A Behavioral Intervention With Foster Families

University of Arizona

Status: Completed

Conditions: Behavior, Social; Family Relationship; Sibling Relations

Treatments: Behavioral: The Connected Family Series - For Foster Families

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05405972

STUDY00000382

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to investigate a behavioral intervention with foster families.

Full description

Study Aims: This study aims to investigate a technology-delivered family (sibling inclusive) intervention. Focus is on increasing family hardiness and preparation to care for children with disabilities and special needs in foster care. Three aims include: (1) establish the feasibility of the technology-based, family-centered intervention (2) explore in a preliminary manner the effects of the intervention on stress and relational quality outcomes among family member participants, and (3) an exploratory aim to determine feasibility and preliminary efficacy of the intervention on diurnal salivary cortisol levels within the foster family population.

Methods: This study employs a randomized control trial design of a behavioral intervention with both a control and experimental group. The intervention tested was created in partnership and adapted from the Connected Family Series (CFS) by psychologists at the Karyn Purvis Institute of Childhood Development and is called the Connected Family Series - For Foster Families (CFS-FF). Adaptation was needed as the original intervention was geared toward adoptive families and excluded foster families. The CFS-FF also needed content specific to fostering children with special needs. Stress and relational quality outcomes among members will be measured using the concepts of family hardiness, preparedness, and relationship development through a self-report questionnaire which include the Family Hardiness Index (FHI), the Integrating Foster Children (IFC) subscale from the Casey Foster Applicant Inventory (CFAI), and the Sibling Inventory of Behavior (SIB), respectively. Participation in the study spanned three to four months; one month for recruitment and collection of baseline data, one month for the intervention, and one-month post-intervention data collection. Exploratory aim 3 will be achieved by an objective indicator of stress-related biology, saliva diurnal cortisol rhythm, before and after completion of the intervention.

Enrollment: 95 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 7 to 85 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

1. licensed foster families
2. must have at least one permanent child (biological or adopted) living in the home before the foster or newly adopted child entered the home
3. at least one foster or foster-to-adopt child placed in the home
4. all participants other than the foster or foster-to-adopt child must be proficient in English

Exclusion criteria

1. Non-English speaking
2. No permanent sibling between the ages of 7 at 17
3. No current foster placement living in the home
4. Designated as a group home
5. Greater than six children living in the home

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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95 participants in 2 patient groups

Group Receiving Intervention

Experimental group

Description:

The intervention group receives a link each week connecting them to the videos for both parents and children as well as a communicating/connecting activity. The intervention is self-paced over a 4 week period. The intervention was titled the Connected Family Series - For Foster Families (CFS-FF) (further referred to as the intervention) and was created/adapted in partnership from the Connected Family Series (CFS) by psychologists at the Karyn Purvis Institute of Childhood Development (KPICD). A letter of support from the KPICD is available in Appendix D. Adaptation was needed as the original intervention was geared toward adoptive families and excluded foster families. This process was done with the original creator (Dr. Jana Hunsley) with members of the research team and fostering community.

Treatment:

Behavioral: The Connected Family Series - For Foster Families

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

Families in the control group receive no video links during the 4 week period. Families assigned to the control do have the opportunity to participate in the intervention post-data collection and analysis and outside of the research protocol.