Adult outcome of children reared for long-term periods in foster families

Objective: To study the long term impact of adverse childhood experiences resulting from family breakdowns combined with a stable care environment. Another aim was to determine predictive factors for maladjusted psyche-social integration in adulthood. Method: Sixty-three children from severely psychosocially dysfunctioning families selected from among those having been in care in an institutional setting: All had been reared for at least 5 years by foster families, had been out of care for more than 5 years and were at least 23 years old at the time of the survey. Semi-structured interviews were used in a follow-up study to assess adult outcome, essentially in terms of professional status, social, and family relationships. Results: Data was obtained for 94% of the study population (n = 59), 71% via direct interviews (n = 45). The majority had managed to overcome their childhood adversities: 56% were well-integrated socially, 12% had average integration results, 20% were partially integrated and 10% were in situations of failure. These difficulties were linked to multiple family disturbances and repeated traumatic experiences during childhood (p < .05). Multiple regression analyses indicated that these risk factors accounted for 28% of the variance in the social integration score (p < .0001). Severe emotional deprivation over a prolonged period was a contributing factor to clinical disorders. Conclusion: At the study period, intergenerational repetition of ''child placement'' behaviors, significant in the previous generation, had practically disappeared. The results also highlighted the substantial psychotherapeutic and child-rearing assistance provided by the staff of the foster care agency. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.