Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal最新文献

International research has consistently identified that care-experienced young women are disproportionately likely to become mothers at an early age and benefit from the availability of comprehensive services and supports. This study addresses a paucity of prevalence data in the Australian context by identifying and describing the population of young mothers, aged 15–24, who spent time in out-of-home care (OOHC) in New South Wales between 2009 and 2019. It also makes a novel contribution to the literature by identifying placement patterns during and after first pregnancies. Main findings include that care-experienced young women are three times more likely to give birth than their peers in the majority population and report high rates of smoking during pregnancy and receipt of fewer than the recommended number of prenatal health care visits. The findings also indicate that pathways into motherhood from OOHC are often marked by instability and uncertainty, consisting of frequent perinatal placement changes and exits from OOHC during pregnancy. This indicates that targeted interventions are needed to promote placement stability and supported transitions from OOHC to enhance the health and well-being of care-experienced young mothers and their babies. Directions for future research include the identification of variables associated with perinatal placement stability, consistent healthcare usage, and smoking cessation.

Parental substance use disorder is a risk factor for child maltreatment and negative child behaviors. It is important to understand protective factors for families experiencing co-occurring parental substance use disorder and child maltreatment to develop strength-based interventions. The aim of this study was to (1) explore levels of protective factors for families with substance use disorder and (2) examine associations between family protective factors and child behaviors. Families (N = 124) were recruited from Ohio START, a child protection model for families affected by co-occurring child maltreatment and parental substance use disorders. Ohio START is a certified affiliate of the national START (Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams) model with a mission of reducing child maltreatment and increasing stability and self-sufficiency among families. A hierarchical linear regression model revealed that higher levels of family functioning (p =.029) and parenting knowledge (p <.001) were significantly associated with lower levels of child externalizing behaviors. Higher levels of family functioning (p =.012) and parenting knowledge (p <.001) were also associated with lower levels of internalizing behaviors. Findings indicate that psychosocial family-based interventions may be helpful in promoting positive behavioral health outcomes among children affected by parental substance use disorder and child maltreatment.

This study examines the ethical dilemmas that social workers confront when referring to privately owned therapeutic boarding schools, using Iowa’s Midwest Academy as a case study. It critically examines the conflict between parental preferences for residential treatment and the growing body of evidence advocating for less restrictive, community-based interventions as more effective for adolescents. The research uncovers diverse parental motivations for choosing residential programs, from seeking a fresh start to implementing behavioral control strategies. These motivations are set against a backdrop of mental health and educational systems prioritizing evidence-based, regulated care approaches. Profound ethical concerns arise with placements in unregulated Troubled Teen Industry (TTI) facilities, which lack licensing, accreditation, and qualified mental health professionals, thereby posing grave risks to youth’s welfare. The case of the Midwest Academy is utilized to illustrate the ethical breaches, including allegations of abuse, neglect, and substandard mental health care, highlighting the dangers of such placements. The discussion extends to the responsibilities of social workers in making ethical referrals, emphasizing adherence to national and international ethical codes. Advocating for a cautious, principle-driven referral process, the paper argues for prioritizing accredited, evidence-based services to protect young clients and uphold the integrity of the social work profession. It concludes with a call for a collaborative decision-making process in managing complex referral scenarios, contributing to the discourse on ethical practices in social work and emphasizing the need for continuous scrutiny of referral practices to privately owned therapeutic programs.

The majority of youth who experience foster care want to go to college. Unfortunately, few achieve their post-secondary goals. Many states have developed programs and policies to increase the level of support available to students who have experienced foster care (SEFC). However, most of these initiatives have not been evaluated. The present study examines two emergent strategies in Texas; a) an unfunded legislative mandate to appoint a liaison on every college/university campus to serve SEFC and, b) a grassroots movement to develop campus support programs for SEFC at particular institutions. We evaluate these programs and policies using a unique data set that merges historical data from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, academic records from the Texas Higher Education Board, and primary data collected from campus websites and liaison surveys. Our data from 2012–2021 revealed that retention rates for SEFC did not increase in association with the liaison legislation. However, our analysis from the 2020–2021 academic year revealed that students who attended four-year universities with a campus support program had significantly higher retention rates than students who attended comparable schools without these programs (41% higher). However, we did not find a benefit of campus support programs for students attending community colleges. We conclude that higher education support can improve retention rates of SEFC. However, success is not guaranteed, but rather is contingent on funding, execution, and context. We call for ongoing assessment of existing strategies in order to identify best practices for improving post-secondary outcomes of SEFC.

Extensive policy and practice attention aims to support young people as they seek to achieve educational and career goals yet there are widely varying trajectories toward these goals that reflect individual preferences and social inequalities. This study reports findings from qualitative interviews with 16 young adults currently enrolled in a primarily vocational pathway at a community college and who had prior involvement with child welfare, juvenile justice or mental health systems. Using a narrative approach, respondents described their career and educational pathways including their current status, antecedents, and future trajectory. Key factors that have impacted their pathway include their initial vocational interests, messages from within their social networks, and impacts of work and family life on educational goals. Study results have implications for better supporting young people with system involvement to identify and achieve their educational and career goals.

