| Children and teens in foster care have higher rates of health, mental health and behavioral problems compared with children not in foster care. Foster parents are faced with the challenge of effectively parenting children in foster care, in order to achieve positive outcomes for these vulnerable children. However, foster parents often report feeling poorly supported in their role as foster parents in terms of resources and necessary systems supports. There is a paucity of studies exploring foster parent social networks and subsequent network supports. The purpose of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to explore the structure and function of the social networks of foster parents caring for children in foster care; and second, to examine the relationship between the dimensions of foster parent social networks, perceived quality of network support, parental competence, and parental representations. The sample consisted of 26 certified foster parents. Results of the study indicated that foster parents had small, fairly dense social networks. Caseworkers were the most important members of the foster parent formal social network system, while foster family members were the most important informal social network members. Findings of the current study indicate that foster parents often had missing ties to the educational, legal and health care systems. Missing network connections were identified among formal network members as well. Results of the study suggested a need for greater integration of formal network systems and stronger ties between foster parents and other members of the formal network system. Foster parents and formal network members also require additional training to effectively meet the needs of children in foster care. |
