Families living in urban poverty, enduring chronic and complex traumatic stress, and having difficulty meeting their children's basic needs have significant child maltreatment risk factors. There is a paucity of family focused, trauma-informed evidence-based interventions aimed to alleviate trauma symptomatology, strengthen family functioning, and…

An estimated 50 to 60% of children from typical families develop secure attachment relationships with their parents (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978; Van IJzendoorn & Kroonenberg, 1988); however, intervention research has focused primarily on interventions for high-risk clinical samples (Berlin, Zeanah, & Lieberman, 2008). In this project,…

Recent studies have highlighted the progressively increasing number of children prescribed psychotropic medication, while findings have illustrated significantly greater usage among child welfare-involved children. These findings have raised serious concerns among mental health and child welfare professionals as well as the general public. To…

The files of 419 children in family foster care and kinship foster care were used in a retrospective longitudinal design study that examined their placement histories in child welfare. Significant associations were found between the number of placements on one hand, and the prevalence of attachment disorders, severity of behavioral problems, and…

Juvenile delinquency remains a significant problem for child welfare systems throughout the United States. Victims of child abuse and neglect are more likely relative to children in the general population to engage in delinquency (Ryan & Testa, 2005; Widom, 1989). Although the magnitude of this relationship is not fully understood (Zingraff,…

An ethnographic study of adolescent boys in residential treatment explored their experiences with transition from placement to placement. Findings indicated displays of antisocial acting-out behaviors, especially at transition. Results suggest reevaluation of residential treatment within the continuum of care, as successive foster care placements…

Describes common separation reactions of children in school settings. Discusses the identification of these reactions and presents suggestions for teachers for preventing or handling separation problems. (BD)

Explored perceptions of children in long-term foster care about their biological family and ideal family representation. Found that subjects related to their foster caregivers as "family," challenging assumptions about the primacy of the biological bond, and that genealogical closeness guarantees socioemotional closeness under all…

Provides an update of information on infant nurturance and early learning of special interest to providers of services to parents and infants. (BR)

Discusses the topic of reciprocity of needs between children and caregivers and argues that children need to learn dependency before they can securely learn independence. (Author/RH)

When choosing permanent homes for foster children, attachment, permanence, and kinship can be used as criteria for selection. Each of these criteria represents an established value in child welfare theory. Reports a case study of three siblings entering adoption in which the three criteria formed the basis for a placement recommendation that…

The Instrument for Systematic Assessment of Parent Attachment Behaviors (ISAPAB) can be used to help families in need of information and support concerning parent-infant interaction. The ISAPAB is based on the assumptions that parent attachment behavior can be placed on a continuum from most optimal to least optimal, and that critical behaviors…

Delineates a foster care research agenda that includes improvement of data available for foster care research; permanency planning; multiple services used by foster children; epidemiology of foster care; bonding of children with foster parents; outcomes of foster care; mental health service provision to foster children; relationship of service…

"Traumatic bonding" is defined as "the evolution of emotional dependency between...a child and an adult [in] a relationship characterized by periodic sexual abuse." Maintains that the concept holds promise for explaining confusing dynamics of incest. Demonstrates ways in which traumatic bonding can be applied to cases of incest…

Notes that open adoption is less typical in adoptions of special-needs children; presents a model for openness in special-needs adoptions. Notes that the primary benefit of openness for an adopted child is loss minimization and maintenance of familial connections even in cases of abuse or neglect, as children continue to form significant…