This is the first study to date that has examined the experience of former foster youth, the aging out process, and their experiences of hope through the lens of positive youth development, which holds that contexts can be altered to improve youth outcomes, and how such changes in context may actually create changes within the person. (Union Institute & University)
The purpose of this study was to explore what social workers are doing to help youth age out of the foster care system. This research project gathered data in a qualitative study from social workers and how they help youth gain the needed skills to achieve self-sufficiency before they age out at age twenty-one. (MSW Thesis, University of St. Thomas…
This qualitative study used intensive interviews to explore the trajectory of a small number of youth who have transitioned out of foster care, outlining the social, economic and psychological barriers they faced while also charting the attitudes, behaviors and experiences that allowed them to successfully exit the foster care system and move toward productive adult lives. (University of Pennsylvania Dissertation)
Casey Life Skills (CLS) is a free tool that assesses the behaviors and competencies youth need to achieve their long-term goals. It aims to set youth on their way toward developing healthy, productive lives. (Casey Family Programs)
This review summarizes state policies that promote teen permanency and identifies barriers that hinder the permanent connection of teens through reunification, adoption, or guardianship. (National Center for Youth Law)
The authors, seasoned and experienced group workers and researchers with youth leaving the child welfare system, will present a conceptual framework and set of practices for helping youth gain those life skills essential to effective transition and independence. The article addresses key concepts such as life skills, the nature of transition, and independence, its requirements and its support. (Journal: Residential…
In this policy brief, we explore how young people leave foster care given they entered care for the first time between the ages of 13 and 17. (Chapin Hall, University of Chicago)
This study explored the perceptions of former foster youth as a means to analyze the factors that contribute to the positive and negative outcomes of foster youth once aging out of the foster care system. (University of California, San Bernardino)
This article applies the life course perspective to describe the theoretical and contextual foundation that explains the hardships foster youth experience when they emancipate from the U.S. child welfare system. Next, the theoretical basis for natural mentoring among foster youth is explored using the resiliency perspective to frame the discussion. (University of Pennsylvania)
The project presented sought to find a possible correlation between participation in the Independent Living Program (ILP) while in foster care and overall success after emancipation from the foster care system. For the purpose of this study, the meaning of success is that the participant was able to sustain a life without being homeless whether attending college, obtaining employment, or…