Social Support Research Paper

In order to work effectively and appropriately with vulnerable and marginalised groups in society such as individuals with mental illnesses, it is fundamental for a social worker to have a comprehensive knowledge base and proficient skills.

Foster children struggle immensely within healthcare and the foster care system. They are not receiving the correct support to help them when they go out into the real world.Within foster care, children and teens can either go into a foster home or a group home. Group homes can prevent permanent and authentic connections, while in foster homes, adolescents experience abuse and they are aware that there is no long term stability. For fifteen years, Betsy Krebs has worked with teens in the foster care

Many children can have social problems, identity problems, and many other difficulties. Many studies have been observing that the established structure of foster care can diminish the status of a foster child, and the view of the foster child has been stereotyped bringing many consequences and negative effects on the child. Throughout being in foster care, adolescents experienced low self-esteem and depression. The long term consequences of these conditions are slurred self-identity, social isolation, lack of a true family connection, low self-confidence, and lack of future goals. Also, they are more likely to separate themselves and experience depression and many other disorders, asking themselves what did they do wrong for their biological parents to leave them, or why doesn’t anyone truly want to take care and love them. If Jeannette and the other siblings would have been sent to foster care, Lori, Jeannette, and Brian would not have been motivated to move out on their own and pursue their dreams. If they would have been sent to foster care they also would not have each other, and as one can see, the Walls children were close to each other, often relying on one another for

Each year 542,000 children nationwide live temporarily with foster parents, while their own parents struggle to overcome an addiction to alcohol, drugs, illness, financial hardship or other difficulties (Mennen, Brensilver, & Trickett, 2010.) The maltreatment they experienced at home, the shock of being separated from their birth parents, and the uncertainty they face as they enter the foster care system leave many children feeling abandoned or lost. Children have many needs, but while in foster care these needs are not always met. A supportive family environment is created for those children whose parents are not able to take the

As of 2016 there were nearly a half million children in the foster care system, with roughly 25,000 “aging-out” each year (Ahmann, 2017). Most adolescents “age out” of the system with no one to mentor or serve as a caring parent figure. Foster youth are in dire need of long-term adult role models to guide them to achieve success. According to Ahmann, 50% of foster youth left “the system” without a high-school degree, as well as with having higher rates of PTSD, and depression (p. 43). Ahmann presented that research has proven teenagers, in general, that have quality relationships from adults able to provide support, do better than those that do not. If research has shown efficacy in supportive adult figures in a teen’s life then one can conclude that foster youth would also benefit. Foster children are at a disadvantage a soon as they enter “the system” so giving them resources proven positive is vital to their future success.

More than two-hundred and fifty thousand children enter the foster care system each year, making it extremely difficult to find the right caregiver for each child. There are so may effects on the child that last their entire lifetime, making it difficult for them to trust others. Not being able to trust their peers, they often find it hard to make friends and long-term relationships last. Fortunately, there are many results that can improve everyone’s position in placing the child. Foster care agencies repeatedly create destructive situations due to the selected caregiver, as well as the plethora of glitches that are created. Due to the unacceptable and inappropriate selection of foster parents, the child frequently experiences difficulties and disadvantages later on. Most children are placed into foster care because of mistreatment and experience the same treatment in their foster homes. Unfortunately, a lot of times the foster parent will take their anger out on their foster child, making a wide array of short-term and long-term complications for the child.

Over 600,000 children in the United States are in the foster care system. Reasons include, abuse, neglect and abandonment. These children lack nurturing environments and stable homes. Children within the foster care system have more mental, physical and developmental problems. It is imperative to understand the challenges children entering the foster care system are exposed to. The system works best when children are provided nurturing, and short-term care until they can be placed back home safely or a permanent adoptive family. For many children, however, the stay is longer, with 30% remaining in temporary care for over two years. Staying in the system is detrimental to the child’s well-being. The foster care system is an unsuccessful intervention for children that cultivates development, health and mental issues.

