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Self‐Protection in Adolescents in Foster Care
Author(s) -
Kools Susan,
Kools Susan
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of child and adolescent psychiatric nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.331
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 1744-6171
pISSN - 1073-6077
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-6171.1999.tb00063.x
Subject(s) - foster care , distancing , devaluation , psychology , mental health , identity (music) , self care , perception , health care , developmental psychology , medicine , nursing , psychiatry , political science , covid-19 , physics , disease , pathology , neuroscience , exchange rate , acoustics , infectious disease (medical specialty) , economics , macroeconomics , law
PROBLEM. Adolescents in long‐term foster care experience significant health and mental health problems. Little is known about their perceptions of the impact of foster care. METHOD. Seventeen adolescents were interviewed in their foster group homes. Dimensional analysis was used to develop theory on the impact of foster care. FINDINGS. Adolescents in foster care engaged in self‐protect ion strategies secondary to experiences of devaluation and uncertainty in foster care, including guarding foster child status, maintaining a defensive posture, distancing self, and keeping relationships superficial. Self‐protection resulted in a veneer of self‐reliance and social detachment. CONCLUSIONS. Strategies are suggested to address devaluing experiences and promote positive identity development in foster care.