investigate the problem of patience in kinship carers aged 60 + and its impact on deficits in the performance of roles and duties.Methods Seventy-five foster grandparents (63 female, 84%) aged from 61 to 97 years (M = 69,12; SD = 6.22) were investigated in north-western Poland in 2018 and 2019. The study was based on the diagnostic survey method.Results Psychological disposition, functioning, health problems and parental needs and deficits were assessed using standardised psychometric scales and tools self-constructed for this research study. A lack of patience with foster children was reported by 46.7% (n = 35) of the respondents. Patience deficits corresponded with a significantly lower sense of coherence, especially in the manageability domain (p < 0.001) and such stress coping strategies as lower positive reappraisal (p = 0.016) and seeking of emotional support (p = 0.025), as well as a greater tendency for suppression of activities (p = 0.014) and venting of emotions (p = 0.035). Relatively permanent personality traits and general self-efficacy were not differentiated by patience with children.Conclusions The results suggest that patience - so important for biological and foster parents - is related to psychological competencies that can be improved through psychoeducation and skills-training, which may be beneficial for improving foster carers' effectiveness.

Effects of institutional rearing and foster care intervention on error monitoring and externalizing behaviors in adolescence.

Children raised in institutions display deficits in error monitoring and increased psychopathology. Deficits in error monitoring might be a pathway for the emergence of psychopathology in previously institutionalized adolescents. Here we investigate the impact of early psychosocial deprivation and a foster care intervention on error monitoring and its association with internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems in adolescence A modified Flanker task assessed error monitoring in 16-year-old adolescents from the BEIP. The ERN and mid-frontal theta power were computed as indices of neural responses of error monitoring. Adolescents who experienced early institutional rearing and were subsequently placed into foster care showed comparable behavioral (RT, accuracy) and neural (ERN, theta power) measures of error monitoring to their never institutionalized peers; whereas adolescents who received care as usual showed both perturbed behavioral performance and neural responses. Longer duration of institutional care was associated with a reduction in mid-frontal theta power. The results further demonstrated a link between error monitoring as measured by ERN and mid-frontal theta and externalizing-ADHD behavioral problems in adolescents who continued receiving care as usual. The results highlight the long-term positive impact of early foster care placement and perturbations due to prolonged institutional care in neural responses of error monitoring.

Outcomes for children with disability in out-of-home care: Evidence from the pathways of care longitudinal study in Australia.

BACKGROUND: Children with disability are over-represented in out-of-home care (OOHC) in Australia and internationally. Yet we know little about their circumstances, placement types, support needs, and the outcomes of their trajectories and wellbeing through care. OBJECTIVE: We examine the wellbeing and outcomes of children with and without disabilities in OOHC. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: We use panel data from waves 1-4 of the Pathways of Care Longitudinal Study (POCLS) collected between June 2011 and November 2018 by the New South Wales (NSW) Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ), Australia. The POCLS sampling framework covers all children aged 0-17 years who entered OOHC in NSW for the first time between May 2010 and October 2011 (n = 4126). A subset of these children (n = 2828) had final Children's Court orders by 30 April 2013. Among these, caregivers of 1789 children agreed to participate in the interview component of the POCLS. METHODS: We employ a random effects estimator to analyse the panel data. This is standard practice to exploit a panel database when some of the key explanatory variables are time invariant. RESULTS: Children with disability have poorer wellbeing than children without disability across the three domains of physical health, socio-emotional wellbeing, and cognitive ability. However, children with disability have fewer difficulties at school and better school bonding. The type of placements - namely relative/kinship care, restoration/adoption/guardianship, foster care and residential care - have little or limited association with wellbeing of children with disability. CONCLUSIONS: Children with disability tend to have lower levels of wellbeing in OOHC than children without disability, and this is driven mainly by their disability status rather than care factors.

Taking outside in, turning inside out: Exploring social dimensions and psychotherapeutic process in the play therapy of a young girl in foster care.

