NCJ Number
116083
Date Published
1988
Length
249 pages
Annotation
Information gathered over a 2-year period regarding abused and neglected children who either remained at home or were placed in foster care formed the basis of this analysis of whether it is better to place them or to provide special services to the family and leave them at home.
Abstract
The main group studied consisted of 32 white children, of whom 19 were continuously at home and 13 were continuously in foster care in 3 California counties. An additional 35 children included black and Hispanic children who were placed in foster care or who stayed at home, white children who spent part of the time at home and part in foster care, and 2 children of other ethnic groups. The children were between the ages of 5 and 10 at the time of the intervention. A control group of children who were not abused or neglected was also studied. Researchers examined the children in terms of physical well-being, academic performance, emotional health, social skills, and personal happiness. They also explored the issue of attachment to determine whether foster care met the children's needs for emotional security. Findings surprisingly indicated the limited ability of either home placement with supporting services or foster care to significantly improve the children's well-being, except that school attendance improved with foster care. Discussion of policy implications, tables, notes, index, and 114 references.