Professionals' Perspective on Informal Kinship Caregiving Experiences

Background and Purpose

Approximately 7.8 million children in the U.S. are estimated to live in households headed by grandparents or other relatives, living arrangements referred to as kinship care (Generations United, n.d.). The majority of kinship care arrangements are made privately between parents and relative caregivers, and they are often called informal kinship care (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2018). However, prior studies mainly focused on formal kinship care, also known as relative foster care, and our understanding of informal kinship care is very limited (Berrick & Hernandez, 2016). This often results in the disparities in programs and services available for children and caregivers in informal kinship care. The current study attempts to improve our understanding of informal kinship caregivers’ experiences through the lens of professionals working with this population.

Methods

For this qualitative study, semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with eight professionals from non-profit organizations directly working with children and caregivers in informal kinship care in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. An interview guide was utilized that explored the professionals' perspectives on informal kinship caregivers' experiences, including their needs and available programs and services. The interviews also inquired about the professionals' experiences in collaboration with other agencies and organizations such as schools and social service agencies. The interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. The researchers independently read and coded the transcribed interviews, identifying the emerging, consistent themes.

Results

The professionals who participated in the study included social workers, legal professionals, and para-professionals of kinship caregivers. Three categories emerged from the interviews: 1) the process of current informal kinship care arrangement; 2) challenges in kinship caregiving; and 3) limited resources available for informal kinship care. Under the process of current informal kinship care arrangement, three themes were identified that included the experiences of trauma, limited time to prepare for a new role as a primary caregiver for related children, and perceived stigma toward kinship care. Under the category of challenges in kinship caregiving, two themes emerged which were financial strain and legal issues (e.g., related children’s enrollment in school, legal custody of related children). Under the category of limited resources available for informal kinship care, two themes were identified, including difficulties in accessing and utilizing available programs and services, and limited space for caregivers to process their experiences.

Conclusions and Implications

The study findings illustrate both common and unique experiences of informal kinship caregiving. They also highlight implicit and explicit difficulties children and caregivers in informal kinship care experience. For example, the professionals shared that many informal kinship caregivers do not share their caregiving experiences in fear of stigma toward related children’s biological parents, who are often the children of caregiving grandparents. In addition, the notion that the professionals themselves experienced challenges in securing resources for children and caregivers in informal kinship care demonstrates the limited availability of programs and services for this population. The implications of the study findings for social work practice and policy will be discussed, with a special emphasis on the need of advocacy work for this population.