This paper, a collaborative effort, describes the work of A Home Within (AHW), a volunteer community-based organization providing pro-bono long term psychotherapy to current and former foster youth. We provide a brief description of the treatment model, present a report of treatment conducted by an AHW volunteer, and discuss further reflections on the societal context of our psychoanalytically-informed work. In-depth psychotherapeutic process from the treatment of a young girl in a pre-adoptive foster placement elucidates the psychotherapeutic possibilities when a psychoanalytic treatment model is accessible to current and former foster youth, usually deprived of this form of treatment due to overburdened, underfunded community mental health systems in the U.S. Open-ended psychotherapy afforded this traumatized child an unusual opportunity to work through past relational traumas in order to form new and more secure attachment relationships. We reflect further on the case from the vantage points of both the psychotherapeutic process and the greater societal context of this community-based program.

A Comprehensive Multilevel Analysis of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project: Causal Effects on Recovery From Early Severe Deprivation.

OBJECTIVE: The Bucharest Early Intervention Project is the first randomized controlled trial of foster care as an alternative to institutional care. The authors synthesized data from nearly 20 years of assessments of the trial to determine the overall intervention effect size across time points and developmental domains. The goal was to quantify the overall effect of the foster care intervention on children's outcomes and examine sources of variation in this effect, including domain, age, and sex assigned at birth. METHODS: An intent-to-treat approach was used to examine the causal effects of the randomized controlled trial for 136 children residing in institutions in Bucharest, Romania (baseline age, 6-31 months) who were randomly assigned to either foster care (N=68) or care as usual (N=68). At ages 30, 42, and 54 months and 8, 12, and 16-18 years, children were assessed for IQ, physical growth, brain electrical activity (EEG), and symptoms of five types of psychopathology. RESULTS: Participants provided 7,088 observations across follow-up waves. Children assigned to foster care had better cognitive and physical outcomes and less severe psychopathology than did those who received care as usual. The magnitude of these effect sizes remained stable across development. The foster care intervention most influenced IQ and disorders of attachment/social relatedness. CONCLUSIONS: Young children benefit from placement in families after institutional care. The benefits of foster care for previously institutionalized children were remarkably stable across development.

Adults with a child maltreatment history: Narratives describing individual strengths that promote positive wellbeing.

BACKGROUND: Child maltreatment often has negative impacts, but some individuals have strengths that lead to better outcomes. OBJECTIVE: Describe the narratives of adults who experienced childhood maltreatment, all of whom had positive psychosocial wellbeing at average age 18 years. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A purposive sample of 21 adults (mean age 27.8 years SD = 1.0) who were part of a longitudinal study on the effects of childhood maltreatment. The sample was self-described as 85.7 % female, 14.3 % male, 42.9 % Black, 33.3 % Latinx, 19.0 % White, and 4.8 % multiracial. METHODS: This descriptive qualitative study, which is part of a sequential mixed method study, used semi-structured interviews and a narrative analysis approach. Four coders completed: (1) initial reading of sample interviews (2) generating codes independently and discussion, (3) creating a codebook, (4) reviewing 10-11 transcripts each (5) reconvening to discuss/resolve differences in coding, (6) identifying themes. RESULTS: There were four themes. The first theme was seeing oneself in a good light, highlighting self-worth and helper roles. The second theme, moving forward, included letting go of their past and a future orientation. Coping with life, the third theme, included boundaries for people around them, routines, and self-sufficiency. Meaning making, the fourth theme, included insights on the effect of their maltreatment and foster care, and reflections on appreciating life and adapting to changing circumstances. CONCLUSIONS: Findings describe varied strengths that promote positive functioning after childhood maltreatment. Study themes highlight how these strengths allow adults to make meaning of their experiences and move forward successfully in life.

Perceived social support: Measurement differences in youth residing in the community versus youth residing in foster care.

BACKGROUND: Social support is commonly examined as a protective factor for children with a history of child maltreatment, and it has been measured by self-report via the Social Support Scale for Children (SSSC). Although the SSSC has established adequate reliability and validity in community and clinical samples, its psychometric properties have yet to be assessed in a sample of foster care youth. OBJECTIVE: This study provided a psychometric comparison of the SSSC in youth residing in foster care with youth residing in the community. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Participants were two, comparable samples of 214 youth participants residing in foster care and 163 youth participants from the community between the ages of 8-12 years. METHODS: Community participants were recruited from local middle schools, and an age-matched comparison sample from a larger study on youth in foster care was utilized for comparison. Youth self-reported across measures and provided demographic information. Confirmatory factor analysis was utilized to determine measurement model fit to the data, and invariance testing was conducted to compare measurement models across the samples. RESULTS: Differences between samples in the factor structure and item distribution of the SSSC emerged. Specifically, the community sample provided adequate fit to the original four-factor model (friend, classmate, teacher, parent) of the SSSC, whereas the foster sample required a three-factor model (combined friend and classmate constructs). The newly defined three-factor model provided significant associations with youth behavioral and emotional outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Youth in foster care may perceive social support across sources differently from youth residing in the community.

