Similarities and differences in the (short-term) psychosocial development of children in foster care, family-style group care, and residential care were investigated in a sample of 121 Dutch... Show moreSimilarities and differences in the (short-term) psychosocial development of children in foster care, family-style group care, and residential care were investigated in a sample of 121 Dutch children (M age = 8.78 years; SD = 2.34 years; 47% female; 59% Caucasian) one year after their initial placement. Pretest and posttest measurements were carried out at the substitute caregivers using the CBCL. The results were examined at group level and case level. At group level, the findings showed no evidence for higher effectiveness in favor to the family-oriented settings (foster care, and family-style group care), as hypothesized. By contrast, some small differences were found between foster care and family-style group care, in favor of the latter. At individual level, a more or less equal number of children (18%) with a clinical pretest score on psychosocial functioning clinically significant improved (behavioral normalization). An important concern is that a number of children without clinical psychosocial problems at the time of admission clinically significant deteriorated (behavioral aberration) in psychosocial functioning (20%). This might indicate a poor match between the risks, needs and responsivity of the child on the one hand and the chosen intervention on the other. Future research on factors that (prior and during placement) positively as well as negatively affect the child’s psychosocial development is needed to further clarify this finding. Show less
Efforts to improve the quality of life of children cannot be considered in isolation from the family. In this study, a short family questionnaire (FQ) is presented that clinicians, researchers, and... Show moreEfforts to improve the quality of life of children cannot be considered in isolation from the family. In this study, a short family questionnaire (FQ) is presented that clinicians, researchers, and policy makers can use to assess the quality of family functioning. Measured family characteristics are responsiveness, communication, organization, social network, and partner relationship. A total of 2,450 parents (2,011 mothers and 439 fathers) completed the FQ. Confirmatory factor analysis reveals a robust comparative fit index of 0.98 and RMSEA of 0.04. Internal consistency ranges from 0.83 to 0.97, test-retest reliability from 0.77 to 0.91 and mother-father concordance from 0.64 to 0.74. An estimated 11% of all Dutch families are neutral or negative about their total family functioning. The conclusions are that the results support the reliability and validity of the FQ, and that the majority of Dutch parents perceived the quality of their family functioning positively. Show less
