ARC Reflections: Implementation Evaluation of a New Trauma Training for Foster Parents

Background/Purpose: Children in foster care experience trauma, often in many forms—through child abuse and neglect, and via exposure in their biological families (e.g., substance abuse, domestic violence) and foster care (e.g., repeated separation from caregivers). Not surprisingly, research demonstrates that children in foster care exhibit poor functioning compared to their non-maltreated peers. However, trauma-informed approaches show promise for supporting more favorable child outcomes (Bartlett et al., 2016). The current study examines the implementation of a widely-used trauma treatment model, Attachment, Self-Regulation, and Competency (ARC), adapted for use in child welfare as a 9-week training for foster parents, called ARC Reflections (Kinniburgh & Blaustein, 2005).

Method: We conducted an independent, mixed methods implementation evaluation of ARC Reflections to determine (a) the level of fidelity with which the training was implemented; (b) the extent to which training increased foster parents’ knowledge of trauma; and (c) whether the training was associated with more stable foster care placements. A total of 115 foster parents were trained: 57% were female; 83% were White, 17% Black, 3% Asian, 3% Hispanic; and 83% had some college education. Children placed in foster homes (n=172) averaged 7.8 years old. Measures included surveys (Resource Parent Knowledge and Beliefs Survey [Sullivan et al., 2014]; Protective Factors Survey [FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention & the University of Kansas Institute for Educational Research & Public Service, 2004]; project demographic survey), as well as focus groups, observations of trainings and implementation meetings, attendance sheets, fidelity checklists, and child welfare administrative data. Qualitative data were coded using NVivo.

Results: Evaluation findings showed significant increases in foster parents’ knowledge of trauma-informed parenting, t (67) = -11.77; p = 0.000, tolerance of misbehavior, t (80) = -6.72; p = 0.000, and parenting efficacy, t (78) = -9.75; p = 0.00. Their knowledge gains remained significant from pre-training to follow-up, although gains were not sustained from post-training to follow-up. Review of fidelity checklists, and self-report by trainers indicate a high level of fidelity to the model, with some minor deviations. Trainers, foster parents, and child welfare staff expressed a high level of satisfaction with ARC Reflections, though trainers noted the need for follow-up to reinforce learning and the knowledge gains that had been made. Most agreed that the strength of ARC Reflections is the practical and concrete tools it provides. Additional analysis will be conducted to assess the effects of the ARC Reflections on family protective factors and placement stability.

Conclusions: Results of this evaluation suggest that ARC Reflections led to important gains in foster parents’ knowledge and ability to care for children who have experienced trauma. The training appears to fill a void that current foster parent preparation does not. Additional results will be presented and implications for social work policy and practice will be discussed with the audience.