Relationship to parents in adulthood with a background of out‐of‐home care in childhood

Abstract

The longitudinal study started with children aged up to 4 who had been taken into care because of unacceptable living conditions and deficient parental care. After their initial stay in a children's home, the 26 children in the research group went on to have diverse placement histories throughout their childhood (up to age 18). The children have been divided into 4 subgroups in accordance with the length of time they lived with 1 of their parents or with foster parents. Relationships were 1 of the themes in the primary study as well as in all 8 rounds of follow‐up. This article is based on the 2 most recent rounds when the children had reached the ages of 25 to 30 and 35 to 39. A few of the interviewees talked about a close relationship to 1 of their parents, some had occasional contact, and many more had no contact at all, felt abandoned, or had decided to keep their parent(s) at a distance, not least out of consideration for their own children. The interviews showed that their adult relationship to and/or feelings for parents were still problematic and negatively affected their own well‐being, even if their parent(s) had died.

Coping strategies in life stories of young adults with foster care backgrounds

“…Many participants distanced themselves from their birth parents because of frustration over communication or meetings with them. Deliberating over whether to maintain or avoid contact with birth parents has also been recognised in previous studies (Andersson, 2018;Chateauneuf et al, 2018;Moyers et al, 2006).…”

“…Research supports the beneficial effects of keeping in touch with birth parents (Atwool, 2013;McWey & Mullis, 2004), but some children and youth experience the relationship as taxing and do not wish to see them (Lundström & Sallnäs, 2009;McWey et al, 2010). According to Franzén and Vinnerljung (2006), it is not uncommon for foster care children and youth to lose a birth parent before the age of 18 years, which can result in further emotional load (Andersson, 2018).…”

Recognising the caring capabilities of birth families of removed children: Towards a critical policy agenda

“…Further, 81% of respondents reported having weekly contact with a biological family member. In contrast, a recent Swedish study found problematic relationships often develop between care leavers and their birth parents over time, particularly if the problems facing the birth parents remain (Andersson, 2018). The connection among birth family members often survives lengthy disruption and continuing difficulties (Courtney and Hughes-Heuring, 2005; Samuels and Pryce, 2008).…”

An exploration of building up the quality of parent‐child relationship in residential childcare in Macao

“…Children who grow up without parental care have already had adverse experiences in childhood, which foster a profound distrust of people and the world that has a long‐term impact on their ability to thrive (Gorina & Sukste, 2019). Andersson (2018) found that adults who had out‐of‐home care in childhood reported mixed feelings about their parents and tended to keep them at a distance, with almost none claiming to have a close relationship with their parents. Children in residential care do not put a high importance on their relationships with their parents, which are characterized by lack of trust, uncertainty, and a perception of the birth family's inadequate capacity to support their needs (Bejenaru & Tucker, 2017).…”

“…However, the perspective of parents has not been sufficiently examined.Maintaining the parent-child relationship while a child is in the child welfare system is a common challenge worldwide. Adults who received out-of-home care during childhood report mixed feelings about their parents, with almost none claiming to have a close relationship with their parents (Andersson, 2018). When comparing their relationships with biological parents versus with childcare workers, children perceive their parents as more vulnerable and trust them less, which is understandable given that most of their parents have difficult backgrounds or living conditions (Maaskant et al, 2016).…”