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Ecological Disruptions and Well-Being Among Children in Foster Care

Ecological Disruptions and Well-Being Among Children in Foster Care Bronfenbrenner’s framework highlights the importance of considering ecological systems to understand child well-being. Children entering foster care often experience disruption across systems. Yet, prior research has focused on specific disruptions linked to outcomes. This longitudinal study examined the impact of multiple ecological disruptions (i.e., changes in or separation from siblings, friends, school, church, community) on children’s internalizing symptoms and externalizing behaviors over time. This study included 211 children between the ages of 6 and 13 years (M = 10.23, SD = 2.37; 55.0% female; 57.3% African American). Children entered foster care for up to four reasons: Neglect (73.9%), physical abuse (29.4%), dependency (10%), and/or sexual abuse (9.5%). Most of the children experienced a change in school (64.0%), 46.9% were separated from siblings, 25.1% lost friends, 12.8% experienced community disruptions, and 10.0% were separated from church. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was employed to examine the association between ecological disruptions and longitudinal internalizing symptoms and externalizing behaviors, while controlling for baseline internalizing and externalizing, demographic variables (i.e., child age, gender, and race), and maltreatment severity. Maltreatment severity, along with school and community disruptions related to the presence of internalizing symptoms. Loss of friends was associated with the absence of externalizing behaviors, while community disruption was associated with the presence of externalizing behaviors. This study suggests that maintaining children’s connections to their school and community is important for well-being. Under certain circumstances, separation from friends may relate to improved behavioral functioning. Future research should explore additional and interacting facets of children’s ecological systems and related outcomes. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png American Journal of Orthopsychiatry American Psychological Association

Ecological Disruptions and Well-Being Among Children in Foster Care

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Publisher
American Psychological Association
Copyright
© 2021 Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice
ISSN
0002-9432
eISSN
1939-0025
DOI
10.1037/ort0000584
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Bronfenbrenner’s framework highlights the importance of considering ecological systems to understand child well-being. Children entering foster care often experience disruption across systems. Yet, prior research has focused on specific disruptions linked to outcomes. This longitudinal study examined the impact of multiple ecological disruptions (i.e., changes in or separation from siblings, friends, school, church, community) on children’s internalizing symptoms and externalizing behaviors over time. This study included 211 children between the ages of 6 and 13 years (M = 10.23, SD = 2.37; 55.0% female; 57.3% African American). Children entered foster care for up to four reasons: Neglect (73.9%), physical abuse (29.4%), dependency (10%), and/or sexual abuse (9.5%). Most of the children experienced a change in school (64.0%), 46.9% were separated from siblings, 25.1% lost friends, 12.8% experienced community disruptions, and 10.0% were separated from church. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was employed to examine the association between ecological disruptions and longitudinal internalizing symptoms and externalizing behaviors, while controlling for baseline internalizing and externalizing, demographic variables (i.e., child age, gender, and race), and maltreatment severity. Maltreatment severity, along with school and community disruptions related to the presence of internalizing symptoms. Loss of friends was associated with the absence of externalizing behaviors, while community disruption was associated with the presence of externalizing behaviors. This study suggests that maintaining children’s connections to their school and community is important for well-being. Under certain circumstances, separation from friends may relate to improved behavioral functioning. Future research should explore additional and interacting facets of children’s ecological systems and related outcomes.

Journal

American Journal of OrthopsychiatryAmerican Psychological Association

Published: Oct 14, 2022

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