Impact of Foster Care On Sexual Activity of Maltreated Youth

Background and Purpose: Approximately one in every three teenage girls will become pregnant before she reaches age 20. Of those females in foster care, research suggests one half will become pregnant by the age of 19. Prior research, while minimal, appears to target the institution of foster care as the mechanism elevating teen pregnancy rates for foster youth. However, because prior studies compare samples of foster youth to general samples of youth, there is little evidence to disentangle the impact of child maltreatment, family of origin and foster care. In other words, is foster care to blame for elevated pregnancy rates or are the child's family and maltreatment the primary risk factors? Using the National Study on Child and Adolescent Wellbeing (NSCAW), this study examines the impact of foster care, child maltreatment and family of origin on sexual activity among maltreated youth.

Methods: NSCAW is a longitudinal study with five waves of data collection. This study uses the Child Protective Services (CPS) public release sample which includes children from families that had a CPS case opened during the 15 month study period regardless of whether the initial report of maltreatment was substantiated and/or services received. Data was collected through interviews and assessments with children, caregivers, caseworkers and teachers. Female children are included in the sample if they were 11 years old or older and living in their home at Wave 1 (n °Ö 496). The dependent variable in the analysis is sexual activity. This variable is a categorical variable constructed with data across waves to indicate whether the child was ever 'pregnant,' 'sexually active,' or 'remained abstinent.' The primary independent variable is a dichotomous variable indicating whether the child had ever been placed in foster care. Caregiver changes is the mediating variable and is a count of all the times the child changed primary caregivers during the five waves of data collection regardless of whether he or she was in foster care. Control variables include the number family of origin problems, child maltreatment and race. Multinominal logistic regression is used. Results: Results from the multinomial regression indicate that foster care does not impact sexual activity. However, the amount of changes in caregivers and experiencing sexual abuse do increase the likelihood of a child becoming sexually active rather than remaining abstinent. Problems within the family of origin appear to be the strongest predictor of sexual activity and pregnancy among maltreated youth. Increased problems within the family of origin increase the likelihood of both sexually activity and pregnancy. Conclusions and Implications: While prior research demonstrated high rates of pregnancy for foster youth, problems within the family of origin and caregiver changes, rather than foster care itself, appear to explain increased rates of sexual activity and pregnancy. For maltreated youth, entrance into foster care will not necessarily increase the likelihood of pregnancy. However, foster care programs and programs targeting maltreated youth, particularly those who have been sexually abused, should address sexual health education.