How Satisfaction with Caseworker and Agency Communication Might be the Missing Piece to Foster Parent Retention in the US

• Background and Purpose: Foster parents play a crucial role in providing care and stability for children in out-of-home care (OOHC), often shouldering responsibilities more strenuous than those of biological parents. These children, having experienced trauma or significant life disruptions, rely on foster parents for safety and support amidst uncertainty. However, fostering comes with challenges, particularly in communication between foster parents and caseworkers. Few studies have engaged quantitatively with communication practices and the satisfaction of foster parents and their effects on foster parent satisfaction and retention. This paper looks to delve into the perceptions and communication preferences of foster parents in the United States, addressing two key research questions: 1. Do foster parents feel that current communication is sufficient? and 2. What communication preferences do foster parents have regarding contact with caseworkers?
• Theoretical Backing: Drawing upon the Equity Theory framework, which emphasizes the importance of reciprocity and support in fostering satisfaction and retention, this study examines the impact of communication on foster parent recruitment and retention. Child welfare workers, burdened by heavy caseloads and high turnover rates, struggle to provide adequate support and communication to foster parents amidst their myriad of responsibilities.
• Methods: This study investigates foster parent communication preferences through a mixed-methods online cross-state survey of 370 foster parents. This survey took place during the spring of 2022, 2 years after COVID-19 began and when individuals finally began to settle into the new reality of life with COVID-19 and the flexibility that it provided via innovative communication networks like Zoom.
• Results: Bivariate and multivariate analysis reveals demographic factors impacting communication satisfaction and preferences, suggesting the need for updated and tailored communication strategies. Results indicate a modest level of satisfaction with current communication, with foster parents expressing a desire for more timely and informative communication from caseworkers. Foster parents overwhelmingly prefer text messages as the primary mode of communication. They value receiving information about a child's medical history, reasons for removal from their biological home, and routine/lifestyle information upon placement. Open-ended responses provide nuanced perspectives on improving communication, highlighting the importance of enhancing agency responsiveness and providing timely and relevant information to foster parents.
• Conclusions and Implications: The study offers valuable insights for public and private agencies seeking to support and retain foster parents. Underscoring the importance of understanding foster parent communication preferences for enhancing the foster care experience and promoting the well-being of children in OOHC, This poster presentation hopes to start a conversation about how to create more innovative and effective ways to communicate with the child welfare system’s most important human resource, the foster parents. Child welfare agencies should heed insight from foster parents regarding their communication preferences and attempt to quickly and efficiently interact with foster parents when possible.