Parenting stress and children's trauma symptoms over the course of TF-CBT: Examining differences between relative and foster/adoptive caregivers.

BACKGROUND: Through Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), the gold standard in children's trauma treatment, caregivers participate in sessions parallel to the child. However, much of the research examining the impact of this caregiver involvement has focused on biological or relative caregivers, despite the high prevalence of trauma and trauma symptoms among youth in foster care and high rates of parenting stress among foster/adoptive caregivers. OBJECTIVE: The current study examined differences among relative and foster/adoptive caregivers' levels of parenting stress throughout the course of TF-CBT and how these differences were associated with child trauma symptoms throughout treatment. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Participants were 130 caregiver-child dyads (84 = foster/adoptive; 46 = biological/relative) who completed TF-CBT in either an academic-based clinic or an associated mental health agency. Providing clinicians were trained in TF-CBT, participated in case consultation, and received ongoing clinical supervision. METHODS: Children and caregivers completed baseline measures prior to beginning treatment and termination measures at the completion of treatment. RESULTS: Prior to treatment, foster/adoptive caregivers reported greater dysfunction in their parent-child interactions and relative caregivers reported greater personal stress. These differences were not seen at treatment termination, and significant reductions in child trauma symptoms and caregiver parenting stress were evidenced from pre to post treatment. Significant covariation between child trauma symptoms and relative caregiver parenting stress at termination was also found. CONCLUSIONS: There were different profiles of parenting stress for relative versus foster/adoptive caregivers, but treatment completion attenuated group differences in parenting stress over the course of treatment.

Effects of foster care intervention and caregiving quality on the bidirectional development of executive functions and social skills following institutional rearing.

Institutional rearing negatively impacts the development of children's social skills and executive functions (EF). However, little is known about whether childhood social skills mediate the effects of the foster care intervention (FCG) and foster caregiving quality following early institutional rearing on EF and social skills in adolescence. We examined (a) whether children's social skills at 8 years mediate the impact of the FCG on the development of EF at ages 12 and 16 years, and (b) whether social skills and EF at ages 8 and 12 mediate the relation between caregiving quality in foster care at 42 months and subsequent social skills and EF at age 16. Participants included abandoned children from Romanian institutions, who were randomly assigned to a FCG (n = 68) or care as usual (n = 68), and a never-institutionalized group (n = 135). At ages 8, 12, and 16, social skills were assessed via caregiver and teacher reports and EF were assessed via the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Caregiving quality of foster caregivers was observed at 42 months. FCG predicted better social skills at 8 years, which in turn predicted better EF in adolescence. Higher caregiver quality in foster care at 42 months predicted better social skills at 8 and 12 years, and better EF at 12 years, which in turn predicted 16-year EF and social skills. These findings suggest that interventions targeting caregiving quality within foster care home environments may have long-lasting positive effects on children's social skills and EF.

Foster children avoidance-related interactive behaviors with caregivers.

BACKGROUND: A lot of the research concerning foster children - often children who have suffered maltreatment in the family home - has focused on internalized and externalized symptoms. Few studies, however, have looked at the interactions between such children and caregivers. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to explore the Emotion Regulation Strategies (ERS) of children in foster care and to highlight those most commonly employed in family or placement contexts. The parents' and foster carers' ERS are also analyzed in order to understand the co-regulatory processes at work. METHOD: An in-depth analysis of observation sequences was performed. Three data collection times, spaced across a period of 6 months (t1, t2 and t3), were included in the observation protocol. Each observation, recorded using a video camera, comprised 45 min of free time and 15 min of structured tasks. Transcription and coding of ERS were performed for each sequence using a microanalytical method. Both children's and adults' ERS were coded. RESULTS: Children tended to be readily distracted when interacting with adults, and more particularly so with their parents. While they tended to display relatively normative processes with a foster carer, they turned to pathological avoidance mechanisms with their parents such as physical venting or self-stimulation. Interactions during structured tasks showed a significant reduction in distraction processes. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the prevalence of distraction behavior in foster children during their interactions with caregivers, and offers an insight into how structured interactions provide a framework that mitigates children's avoidance behaviors and so enhances adult-child collaboration.

