Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Experiences of Abuse: Homeless Former Foster Youth and Their Experiences of Abuse in Out-of-Home Care

  • Published:
Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Research has indicated that youth exiting foster care experience a wide range of risk factors, some of which result from extensive abuse histories. Self-reported abuse in out-of-home care placement has been largely unexamined, and no studies have assessed the experiences of abuse among homeless youth with histories of care. This study seeks to explore the prevalence of abuse and any associations it may have with other aspects of foster care placement. Quantitative data were collected from 184 homeless former foster youth at a drop-in center in Hollywood, California, using. Dichotomous questions pertaining to abuse within foster homes, group homes, and kinship care were asked, including experience with physical/sexual abuse by a foster parent, physical/sexual abuse by a foster sibling, and verbal abuse more generally. Frequencies and correlations were conducted. Relatively high frequencies of youth reported having experienced abuse in foster care, with significant negative correlations between number of foster care placements and age at first foster care placement for most types of abuse and positive associations between time in foster care and most types of abuse. Overall, high numbers of youth in out-of-home care report abuse experiences. Positive correlations exist between time spent in foster care with abuse in foster homes and group homes. This may result from abuse occurring in placements where youth are spending longer periods, and foster youth are spending longer periods with foster families, group home residents and staff. Implications for abuse reporting and policy change are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to the sensitive nature of the data collected, but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Code Availability

Custom code created via SAS 9.4.

References

  • Aarons, G. A., Hazen, A. L., Leslie, L. K., Hough, R. L., Monn, A. R., Connelly, C. D., et al. (2008). Substance involvement among youths in child welfare: The role of common and unique risk factors. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 78(3), 340–349.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ahrens, K. R., Garrison, M. M., & Courtney, M. E. (2014). Health outcomes in young adults from foster care and economically diverse backgrounds. Pediatrics, 134(6), 1067–1074.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ahrens, K. R., Richardson, L. P., Courtney, M. E., McCarty, C., Simoni, J., & Katon, W. (2010). Laboratory-diagnosed sexually transmitted infections in former foster youth compared with peers. Pediatrics, 126(1), e97–e103.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barn, R., & Tan, J. P. (2015). Foster youth and drug use: Exploring risk and protective factors. Children and Youth Services Review, 56, 107–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berger, L. M., Bruch, S. K., Johnson, E. I., James, S., & Rubin, D. (2009). Estimating the “impact” of out-of-home placement on child well-being: Approaching the problem of selection bias. Child Development, 80(6), 1856–1876.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Biehal, N. (2014). Maltreatment in foster care: A review of the evidence. Child Abuse Review, 23(1), 48–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bousman, C. A., Blumberg, E. J., Shillington, A. M., Hovell, M. F., Ji, M., Lehman, S., & Clapp, J. (2005). Predictors of substance use among homeless youth in San Diego. Addictive Behaviors, 30(6), 1100–1110.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Branford, C., & English, D. (2004). Foster youth transitioning to independence study. Office of Children’s Administration Research, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, S., & Wilderson, D. (2010). Homelessness prevention for former foster youth: Utilization of transitional housing programs. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(10), 1464–1472.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cage, J. (2018). Educational attainment for youth who were maltreated in adolescence: Investigating the influence of maltreatment type and foster care placement. Child Abuse & Neglect, 79, 234–244.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carr, A., Duff, H., & Craddock, F. (2020). A systematic review of the outcome of child abuse in long-term care. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 21(4), 660–677.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chettiar, J., Shannon, K., Wood, E., Zhang, R., & Kerr, T. (2010). Survival sex work involvement among street-involved youth who use drugs in a Canadian setting. Journal of Public Health, 32(3), 322–327.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Crawford, B., Pharris, A. B., & Dorsett-Burrell, R. (2018). Risk of serious criminal involvement among former foster youth aging out of care. Children and Youth Services Review, 93, 451–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cusick, G. R., Havlicek, J. R., & Courtney, M. E. (2012). Risk for arrest: The role of social bonds in protecting foster youth making the transition to adulthood. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 82(1), 19.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dworsky, A., Napolitano, L., & Courtney, M. (2013). Homelessness during the transition from foster care to adulthood. American Journal of Public Health, 103(S2), S318–S323.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Euser, S., Alink, L. R., Tharner, A., van IJzendoorn, M. H., & Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J. (2014). Out of home placement to promote safety? The prevalence of physical abuse in residential and foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 37, 64–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gleghorn, A. A., Marx, R., Vittinghoff, E., & Katz, M. H. (1998). Association between drug use patterns and HIV risks among homeless, runaway, and street youth in Northern California. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 51, 219–227.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gonzalez-Blanks, A., & Yates, T. M. (2016). Sexual risk-taking among recently emancipated female foster youth: Sexual trauma and failed family reunification experiences. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 26(4), 819–829.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Greene, J. M., Ennett, S. T., & Ringwalt, C. L. (1997). Substance use among runaway and homeless youth in three national samples. American Journal of Public Health, 87(2), 229–235.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Havlicek, J., & Courtney, M. E. (2016). Maltreatment histories of aging out foster youth: A comparison of official investigated reports and self-reports of maltreatment prior to and during out-of-home care. Child Abuse & Neglect, 52, 110–122.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hillen, T., & Gafson, L. (2015). Why good placements matter: Pre-placement and placement risk factors associated with mental health disorders in pre-school children in foster care. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 20(3), 486–499.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, A., & Nandy, K. (2012). Comparisons of substance abuse, high-risk sexual behavior and depressive symptoms among homeless youth with and without a history of foster care placement. Contemporary Nurse, 42(2), 178–186.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Katz, C. C., Courtney, M. E., & Novotny, E. (2017). Pre-foster care maltreatment class as a predictor of maltreatment in foster care. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 34(1), 35–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King, B., Eastman, A. L., Grinnell-Davis, C., & Aparicio, E. (2019). Early childbirth among foster youth: A latent class analysis to determine subgroups at increased risk. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 51(4), 229–238.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kipke, M. D., Montgonery, S. B., Simon, T. R., & Iverson, E. F. (1997). Substance abuse disorders among runaway and homeless youth. Substance Use & Misuse, 32(7 & 8), 969–986.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kral, A. H., Molner, B. E., Booth, R. E., & Waters, J. K. (1997). Prevalence of sexual risk behaviour and substance use among runaway and homeless adolescents in San Francisco, Denver, and New York City. International Journal of STD and AIDS, 8(109), 117.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawrence, C. R., Carlson, E. A., & Egeland, B. (2006). The impact of foster care on development. Development and Psychopathology, 18(1), 57–76.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lehmann, S., Breivik, K., Monette, S., & Minnis, H. (2020). Potentially traumatic events in foster youth, and association with DSM-5 trauma-and stressor related symptoms. Child abuse & neglect, 101, 104374.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lutman, E., & Barter, C. (2017). Peer violence in foster care: A review of the research evidence. Child & Family Social Work, 22(2), 1104–1113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morton, M. H., Dworsky, A., Matjasko, J. L., Curry, S. L., Schlueter, D., Chavez, R., & Farrell, A. F. (2017). Prevalence and correlates of youth homelessness in the United States. Journal of Adolescent Health, 62(1), 14–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Narendorf, S. C., & McMillen, J. C. (2010). Substance use and substance use disorders as foster youth transition to adulthood. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(1), 113–119.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Narendorf, S. C., Brydon, D. M., Santa Maria, D., Bender, K., Ferguson, K. M., Hsu, H. T., et al. (2020). System involvement among young adults experiencing homelessness: Characteristics of four system-involved subgroups and relationship to risk outcomes. Children and Youth Services Review, 108, 104609.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Okpych, N. J., & Courtney, M. E. (2018). Characteristics of foster care history as risk factors for psychiatric disorders among youth in care. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 88(3), 269.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, M. L., Moniruzzaman, A., & Somers, J. M. (2015). History of foster care among homeless adults with mental illness in Vancouver, British Columbia: A precursor to trajectories of risk. BMC Psychiatry, 15(1), 1–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reilly, T. (2003). Transition for care: Status and out of youth who age out of foster care. Child Welfare, 82(6), 727–748.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Salomonson-Sautel, S., Van Leeuwen, J. M., Gilroy, C., Boyle, S., Malberg, D., & Hopfer, C. (2008). Correlates of substance use among homeless youth in eight cities. The American Journal on Addictions, 17, 224–234. https://doi.org/10.1080/10550490802019964

