Abstract: Provider and Youth Reflections on the Continued Transition Needs of Youth Exiting the Foster Care System (Society for Social Work and Research 30th Annual Conference Anniversary)

Schedule:

Sunday, January 18, 2026

Supreme Court, ML 4 (Marriott Marquis Washington DC)

* noted as presenting author

Julie Cederbaum, MSW, MPH, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Tamera Whitesides, MSW, Doctoral Student, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Zoe Shipner, MSW, Social Worker, University of Southern California, CA

Maggie Dade, MD, Developmental Pediatrician, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

William Monro, MSW, Project Coordinator, University of Southern California, CA

Julie Illustre, DSW, Director Child & Family Welfare, Children's Institute Incorporated, Los Angeles, CA

Background: Lack of support for transition age foster youth (TAYFC) can be detrimental to this abrupt launch into emerging adulthood and result in more challenging experiences as compared to their peers. Supportive relationships can improve this transition, with more supports and services resulting in the ability to better to navigate available resources and improved outcomes in adulthood. While national programs attempt to help support youth transitioning out of foster care, TAYFC often have limited safety nets outside of system-connected adults. Although research has established that social support results in positive outcomes for foster youth, less clear is how and in what ways this social support should be given. To fill this gap, this work used interviews and focus groups to understand strengths, challenges, and needs of TAYFC.

Methods: Data are drawn from a sequential mixed methods study of current and former service connected TAYFC. In these analyses we use service provider interviews (n=17) and focus groups with current and former youth (n=4 focus groups; 28 youth) which occurred January-March of 2024. TAYFC were recruited from one community-based organization. Provider interviews lasted approximately 30 minutes; focus groups ran 1-hour. Thematic analysis was employed to guide the process of data reduction, coding, and creation of themes. One experienced PhD along with trained a PhD student, MSW student, and two TAYFC research assistants engaged in data coding. Consensus on coding, coding procedures, and any modifications to codebooks occurred through regular team meetings. Once consensus was reached, each transcript was assigned to two reviewers. Analysis included using coding, consensus, co-occurrence, and comparison method.

Results: Four themes arose which highlighted strengths and challenges, as well as opportunities for changes to the delivery of services with the goals of better meeting the needs of TAYFC. The four themes included (1) mentoring/modeling (inclusive of life skills and personal relationships), (2) youth (resilience and resourcefulness) and provider strengths (commitment to TAYFC), (3) youth (emotional support and developmental needs) and (4) services and service challenges (constraints ofc time and individualization).

Conclusion: Overall, the results contribute to the literature on the specific support needs of youth development, including factors that can facilitate future achievements. Specifically, the findings highlight how essential time and consistent support are to the well-being of TAYFC. Specifically, the findings highlight how essential time and consistent support are to the well-being of youth as they transition from foster care into adulthood. Given the importance of building social support and networks, the findings offer valuable insight into key areas where policies and programs can be modified to bolster the successful transition to adulthood for this vulnerable population.