A longitudinal study of depressiveness in children in public care

Bulat, Linda Rajhvajn

doi:10.1111/j.1468-2397.2009.00698.x

Cited by 11 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…One other study measured similarly low mean self-reported T -scores ( T = 56–57), but did not obtain comparative carer-report scores (Portwood et al, 2018). Finally, the Croatian study (Bulat, 2010; Franz, 2004) is the only one that measured a discrepancy in the opposite direction, namely self-reported mean scores being substantially higher than carer-reported mean scores. In this case, the adolescents’ self-reported T -score equivalents of mean raw scores were more plausible ( T equiv.…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The fifth was the population survey of all older children and adolescents (age 7–15) residing in a single U.K. local authority, introduced in the previous section (Rees, 2013). The final two studies reported carer- and self-report scores stratified for adolescents in foster care and residential care, in Croatia (Bulat, 2010) and two U.S. states (Portwood et al, 2018).…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Do adolescents in care systematically under-report their mental health difficulties in population studies? A narrative review

Tarren‐Sweeney

2019

Developmental Child Welfare

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The present article reports findings of a narrative review of self- and carer-report mental health data that addressed the research question: Do adolescents who reside in statutory out-of-home care (OOHC) systematically underreport their mental health difficulties in population studies? A literature search was conducted to identify population studies of the mental health of older children and adolescents in OOHC that obtained self-report data. Studies were selected for review if mental health data were gathered in population studies (i.e., not clinical or treatment studies); data were collected while participants were in care; and participants were not selected on the basis of their clinical status. With few exceptions, adolescents in family-based (foster and kinship) care report less informant-standardized mental health difficulties than do their carers in population studies, with substantially lower rates of clinical-level scores. Conversely, self- and carer-report mean scores obtained for adolescents in residential care are more closely aligned. Foster carer-reported rates of clinical-level difficulties concord with rates estimated from clinician-administered semi-structured psychiatric interviews, suggesting carer-report data are accurate. The reviewed studies collectively suggest that adolescents in family-based care systematically underreport their mental health difficulties in population studies. Several hypotheses for why this phenomenon occurs are discussed in relation to available evidence and theory. Epidemiological investigations of this population’s mental health should not solely employ self-report measures. The findings have no relevance or implications for clinical assessments.

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Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do adolescents in care systematically under-report their mental health difficulties in population studies? A narrative review

Tarren‐Sweeney

2019

Developmental Child Welfare

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“…Similarly, longitudinal studies of the mental health trajectories of adolescents following their "late arrival" into care yielded conflicting findings (Leonard & Gudiño, 2016;McWey et al, 2010McWey et al, , 2014Strijker et al, 2011). The two studies that recruited representative adolescent foster care cohorts measured slight 1-year reductions in mean self-reported difficulties (Perkins, 2008) and slight 5-year reduction in self-reported depressive symptoms (Bulat, 2010).…”

Section: Acc-mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All of the long-term studies were afflicted by high sample attrition (33–75%), thereby limiting the interpretability of their findings, and highlighting the need for more definitive long-term cohort studies. The first study measured 5-year changes in depressive symptoms for 10- to 13-year-old (at baseline) Croatian children residing in long-term foster ( N = 60; Bulat, 2010). The foster care sample had small reductions in mean self-reported depressive symptoms over 5 years, as measured by the Youth Self-Report (YSR) anxious-depressed subscale, and the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI), but a moderate increase in mean carer-reported CBCL anxious-depressed scores.…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A narrative review of stability and change in the mental health of children who grow up in family-based out-of-home care

Tarren‐Sweeney

Goemans

2019

Developmental Child Welfare

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The present review sought to address the following questions: What evidence is there that long-term, family-based out-of-home care (OOHC) has a general, population-wide effect on children’s mental health such that it is generally reparative or generally harmful? Does entry into long-term OOHC affect children’s mental health, as evidenced by prospective changes over the first years in care? And, is the reparative potential of long-term, family-based OOHC moderated by children’s age at entry into care? Fourteen studies were identified for review. We found no consistent evidence that family-based OOHC exerts a general, population-wide effect on the mental health of children in care; or that entry into care has an initial effect on children’s mental health; or that children’s age at entry into care moderates their subsequent mental health trajectories. Instead, several longitudinal studies have found that sizable proportions of children in care manifest meaningful improvement in their mental health over both short- and long-term time frames and that similarly sizable proportions experience meaningful deterioration in their mental health. Rather than asking whether long-term, family-based care is generally reparative or harmful for the development of previously maltreated children, future investigations should instead focus on identifying the systemic and interpersonal characteristics of care that promote and sustain children’s psychological development throughout childhood—and those characteristics that are developmentally harmful (i.e., for which children is the experience of care beneficial, and for which children is it not?). The review concludes with recommendations for the design of improved cohort studies that can address these questions.

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“…Although attrition is common to all longitudinal research, studies that include youth in foster care are especially likely to be challenged to find and re-recruit participants for additional time points (Bulat, 2009). All families are informed at intake that the project requires meeting for data collection at three time points, and the SPARK project has been successful at retaining participants across time.…”

Section: Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strategies for longitudinal research with youth in foster care: A demonstration of methods, barriers, and innovations

Jackson

Gabrielli

Tunno

et al. 2012

Children and Youth Services Review

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Longitudinal research on youth in foster care is important, but often challenging to accomplish. To assist the field, a thorough description of the development of the SPARK (Studying Pathways to Adjustment and Resilience in Kids) project, a longitudinal research project on the mechanisms of resilience for foster youth and their caregivers, is presented. Authors explain the difficult task for researchers in accessing youth in foster care and suggest strategies for success. Recruitment approaches for foster youth and their families are also provided along with examples of effective techniques. Data collection concerns are discussed, and the authors provide recommendations for researchers to consider when asking youth sensitive questions. Finally, data collection on academic information from teachers and how the SPARK project works with the academic community to gain information on school functioning for youth in the project is described. Suggestions for methodology utilized in future research along with examples of innovative adjustments to typical research procedures are provided as guidance for how research on maltreated youth can be conducted.In the United States, the number of youth in foster care reached 408,424 in 2010 (US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), 2011). Unfortunately, the number of youth requiring removal from their biological parents and placement with alternative caregivers has not significantly declined over the past decade with just as many youth entering foster care as exiting in any given year (DHHS, 2011). Although clinical science can do little to effect change in the rate at which youth are placed in care, research can provide meaningful insights on the impact of foster placement on a child's well-being. Researchers have understood this priority as evidenced by the multitude of studies devoted to documenting and analyzing the mental health of the foster youth community (Oswald, Heil, & Goldbeck, 2010).Placement in foster care is not always a temporary outcome (Barber & Delfabbro, 2003); therefore research must be able to assess the long-term impact of both the precursors to care and the additive effect of the out-of-home placement. To this end, the present discussion is intended to provide researchers with a roadmap; an example of how longitudinal research can be conducted on an important but hard to access population. Using the SPARK (Studying Pathways to Resilience and Adjustment in Kids) project as an example, suggestions for recruitment, data collection, retention, and ethical considerations germane to research on youth and families in the foster care community are presented

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A longitudinal study of depressiveness in children in public care

Cited by 11 publications

References 30 publications

Do adolescents in care systematically under-report their mental health difficulties in population studies? A narrative review

Do adolescents in care systematically under-report their mental health difficulties in population studies? A narrative review

A narrative review of stability and change in the mental health of children who grow up in family-based out-of-home care

Strategies for longitudinal research with youth in foster care: A demonstration of methods, barriers, and innovations

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