As of today, approximately 415,000 children are in the foster care system within the United States of America, and about 22,000 teenagers age out of the system, without any assistance, or any financial support (AFCARS 2015). Without guidance, it is more than likely for a teenager to turn to selling drugs, prostitution, or other criminal activities to provide for their basic necessities. Research has shown that those who leave foster care without any stability, have a higher probability to face prison time, homelessness, and are not able to maintain a financially stable lifestyle when he or she grows out of the system. At the age of seventeen, children are kicked out of their homes, and are forced to survive by his or her own means of survival. The children are not allowed to contact previous foster families, or anyone within the system to help them transition into adulthood. The transition from foster care, to adulthood can be a difficult one, especially for children who have endured different forms of psychological and physical abuse for the majority of their lives. It is important to reach out to children in need, especially those leaving foster care without any assistance. Many of those who age out of foster care are completing their last years in high school, and on top of school, they are forced to find a job, a home, and some sort of transportation. The youth leave the foster care system with a limited work history, if any at all, and a limited education. The little

An adult’s psychological development depends on one’s childhood experiences with adults and their capability of providing nurturance, protection, trust, and security to the developing child. Children with current and previous ties to the foster care system were found to have behavioral, emotional, and social well-being issues. The United States averages more than 400,000 children in foster care during the year. Amongst these 400,000 children, as many as 50% have developmental disorders or psychiatric diagnoses (Hutchinson). Children placed within the foster care system are more likely to be found to have mental health issues due to the inadequacy

The second problem hindering foster care is that teens that are placed in group homes often age out of the system without proper support. When placed into group homes, children and especially teens are left without the chance to connect with a permanent, adoptive family and the connections to create a supportive system. Unfortunately, the reality of aging out of the system is pretty upsetting. One in five teens who have aged out of the system will become homeless, more than 40% of these teen won’t complete high school and within two years of leaving foster care, one in four will end up tangled up in the justice system.

Often when identifying problems within the child welfare system, only the very surface level issues get scratched: too many children having to enter, not enough willing foster families, and non-adequate staffing. However there are problems that are much more serious and often looked past. The foster care system faces various problems including the developmental and mental health issues that affect children and the struggles teenagers encounter once they age out of the system. With innovative new plans like intensive training for workers and foster families to create communities of support and establishing a system of prolonged and permanent health attention, these problems could be fixed.

In the United States there are over a half a million children in the foster care system. (AFCARS Report, 2015) The foster care system is a temporary arrangement for children whose parents are not able to care for them. (adopt.org) Foster care can be arranged through the courts or a social service agency. The goal for a child in the foster care system is usually reunification with the birth family, but may be changed to adoption when this is seen as in the child's best interest.

One of this disadvantages of foster care, is there is an instability in the system. At times social workers are unaware that the placement of the child was ruled in court for the return of the child to their parents. Another disadvantage is that the transitory environment of the foster placements has been a problematic component in the child welfare system (Crosson-Tower, 2014, p. 316). Some children already experience attachment issues prior to removal from their home. These issues will further advance and creating more problems with the child. Since foster care is a temporary environment for the child, children may adjust to this temporary placement only to be removed and either return home or be placed with another temporary family. These transitions effect the child’s behaviors and emotions. The goal is to provide the child permanency. However, the foster care system is not meant to

Everywhere across the world, more and more children are being placed into foster care or a welfare type system. Foster care can benefit children or harm them; the effects of foster care differ for every individual. These types of systems often have a major effect on young children’s physiological state. Children entering in foster care are often malnourished and have untreated health problems. A high percentage of children who are placed in these types of systems have mental health, physical health, and/or developmental issue which often originates while the individuals are still in the custody of the biological parents. Children in foster care should be provided with a healthy and nurturing environment which often provides positive long term results. The age of children in a foster care varies across the world, but it is often seen that majority of these children are young (George para. 1). There are more young children in the system because younger children require more adequate care than older children that are already in the system. Placing these children in welfare systems is supposed to be a healing process for them. Although this is supposed to be a healing process, statistics say these children have a negative experience while being in these systems, but this is not always the case. A number of children in foster care fall sucker to continuous neglect and recurrent abuse with the lack of nurturing and an unstable environment. These same children often have unmet

Supervision in social work is defined by Barker (1999) as an administrative and educational process used extensively in social agencies to help social workers further develop and refine their skills, enhance staff morale, and provide quality assurance for the clients. The short term objective of supervision is to provide workers with the work structure and agency resources which help to increase workers knowledge and skills to do their jobs effectively and professionally. The long term objective of supervision is to provide clients the most efficient service possible, consistent with agency policies and procedures.