"I will commit to this child as much as I can for the time that they are with me:" A qualitative examination of how foster carer commitment relates to short-term foster care for young children following abuse and neglect.

BACKGROUND: Foster carer commitment to the child has been shown to be of paramount importance in young children's recovery and development following abuse and neglect. In Dozier's definition of commitment in the US, there is a focus on both emotional investment in the child and committing to an enduring relationship with the child. How this relates to the routine practice of short-term, temporary, foster care has not been studied. OBJECTIVE: This is the first qualitative study to explore the drivers of, and barriers to, commitment in short-term foster care within the broader aim of examining whether short-term care is meeting the needs of maltreated young children. PARTICIPANTS & SETTING: Fourteen foster carers took part in research interviews and five focus groups were conducted with infant mental health professionals. METHODS: Interviews and focus group data were subject to qualitative thematic analysis in order to identify patterns of commonality in relation to our research questions. RESULTS: Three broad themes pertain to commitment and the meeting of young children's needs in short-term foster care: Influence, Timescales and Choice in the fostering role. These themes were found to house both drivers of, and barriers to, commitment in short-term care, which are influenced by systemic normalisations of fostering practices. CONCLUSIONS: The emotional investment facet of commitment is more alive in the 'psyche' of short-term foster care than commitment to an enduring relationship. A long-term outlook for the child may be an undefined facet of commitment that is more akin with short-term placements.

Effects of formal center-based care and positive parenting practices on children in foster care.

BACKGROUND: The current study examined whether children in foster care have better cognitive and social-emotional outcomes at kindergarten age when they enroll in formal center-based care and when they receive positive parenting practices at home. OBJECTIVE: Two primary questions were addressed: (1) Do children in foster care who attended formal center-based care (including Head Start) have higher cognitive and socio-emotional outcomes than children in foster care who did not attend formal center-based care? (2) Does positive parenting practice promote better cognitive and socio-emotional outcomes? PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: Based on the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-K: 2011 data, 299 children in foster care were selected. METHODS: Regression analyses were conducted on children's cognitive and social-emotional scores by types of children's childcare arrangements (formal vs informal care) and positive parenting practices. Active parental involvement was measured based on how frequently parents read books with their children, and authoritarian parenting discipline was measured based on whether parents spanked their children. RESULTS: Children in foster care who enrolled in formal center-based childcare at pre-school age have higher cognitive and socio-emotional scores at kindergarten age. Positive parenting practice also promotes children's outcomes. Children in foster care who are both enrolled in formal center-based care and experience positive parenting practice had the most positive outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Parents raising children in foster care should be informed about the positive impacts of certain parenting practices on their children. Foster parents should be connected to available community resources, including formal-center-based preschool programs and required to continuously attend parenting classes to sustain positive impact of parenting practice on foster children.

Minding the complexities of psychotropic medication management for children and youth in the foster care system: Paper 1: The facilitators and barriers to learning about trauma-informed medication management.