This study investigated the associations among acculturative family distancing in communication and values, family conflicts (parent-adolescent conflict, interparental conflict), and depressive symptoms and the mediating effects of family conflicts in the associations between acculturative family distancing in communication and values, and depressive symptoms in KA adolescents. Path analysis was used to analyze data from a cross-sectional survey of 339 Korean American adolescents (Mage = 14.99, SD = 1.67; 53% female) residing in New York City and New Jersey. Measurements include the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) Scale, Acculturative Family Distancing Youth Report Scale (AFD-YR), the Family Conflicts Scale (FCS), and the Children’s Perception of Interparental Conflict Scale. All path coefficients for the final model were statistically significant. There were significant mediating effects of parent-adolescent conflict and interparental conflict on the associations between acculturative family distancing in communication and values and depressive symptoms. The study suggests acculturative family distancing may be a contextual risk factor for depressive symptoms among KA youth. Additionally, greater acculturative family distancing may erode the strength and quality of family relationships. One of the objectives of this study was to test the AFD theory which identifies more problematic dimensions of intergenerational acculturation gap that increase risk for family conflict. The findings of the current study not only support but also build on the AFD theory by examining its relationship to both interparental and parent-adolescent conflicts.

This study aimed to observe contraceptive access, including types of contraceptives and level of use, among girls and young adults living in foster care following a state policy insurance change. This cohort study utilized linked, state administrative data to analyze child welfare and Medicaid claims data of 1641 female foster youth in Michigan. Oral tablets with a supply of 30 days before exhaustion was the most frequently prescribed contraceptive (77%), while injections, implants, and intrauterine devices (IUDs) that have longer periods of use before exhaustion were rarely prescribed. Longer-term use products were prescribed with decreased frequency in the Medicaid Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) period than in the Medicaid Fee for Service (FFS) period. Foster youth placed in residential care experienced greater access to contraceptive care than those placed in family-based settings (Adjusted Odds Ratio = 0.63, 95% CI = (0.56–0.72)) and those living independently (Adjusted Odds Ratio = 0.55, 95% CI = (0.48–0.64)). Those in the largest urban county had less access (Adjusted Odds Ratio = 0.81, 95% CI = (0.71–0.92)) to contraceptives than those from other counties in the State. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Sexual and gender diverse youth and young adults (SGDY) experience significant mental health disparities compared to non-SGDY and lack access to culturally responsive mental health supports. Limited literature on affirmative interventions for SGDY exists. As part of a larger pilot study, the present qualitative study sought to understand the experiences of SGDY who received the Tuned In! intervention to explore its potential benefit in supporting SGDY mental health. Tuned In! is a virtual affirmative mindfulness-based intervention, co-created with and for SGDY. SGDY (16–29 yrs.) were recruited from Connecticut to participate in the intervention via social media advertisements, and were invited to follow-up virtual focus groups after completing the intervention. Twenty-five SGDY participated in four virtual focus groups, with an additional 12 SGDY providing written feedback. The following overarching research questions guided this study: (1) What are the experiences of SGDY participating in the Tuned In! intervention? (2) What specific improvements are needed to provide enhanced support for SGDY participating in the Tuned In! intervention? Reflexive thematic analysis revealed three overarching themes: (1) mindfulness and self-compassion can support SGDY well-being, (2) spaces that cultivate SGDY community, and (3) the importance of diversity, safety, inclusion, and accessibility. Findings suggest Tuned In! can support SGDY mental health, which points to practical recommendations for future evaluation and implementation of affirmative mindfulness-based interventions for SGDY.

In contrast to the international context of residential care and the preference for family based care, residential care in Portugal is the only option for most young people in the child protection system. Despite this, research in Portugal has yet to focus on Therapeutic Residential Care (TRC) and has rarely considered the narratives of young people. By adopting the conceptual framework proposed by Farmer et al. (2017) and focusing on five critical domains (Setting, Staffing, Treatment Approach, Safety, and Milieu Factor), we aimed to identify a subset of factors that contribute to youth improvement. This convergent parallel mixed methods study involved conducting semi-structured interviews with 14 young people, mostly female (71%), aged 14–18 years (M = 16.3, SD = 1.8), at five TRC facilities in Portugal. Young people and staff also completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and the youth self-report or child behaviour checklist to assess internalising and externalising symptoms. Content analysis revealed mostly positive perceptions and experiences across the domains (Setting, Staffing, Treatment Approach, Safety, Milieu Factor and Profile Characteristics). However, half of the youth reported being vulnerable to peer contagion and females with higher internalising and externalising symptoms reported more negative perceptions and experiences of TRC. These findings highlight that creating an organisational social context that supports participatory approaches to assessing quality may provide invaluable insights into how services can be responsive to young people’s needs. Focusing on establishing high-quality relationships with staff, peers, family, and the community may be key to ensuring the long-term success of TRC.

For many children with significant behavioral health needs, the inability to obtain funding for adequate behavioral health care through private means results in parents “voluntarily” placing their child in the state’s child welfare system. This study investigated the association between states’ use of 1915(c) Medicaid waivers for children with behavioral health needs and state rates of voluntary foster care placements. This study used data from the Children’s Bureau Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), from 2010 to 2019. Multilevel, linear regression models with state-year fixed-effects assessed the relationship between states’ use of a 1915(c) waiver and their total new entry voluntary foster care placement rates for children with behavioral or developmental health care needs, controlling for a variety of state-level policy and demographic characteristics. States’ use of 1915(c) waivers is significantly associated with lower total voluntary placement rates, both in total (β= -1.51 [-2.82, -0.21]) and proportionally (β=-1.03 [-2.07, 0.02]). HCBS Medicaid waivers targeting children with complex behavioral health needs may reduce state rates of voluntary foster care placements.