Canadian Research in Brief

Placement stability in kinship and non-kin foster care: A Canadian study

(2012), Children and Youth Services Review, 34(2), pp 460-465..
Authors

Perry, Gretchen
Daly, Martin
Kotler, Jennifer

This study compared the stability of kinship and non-kin foster placements of one child welfare organization in Ontario. Administrative data of children who were removed from their parent’s care between 2008 and 2010 were analyzed. The total sample included 880 foster families and 389 kin families. Findings indicate that within the first six months of being placed in out-of-home care, on average, kin placements were significantly more likely to last 30 days longer than foster placements. Even though most foster placements were more likely to be shorter in duration than kin placements, kin placements were more likely to end in discharge to the parents’ care than foster placements. Further, children in foster placements who were discharged to their parents were significantly more likely to return to out-of-home care than their counterparts in kin placements. The stability of kin care persisted even when child age and maltreatment type were considered. 

Research Areas