The phenomenon of inappropriate polypharmacy among the foster care population arises in part due to the challenges related to integrating trauma-informed principles into service delivery. It is further exacerbated by the complexity of intersecting systems in which child welfare case workers need to communicate, including foster and biological parents, social service agencies, and advocates. Yet, there is limited research about trauma-informed psychotropic medication management interventions for child welfare staff. This pilot study was conducted to evaluate a trauma-informed psychotropic medication management intervention and is reported in two manuscripts, pertaining respectively to the facilitators and barriers to learning, and perceived individual and institutional trauma responsiveness. The intervention comprised of a 2-hour-long training session for child welfare staff and a 3-month web-based curriculum for leadership personnel, aiming to increase their understanding of trauma-informed psychotropic medication management. In the first paper, we report on the facilitators and barriers to learning, grouped into three categories: teacher attributes, learner attributes, and situational factors. In the second paper, in addition to trauma responsiveness ratings, we also provide a detailed account of one participant's life experience and perceptions of the intervention provided, as an exemplar of the psychosocial facets of resilience. The ABC Medication Scale scores that measured staff knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms showed a significant change in scores following training. Based on these findings, we provide practical solutions to address situational factors that are worth considering when providing training for child welfare staff. PAPER 1 ABSTRACT: THE FACILITATORS AND BARRIERS TO LEARNING ABOUT TRAUMA-INFORMED MEDICATION MANAGEMENT: Given that foster care children experience many challenges that threaten their well-being, their physical and mental health needs tend to be greater than those of their peers who are not in foster care. However, owing to the transient nature of the foster care placements, as well as continuous changes in medical providers and counselors, the screenings, supportive interventions, and treatments they receive may be fragmented. This is particularly problematic when considering that many of these children are medicated as a means of managing their behavior. Moreover, children in foster care are also more vulnerable to having the medications and diagnoses accumulate due to frequent placement changes and lack of treatment continuity. Our research was guided by the question "What are the facilitators and barriers to learning about trauma-informed psychotropic medication management?" We developed an intervention to address the issue of inappropriate polypharmacy and examined the facilitators and barriers to learning using a mixed methods design. The facilitators to learning were instructor-specific (e.g., reputation, teaching style, capacity for selecting and implementing relevant resources), learner-specific (altruism, capacity to see personal relevance in the learning situation, desire for knowledge/competence, career advancement/recognition-seeking), and situational (immediacy/on-demand resources, reinforcement of pleasant learning experience). Barriers were largely situational (workload and family demands). Based on these findings, we provide practical strategies for addressing situational factors that are worth considering when designing training curricula aimed at child welfare staff.

Minding the complexities of psychotropic medication management for children and youth in the foster care system: Paper 2: Levels of trauma responsiveness among child welfare staff.

BACKGROUND: Foster care children tend to have greater physical and mental health needs compared to those of their peers who are not in foster care due to many challenges that threaten their well-being. Yet, owing to frequent placement changes, their treatment may be fragmented. Moreover, if foster children are unable to provide important information about their own health status, and the same cannot be obtained from their families of origin, the resulting incomplete and/or inconsistent health history puts them at risk for unrecognized problems and conflicting diagnoses. Paradoxically, foster parents and resource providers often request psychotropic medications for children and youth in their care as a means of managing their behaviors. The phenomenon of inappropriate polypharmacy arises due in part to the difficulties related to integrating trauma-informed principles into the care process. It is further exacerbated by the complexity of intersecting systems in which child welfare case workers need to communicate including foster and biological parents, social service agencies, and advocates. In this second paper, we report on the same intervention as that discussed in the first paper, focusing on the effectiveness of the live 2-hour face-to-face training for child welfare staff and the 3-month web-based curriculum for leadership personnel in improving the participants' trauma responsiveness. RESEARCH QUESTIONS: 1. What are the child welfare staff's perceptions of their own knowledge, attitudes, and communication behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms and monitoring for side-effects of psychotropic medication use in children? 2. What is the level of trauma responsiveness among child welfare staff? METHODOLOGY AND PARTICIPANTS: The ABC Medication Scale was employed to measure staff knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with medications used to treat mental health symptoms before and after the intervention to determine if the training resulted in any improvements. Individual- and organizational-level trauma responsiveness was rated on a continuum of the Missouri Model: A Developmental Framework for Trauma-Informed Approaches. Artifacts of the web-based curriculum and qualitative interview data were analyzed by applying grounded theory methods. FINDINGS/RESULTS: There was a significant increase in The ABC Medication Scale scores following the training. The qualitative findings further revealed that majority of the participants rated themselves as "trauma aware" or "trauma responsive" on the Missouri Model, while indicating that their agencies could work harder to become more fully trauma-informed. As trauma-informed child welfare workforce that understands the complexity and advocacy requirements of psychotropic medication management is needed, further longitudinal research is required is to assess the training effects over time. In particular, the aim should be to establish (a) how knowledge and attitude shifts correlate with greater degrees of trauma responsiveness, and (b) if and how such trainings translate into improved systems of support.

Early deprivation alters structural brain development from middle childhood to adolescence.

