Reshaping Child Welfare’s Response to Trauma Assessment, Evidence-Based Intervention, and New Research Perspectives

Growing evidence has linked early trauma with severe psychiatric consequences. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a potentially debilitating mental health condition found among some youth in foster care and foster care alumni. However, the current child welfare practice response has not met the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inResearch on social work practice Vol. 23; no. 6; pp. 651 - 668
Main Authors Ai, Amy L., Foster, Lovie J. Jackson, Pecora, Peter J., Delaney, Nancy, Rodriguez, Wenceslao
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.11.2013
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects
Adolescents
Arizona
California
Child Abuse
Child Welfare
Child Welfare Services
Children
Children & youth
Comparative analysis
Diagnostic Tests
Evidence
Evidence Based Practice
Foster Care
Idaho
Intervention
Interviews
Longitudinal Studies
Mental Health
Mental Illness
Outcomes of Treatment
Post traumatic stress disorder
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Program Effectiveness
Psychiatry
Social Development
Social Work
Texas
Trauma
United States (Midwest)
United States (Northwest)
Washington
California
Texas
Arizona
Idaho
Washington
complex PTSD
child welfare
posttraumatic growth (PTG)
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
foster care
mental health
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Summary:Growing evidence has linked early trauma with severe psychiatric consequences. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a potentially debilitating mental health condition found among some youth in foster care and foster care alumni. However, the current child welfare practice response has not met the demands in both assessment and intervention. This critical review aims to use the evidence to reshape the child welfare response to trauma in children and adolescents. We begin with research on the psychiatric consequences of child maltreatment and issues related to diagnostic assessment for PTSD. Next, we compare major foster care/alumni studies showing considerably higher rates of PTSD among young foster care recipients and alumni than among nationally comparable groups. To inform practice on childhood trauma, we then summarize current evidence-based interventions showing effectiveness with PTSD. Finally, we address new dimensions, such as gene–environment research, posttraumatic growth, and implications for reshaping child welfare practice and foster care.
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ISSN:1049-7315
1552-7581
DOI:10.1177/1049731513491835