Exploring children’s perspectives of engagement with their carers

•This research project used data from the ‘Views of Children and Young People in Foster Care 2009’ self-report survey conducted in Queensland
•A total of 937 children between 9 and 18 years completed the survey
•The study used exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural regression to analyse the data
•Engagement was understood as the process through which children and carers build and maintain a connection
•Children who form positive relationships with their OOHC carers are more likely to achieve positive health and mental health, education, relationship and employment across the lifespan
•Placement trajectory in OOHC is influenced by child-carer engagement. Positive engagement is more likely to lead to placement stability.
•Understanding child-carer engagement is critical to seeking new ways to improve the OOHC experience and critically placement trajectory and child outcomes. /

1. What is known about child engagement with carers in out-of-home care (OOHC)?

The relationship between a child and carer is complex. Factors related to the carer that are understood to contribute to child-carer engagement include: warmth, support, acceptance, availability, listening, genuine interest, fair and equal treatment, inclusion, commitment and felt security.

2. Why is child-carer engagement important?

Previous research has demonstrated that children who experience a positive relationship with at least one adult:
  • have higher self-esteem and self-worth
  • are less likely to experience mental illness in adulthood
  • are less likely to exhibit internalising or externalising behaviour problems
  • have greater satisfaction levels in care
  • experience less anxiety
  • are more settled and more likely to manage their behaviour
  • are more likely to progress well in education
  • are more likely to utilise external supports
Further, where children experience positive engagement with their carer, placement stability is improved.

3. The Research Question

A total of 937 children between the ages of 9 and 18 years living in foster or kinship care in Queensland participated in the self-report survey‘The Views of Children and Young People in Foster Care 2009’. Engagement was understood as the ongoing process through which children and carers build and maintain a connection.
This study sought to understand engagement from the perspective of the child:
What components make up a child’s engagement with their carer in OOHC? and
What factors influence the nature and quality of the engagement between the child and carer?

•Child-carer engagement in OOHC plays a critical role in placement processes including placement stability and child outcomes
•A shift in focus for child protection staff from crisis and risk management to relationship-based practice for children placed in out-of-home care may improve placement stability and child outcomes.
•Multi-dimensional assessment and intervention strategies that target the child-carer relationship are required to support placement stability
•Access to in-placement family-based interventions for carers and children including family therapies may assist in building and maintaining critical child-carer relationships
•Dedicated resources to support pre-placement screening of children and carers and placement matching may improve placement stability and child outcomes
•Inclusion of the voice of the child within policy and practice guidance in OOHC care will likely offer new perspectives that may result in improved placement stability and better child outcomes. / 4.What does this research tell us?
Child Engagement is a complex concept made up of 3 key components: Genuine Relationship, Inclusion and Knowledge. Genuine relationship includes a child’s perception of:
•Being treated the same as other children in household
•Feeling loved and cared for
•Being listened to by carer
•Happiness rating
Inclusion incorporates a child’s perception of:
•Having a say in what happens to child
•Having decisions about child explained
Knowledge includes a child’s perception of being:
•Told what to expect in care
•Told the reason you are in care
Child engagement with a carer in OOHC is influenced by a range of factors associated with the characteristics of the child, the care experience, family contact and placement trajectory:
•Female children are more likely to experience relationship with carer as positive
•The frequency that a child worries impacts negatively upon the child-carer relationship
•A child’s perception of feeling different because they are in care impacts negatively upon the child-carer relationship
•A child’s perception of missing out on things because they are in care impacts negatively upon the child-carer relationship
•A child in frequent contact with their biological parent experiences less engagement with their carer
•The greater the number of placements prior to the current placement, the less likely a child is to engage with their carer
•The greater the length of the current placement, the more likely it is that a child will engage with their carer
•The more negative experiences a child has in OOHC the more a child’s engagement with their carer decreases.

5. Further Reading

Withington, Tania L. (2017) Factors that influence the placement trajectories of children in out-of-home care: Perspectives of carers and children. PhD by Publication, Queensland University of Technology.

Withington, T., Duplock, R., Burton, J., Eivers, A., & Lonne, B. (2017). Exploring children’s perspectives of engagement with their carers using factor analysis. Child Abuse and Neglect. 63(1). 41-50
Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian. (2010). Views of children and young people in foster care. Brisbane: Author.