ENHANCEMENT OF CHILDREN AT FOSTER HOMES
Foster homes were established during the Middle Ages in Europe to reduce the cases of infanticide, abuse, and abandonment. However in those times children were treated as economic assets and instead of being cared are heavily indentured (Institute for Research on Poverty, n.d.). Today, children are sent under the custody of foster homes due to the following reasons cited above and to add, substance abuse of parents (Weldon, 2001). At the current the conditions at foster homes particularly in the United States have improved due to stringent governmental laws and regulations. Foster homes serve to provide not only shelter but emotional and psychological support for the child’s over-all well-being with the end in view that a healthy child contributes positively to nation-building. In this paper foster home refers to care for children provided in a group setting in a foster home. How do foster homes provide an environment that simulates the care and affection of normal and healthy families? What are the long-term effects of foster care on the child’s development and personality?
The Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption and Dependent Care at the American Academy of Pediatrics, identified five major issues of foster care at foster homes (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000).
Early Brain and Child Development. The formative years between 3 to 4 years old, which are also the ages when children are brought in foster homes, is critical to the development of the child’s brain and nervous system. For a child’s brain and nervous system to develop at its optimum, physical, environmental and socio-psychological stimulation is essential. At this stage primary attachment figures or consistent caregivers are necessary to ensure that a child’s cognitive and personality development is not disrupted. (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000)
Attachment. A primary caregiver that provides consistent care, support and affection to a foster child over an extended period of time, nurtures the child’s over-all development (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000). A consistent attachment figure in the person of a caregiver has an important bearing on the child’s character and personality development as she develops a sense of trust, autonomy and initiative – the three epigenetic stages of Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development.
Children’s Sense of Time. A child especially during the formative years discussed above, do not have an adequate sense of time. At this stage, a child’s coping mechanism especially in response to periods of separation is also inadequate. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests a continuous and consistent caregiver is necessary to reduce the stress and the adverse impacts of separation. (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000)
Response to Psychological Stress. A child whose brain is yet developing but is exposed to chronic stress stimulates the chemical and electrical activities in the brain in a distinctive manner (Perry PD et.al., 1995 and Perry PD, 1998 in American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000) that puts it in an acute stress response mode (Perry PD et.al., 1995 and Simms MD, 1991 in American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000) resulting to apathy, withdrawal, or aggressiveness (Spitz RA, 1946 in American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000).
Effects of Neglect. A child who grows up in a neglectful environment with very little opportunities for communication impedes the child’s cognitive development particularly in the area of language development. (Mackner LM et. al., 1997 in American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000). Parental neglect which is one of the reasons why a child is sent to a foster home has profound and lifelong consequences on the over-all development of a child (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000). Some of the developmental effects are attachment formation problems, understimulation which results to delay in development, antisocial behavior and poor physical development (Campbell FA and Ramey CT, 1994; Greenough WT et.al. 1987; Perry B, 1994; Frank DA et.al., 1996 and Huttenlocher J et.al., 1991 in American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000).
The abovementioned issues identified by the American Academy of Pediatrics serve as guidelines for foster homes, social welfare services and physicians in reducing the deleterious effects that the child suffers from the time he was neglected and abused in his home, his movement from home to home, and the conditions in the foster home. Foster homes are artificial environments that can not at all times provide perfect care for the child (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000). An assessment of the long-term effects of foster care by Mc Donald et.al. (n.d.) shows the following results: underachievement in school, teen pregnancies, multiple marriages by abusive spouses, poorer physical and mental health, greater psychiatric referral, and lower self-esteem. The study suggests that adoption is a better option than foster care. The authors also suggest that utmost care should be observed by foster homes to make sure that they do not damage the children more than they had been before and that a system of caring should be devised for a successful foster care that produces a healthier and productive child .(Mc Donald et.al., n.d.)
REFERENCES
Institute for Research on Poverty, n.d. What We Know About Foster Care? [online] Available at: <http://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/focus/pdfs/foc142g.pdf> [Accessed 25 April 2011].
Mc Donald, T., Reva,A., Westerfelt ,A. and Piliavin, I., n.d. Assessing the Long-Term Effects of Foster Care: A Research Synthesis, What We Know About Foster Care? IRP ed. [online] Avaiable at: <http://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/focus/pdfs/foc142g.pdf> [Accessed 25 April 2011].
The American Academy of Pediatrics, 2000. Development Issues for Young Children in Foster Care.Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption and Dependent Care. Published in PEDIATRICS Vol. 106 No. 5 November 2000. [online] Available at: <http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/pediatrics;106/5/1145.pdf> [Accessed 25 April 2011].
Weldon, C., 2001. Foster Care: A Psychological War. [online] Available at: <http://www4.samford.edu/schools/artsci/scs/weldon.html> [Accessed 25 April 2011].
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