SUPERVISED VISITATION TABLE: This is a table empirically reviewing studies where supervised visitation took place for children in out-of-home placements.

·  Table is organized alphabetically by author.

·  Horizontal rows of table represent the empirical review of one study per row.

·  Vertical columns, from left to right, include:

o  Author and Date

o  Survey Sample: Detailing who composed the sample

o  Research Design and Measure: including a methodological review of key points

o  Findings: Findings are specifically related to successfulness of placement and are

regarding the children in care

Author and Date / Survey Sample / Research Design / Measure / Findings
Ansay & Perkins (2001) / 43 families; visitation took place in a supervised Family Visitation Center (FVC). / Preliminary study of foster care children receiving supervised visitation in a visitation center to assess the quality of attachment; retrospective data; model not yet tested. / African American children displayed stronger levels of attachment to their biological parents than the Caucasian children did. Further, greater attachment levels were derived if the mother was the specified perpetrator of maltreatment instead of the father.
McWey & Mullis (2004) / 123 foster children (ages birth to 18 years of age) and their mothers; large metro county area in a Southeastern state; goal for all children was family reunification. / Attachment Q-set (AQS) used to assess parent-child attachment after observations of the visitation of the foster children and their parents. AQS has fair reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .88) and validity; reliabilities at 4 month follow-up spanned into a low range (.67 to .98). / Regular, frequent contact with biological parents yields stronger attachment quality in their children versus those children who have less frequent contact. Foster children who have a stronger attachment quality had fewer problem behaviors, were less likely to take psychiatric medications, and were less likely to be viewed as develop-mentally delayed when compared to children with negative attachment levels.
Pearson & Thoennes (2000) / reviewed agency files from 590 cases; 201 parents were also interviewed; data were from three visitation centers (in MA, AZ, & CA) and one victim assistance center (in TX). / A representation of families who receive supervised visitation services due to custody, visitation or family violence issues; study sought to learn of the services received, to assess their experiences and outcomes. / A wide assortment of families were served, participants were highly satisfied; half left the program without proper closure; families that dropped out received fewer court hearings and assessments for issues that lead to admission into the program, leaving them feeling neglected. Visitation conditions of completers got better with time. Parent-interviews reported mixed feelings of their visitation circumstances after departing the program.
Perkins & Ansay (1998) / Families involved in a visitation center in a city in Florida (N=48) were compared with those families who did not participate (N=35) / A comparative analysis to test effectiveness of a supervised visitation program at preserving the relationship between parents and their children who have been adjudicated; retrospective data; no random assignment. / They found that the families involved in receiving visits at the visitation center had a greater likelihood to have visits take place, and a greater likelihood to have many visits, when compared to non-participating families.