Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)

Background: The process of aging out of foster care juxtaposed with the challenge of parenting creates numerous challenges for youth. Often on their own and without state support, these young people evidence difficulty navigating this stage independently, demonstrating increased rates of underemployment, homelessness, substance abuse, and low educational attainment (e.g., Massinga & Pecora, 2004) relative to their counterparts not involved in the system. Although teenage pregnancy rates are declining, youth in foster care remain 2.5 times more likely to have been pregnant than their non-foster care peers and are likely to have more children (Courtney et al., 2006). Despite this trend, research has only begun to illuminate the complex antecedents to teenage pregnancy among this population (e.g., Knight et al., 2006). Further, interventions have not kept pace, instead tending to focus on conventional norms of prevention while failing to incorporate the perspectives of young mothers themselves. This study brings these voices to bear on our understanding of the complex nature of parenting among this population. Methods: This study is part of a mixed method longitudinal panel study, The Midwest Evaluation of Adult Outcomes of Former Foster Youth, that tracks 736 foster youth aging out across three states. From this larger study, a two wave qualitative project was designed to conduct semi-structured interviews with 44 young adults selected through use of Latent Class Analysis methods. This paper provides findings from the first wave of interviews (which occurred when subjects were approximately 20 years old) with a subset of 15 females who identified as pregnant or parenting during the interview. Questions framing the analysis include: 1) What is their experience of pregnancy and parenting, 2) How do developmental factors (e.g., familial, foster care) inform constructions of parenthood, and 3) How do parenthood experiences inform future plans as young adult parents? Results: Rigorous analysis conducted by both co-authors revealed themes illustrative of the unique nature of parenting among this population. First, despite multiple barriers, many view having a baby as a potential positive life turning point. This is shaped by several sub-themes, including increased sense of purpose and an opportunity to heal or prevent past wrongs done to them by their parents but over which they had little control. With this purpose often comes a sense of belonging and importance--a unique relational experience for many of these women. Yet, this sense of purpose occurs often against overwhelming odds. Not only do many of these mothers express doubt about their capacity to parent; they also identify multiple material ways through which their histories negatively impact their potential to support children. Conclusions: This study challenges traditional approaches to pregnancy intervention and prevention among teens. According to these findings, this population is not exhibiting high rates of pregnancy due to lack of information. Instead, we recommend systemic interventions that include attending to youth's relational histories with their parents, examining the meaning foster youth attach to parenting, and finding ways for youth to develop and maintain relationships that provide a sense of familial belonging and connection.