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sariaslan, A., Kääriälä, A., Pitkänen, J., Remes, H., Aaltonen, M., Hiilamo, H., et al. (2021). Long-term health and social outcomes in children and adolescents placed in out of-home care. JAMA Pediatrics. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.4324

    Article  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Sattler, K. M., Font, S. A., & Gershoff, E. T. (2018). Age-specific risk factors associated with placement instability among foster children. Child Abuse & Neglect, 84, 157–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tejeda, Y. (2018). Homeless former foster youth: Challenges exiting the foster system (Doctoral dissertation, California State University, Northridge).

  • Tittle, G., Poertner, J., & Garnier, P. (2001). Child maltreatment in foster care: A study of retrospective reporting. School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trout, A. L., Hagaman, J., Casey, K., Reid, R., & Epstein, M. H. (2008). The academic status of children and youth in out-of-home care: A review of the literature. Children and Youth Services Review, 30(9), 979–994.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tyler, K. A., & Schmitz, R. M. (2018). A comparison of risk factors for various forms of trauma in the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and heterosexual homeless youth. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 19(4), 431–443.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • United States. (2019). The AFCARS report. U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children's Bureau.

  • Yoshioka-Maxwell, A. (2017). Former Foster Youth Typology of Risk: Pre-existing Risk Factors for Homelessness. CW360: The Impact of Housing and Homelessness on Child Well Being, Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare. University of Minnesota, School of Social Work.

  • Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., & Rice, E. (2017). Exploring the impact of network characteristics on substance use outcomes among homeless former foster youth. International Journal of Public Health, 62(3), 371–378.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., & Rice, E. (2019). Exploring the relationship between foster care experiences and HIV risk behaviors among a sample of homeless former foster youth. AIDS and Behavior, 23(3), 792–801.

  • Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., & Rice, E. (2020). Exploring the relationship between foster care experiences and social network engagement among a sample of homeless former foster youth. Children and Youth Services Review, 116, 105132.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Yoshioka-Maxwell, A., Rice, E., Rhoades, H., & Winetrobe, H. (2015). Methamphetamine use among homeless former foster youth: The mediating role of social networks. Journal of Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, 3(2), 197.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number F31MH112251. The content is solely the responsibility of the author.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2430 Campus Rd., Gartley Hall 201E, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Amanda Yoshioka-Maxwell

Authors
  1. Amanda Yoshioka-Maxwell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All data collection, manuscript conceptualization, analysis, and writing was conducted by the author.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amanda Yoshioka-Maxwell.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The author declares that she has no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the university IRB through the University of Southern California.

Consent to Participate

All participants consented to participate.

Consent for Publication

All participants consented for data to be published.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Yoshioka-Maxwell, A. Experiences of Abuse: Homeless Former Foster Youth and Their Experiences of Abuse in Out-of-Home Care. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 40, 787–796 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-021-00810-8

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-021-00810-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation