Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2brh9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T04:23:28.008Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Quality foster care: who decides?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 February 2016

Abstract

The selection of foster parents with qualities necessary to undertake care of other people's children is a difficult task. Little research has been done in identifying what the associated qualities are. This paper reports the first stage of a research study examining these qualities from the perspective of foster parents themselves and experienced family care workers. From a qualitative exercise involving 10 foster parents and 2 family care workers over 50 nominated qualities were elicited covering motivation; personal attributes; knowledge and skills with children and competencies emanating from experience. Arising from this exercise a model was constructed which identifies stages in foster parenting. This could enable differential educational strategies based on a competency approach to be developed in order to achieve a better level of quality control.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Carbino, R. 1980, Foster Parenting An updated Review of the Literature, New York: Child Welfare League of America, pp 1943.Google Scholar
Cautley, P.W. 1980, New Foster Parents: The First Experience, The Human Sciences Press, New York and London.Google Scholar
Dando, I. and Minty, B. 1987, ‘What Makes Good Foster Parents’ in British Journal of Social Work 17(4) pp. 383–99.Google Scholar
Goddard, C. & Carew, R. 1993, Responding to Children: Child Welfare Practice, Longman Cheshire, Melbourne, pp. 231–33.Google Scholar
Josselyn, I.M. 1952, ‘Evaluating Motives of Foster Parents’ in Child Welfare 31(2), pp. 8795.Google Scholar
Kay, N. 1966, ‘A systematic approach to selecting foster parents’ in Case Conference 13(2), pp. 4651.Google Scholar
Lawrence, R. 1993, ‘Recruitment of Carers for Children in Substitute Care: A Planning Framework and Research Questions for the Australian Context’ in Australian Social Work 46(3), pp. 3138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, B. 1991, ‘Australian Women and Foster Care: A Feminist Perspective’ in Child Welfare 70(2), pp. 175184.Google Scholar