Factors Associated With the Adjustment of Foster Children in the Netherlands

Information obtained from 419 case files was used to investigate the associations between the foster child's adjustment to the foster family and factors in the histories of the child and the parents, as well as factors in the relationship between foster children and their biological parents while they are placed in foster care. Problems in the foster child's prior history, particularly attachment disorders and the experience of replacements, affect the extent of adjustment to the foster family. In-home visits by the child and the absence of parental permission to stay with the foster family are two factors related to the parent-child relationship that impeded adjustment. In general, parental problem factors did not affect adjustment. The fact that many foster children come from problem-laden backgrounds raises the question of whether foster parents are always sufficiently equipped to cope with these problems.