Hypotheses concerning the biologic embedding of early adversity via developmental neuroplasticity mechanisms have been proposed on the basis of experimental studies in animals. However, no studies have demonstrated a causal link between early adversity and neural development in humans. Here, we present evidence from a randomized controlled trial linking psychosocial deprivation in early childhood to changes in cortical development from childhood to adolescence using longitudinal data from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project. Changes in cortical structure due to randomization to foster care were most pronounced in the lateral and medial prefrontal cortex and in white matter tracts connecting the prefrontal and parietal cortex. Demonstrating the causal impact of exposure to deprivation on the development of neural structure highlights the importance of early placement into family-based care to mitigate lasting neurodevelopmental consequences associated with early-life deprivation.

The impacts of COVID-19 on LGBTQ+ foster youth alumni.

BACKGROUND: LGBTQ+ youth frequently experience disparities in outcomes related to permanency and overall well-being while in out-of-home care. These negative outcomes often persist after youth have transitioned out of care, particularly in the domains of housing, education, employment, and mental health. Initial research has found that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated negative physical and mental health outcomes, as well as decreased economic stability among transition age youth. OBJECTIVE: This study seeks to determine if COVID-19 has resulted in unique impacts on foster care alumni, and if these impacts are the same for LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ transition age youth. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: This study used data from the 2020 Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative Opportunity Passport Survey to explore these questions. METHODS: This survey was administered electronically to a national sample of 1223 youth ages 18-26 with lived experience in foster care. RESULTS: Results indicate that relative to non-LGBTQ+ foster care alumni, LGBTQ+ foster care alumni experienced more negative outcomes in housing stability, employment, and mental health/trauma due to COVID-19. No significant differences were found for education-related impacts. Outcomes varied by sex assigned at birth, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, gender identity and expression (SOGIE) of respondents, with female respondents, black, indigenous and other people of color (BIPOC) youth and LGBTQ+ youth being most frequently impacted. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that relative to non-LGBTQ+ foster care alumni, LGBTQ+ foster care alumni experienced more negative outcomes in housing stability, employment, and mental health/trauma due to COVID-19. No significant differences were found for education-related impacts. Outcomes varied by sex assigned at birth, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, gender identity and expression (SOGIE) of respondents, with female respondents, BIPOC youth and LGBTQ+ youth being most frequently impacted. Implications for practice and policy are explored.

Foster care leads to sustained cognitive gains following severe early deprivation.

This study examined longitudinal data from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, a randomized controlled trial of foster care as an alternative to institutional care following exposure to severe psychosocial deprivation. We report data from 135 participants assessed in early adulthood (age 18 y). We find that 16 y after randomization occurred, those who had been randomized to high-quality foster care had significantly higher IQ scores (9 points, 0.6 SD) than those randomized to care as usual. Mediation analyses provide evidence that the causal effect of the intervention on cognitive ability in early adulthood could be explained, in part, by higher-quality caregiving and attachment security. These findings indicate that early investment in family care as an alternative to institutional care leads to sustained gains in cognitive ability. Fostering caregiving relationships is a likely mechanism of the intervention. In addition, exploratory analyses indicate that stable placements throughout childhood are associated with the greatest long-term gains in cognitive ability. Whether early interventions for infants and young children lead to lasting change has significant implications for decisions to invest in programs aimed at improving children's developmental outcomes.

Antipsychotic medications and admission to psychiatric residential treatment facilities among youth in foster care diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorders.

Many youth in foster care are diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorder (DBD), a diagnosis indicative of aggression and behavior problems. These youth, who are at high risk for being placed in psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTF), are commonly prescribed antipsychotic (AP) medications off-label. However, treating children in the community is an important goal, and although AP medications can have severe side effects, these prescriptions may help to achieve this goal. In this study, we used Medicaid data to determine whether AP medications reduce the risk of admission to PRTF among two groups of children with DBD: those with DBD only and those who were diagnosed with DBD in addition to at least one of two conditions indicated for AP prescribing (psychosis and bipolar disorder.) Event history models show that AP medications are associated with a high rate of admission, which are likely due to the higher mental and behavioral health needs of youth who are prescribed. However, youth diagnosed with both DBD and indications who are prescribed an AP medication have one-tenth the rate of admission of similar youth who are not prescribed. For youth with DBD only, the findings are inconclusive. Given these mixed results, practitioners should follow clinical guidelines; ensuring youth are treated with psychosocial interventions and other psychotropic medications prior to AP prescribing. Agencies should attempt to address systemic factors such as shortages of foster homes, increased availability of therapeutic foster care, and implementation of in-home prevention services. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).