Transitional Foster Youth’s Perceptions of Preparation to Act as Self-Advocates

Foster youth face a number of challenges as they transition from adolescence to young adulthood. Emancipation for foster youth occurs between the ages of 18 and 22, during which those successful in this transition are required to make well thought out decisions and act in their own best interest. However, few foster youth have learned the skills necessary to act as self-advocates. This in-depth phenomenological study explored the perceptions of three emancipated foster youth who were judged to be more effective self-advocates than their peers, concerning how prepared they felt to act as self-advocates. Research findings highlight the fact that many emancipated foster youth are rarely taught self-advocacy skills explicitly but rather learn the skills themselves through trial and error or happenstance and suggest ways that therapists can make the process. Research findings also suggest that acting as a self-advocate may enhance the educational choices and familial relationships of transitional foster youth.

Adapting to aging out: Profiles of risk and resilience among emancipated foster youth

This investigation employed latent profile analysis to identify distinct patterns of multiform competence among 164 emancipated foster youth (Mage = 19.67 years, SD = 1.12; 64% female). Fit indices and conceptual interpretation converged on a four-profile solution. A subset of emancipated youth evidenced a maladaptive profile (16.5%; n = 27), which was characterized by low educational competence, low occupational competence, low civic engagement, problematic interpersonal relationships, low self-esteem, and high depressive symptoms. However, the largest group of emancipated youth exhibited a resilient profile in which they were faring reasonably well in all domains despite marked adversity (47%; n = 77). Two additional groups evidenced discordant adjustment patterns wherein they exhibited high levels of psychological competence despite behavioral difficulties (i.e., internally resilient; 30%; n = 49) or significant emotional difficulties despite manifest competence (i.e., externally resilient; 6.5%; n = 11). The obtained profiles were validated against independent measures of behavioral and socioemotional adjustment. Exploratory analyses examined etiological differences across profiles with respect to child welfare variables, such as age at entry into care, placement disruption, reason for placement, and severity of child maltreatment. The findings highlight the need for multidimensional models of risk and resilience and illustrate the importance of heretofore underappreciated heterogeneity in the adaptive outcomes of emancipated foster youth.