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Emancipated foster youth: A study of outcomes of emancipated foster youth in a transitional housing program

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Emancipated foster youth: A study of outcomes of emancipated foster youth in a transitional housing program

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Content EMANCIPATED FOSTER YOUTH: A STUDY OF OUTCOMES OF
EMANCIPATED FOSTER YOUTH
IN A TRANSITIONAL HOUSING PROGRAM
by
Stephen Ryan Sanders
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(Social Work)
May 2001
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UM I Number: 3027773
_ _ ®
UMI
UMI Microform 3027773
Copyright 2002 by Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company.
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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
T he Graduate School
U niversity Park
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90089-1695
Thi s d issertatio n , w ritten b y
• S Y e p t i e n fd n rtirs ________________
U nder th e d ire c tio n o f h.J.'S.. D issertatio n
C om m ittee, a n d approved b y a ll its m em bers,
has been p resen ted to an d accepted b y The
G raduate School , in p a rtia l fu lfillm e n t o f
requirem ents fo r th e degree o f
D O C T O R O FPH 1LO SO PH Y
D a te May 11, 2001
DI SSER TA T IO N CO M M ITTEE
// a y
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ii
DEDICATION
To God be the glory for the mission and ministry placed in my
heart to advocate for his children.
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iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This study would not have been possible without the advocacy
and assistance of several individuals, beginning with my chair,
Madeleine Stoner, Ph. D., and my committee contributors, Jacquelyn
McCroskey, D.S.W., and Darnell Hunt, Ph. D.
I would also like to thank Shiralyn Ellerbe, Director of the
Transitional Housing Program; Otho Day, Program Manager for the
Transitional Housing Program; and Dr. Jeffrey Dorsey for the much
appreciated support they provided throughout the research process.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
DEDICATION..................................... ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS................................... ....iii
LIST OF TABLES ..... vi
ABSTRACT................................................. vii
CHAPTER
1. INTRODUCTION .................................... 1
Overview....................................................... 1
Child Entrance into Foster Care and Jurisdictional Authority..... 3
The Problem.......................... 5
Scope and Significance of the Problem........................... ...........7
Los Angeles County Supportive Services for
Emancipating Foster Youth............................. 8
Independent Living Program....................... 8
Post-Emancipation Services ..........................14
Research Questions and Hypotheses ...... .....21
Significance of the Study ........................ 22
2. LITERATURE REVIEW.................................. 24
Research Initiatives ....... 24
Research Findings Characteristics of Emancipated
Foster Youth........................................................... 31
Educational Attainment ...... 33
Employment, Income, and Cost to Community.....................39
Housing and Living Arrangements..........................................44
Health, Mental Health and Substance Abuse....................... 46
Summary of Findings from the Literature.....................................50
3. METHODOLOGY.................................................................................. 52
Study Design .............. 54
The Study Population .............................................................55
Instrumentation and Study Variables................ 56
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Page
Data Collection..............................................................................59
Data Analysis ......................................... 61
4. RESULTS.................................. 63
Study Group Distinctions .................. 65
Group 1,1966 Cohort.............................. 65
Group 2, Paired Group Respondents...................................66
Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondents................ 74
Cohort Who Participated in the B T l ......... ...................77
Group 4, Exit Survey Respondents........................ 82
Group 1, Group 3, and Group 4 Comparison ..... ..85
Post-BTI Living Arrangements ...... .....89
Youth Evaluation of Program Services.................... ....89
Qualitative Analysis.......................................................................90
Summary of Results ......................... 93
5. DISCUSSION.....................................................................................95
Outcomes Related to the BTl Participants ............. ....95
Post-BTI Living Arrangements ..... 96
Youth Employment and Financial Self-Maintenance...........97
Education .............................................................. 99
Health and Mental Health ............... 101
Summary.................... 109
Conclusion and Final Remarks................................................. 112
Limitations of This Study............................................................ 114
Suggestions for Future Research............................................. 116
SELECTED REFERENCES.................................................. 118
APPENDICES
A. ENTRANCE SURVEYS .......... 123
B. EXIT SURVEYS........................................ 142
C. DCFS 5200 FORMS.............................................................158
D. CORRELATION MATRIX FOR FIVE VARIABLES...........163
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LIST OF TABLES
Page
1. Cohort and Respondent Groups....................................................64
2. Group 1 Summary.. ............. ...67
3. Group 2, Paired Group Demographic Summary ................... 69
4. Paired T-Tests ................. 71
5. Paired Group Respondent Psychosocial Results.........................72
6. Multivariate Analysis of Time in Program and
Psychosocial Measures.. ................... ..............73
7. Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondent Demographic
Summary .................. 75
8. Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondents’ Outcome Summary ....76
9. Larger Cohort and BTl Sample Comparison ............. 79
10. Comparison of Cohort and Entrance Survey Responses 80
11. Group 4, Exit Survey Respondents’ Demographic Summary 83
12. Group 4, Exit Survey Respondents’ Outcome Summary ..84
13. Exit Respondents Psychosocial Results................. ..85
14. Group 1 (Cohort), Group 3 (Entrance Survey Respondents),
and Group 4 Demographic Comparison.................... ...86
15. Group 3 and Group 4 Comparison of Psychosocial Results 88
16. Youth Evaluation of BTl Services .................... 90
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ABSTRACT
Foster adolescents preparing for emancipation from foster care
often need special assistance in transitioning to adulthood. Large
numbers of youth discharged from foster care are ill-equipped to handle
the responsibilities of adult life. Often these youth leave foster care
lonely, without families, ill-educated, and lacking employment and social
skills. As a result, they are vulnerable to homelessness, unemployment,
mental-health challenges and various forms of substance abuse.
This study evaluated the impact of Bridges to Independence
Transitional Housing Program, a service-enriched homeless prevention
program, aimed at improving outcomes for youth who emancipated from
Los Angeles County foster care and were homeless or at risk for
homelessness. This study describes outcomes related to how program
participants progressed relative to exit-housing, employment,
educational attainment, health, and psychosocial functioning and
compares these youth with their emancipated cohort who did not
participate in this program.
The Bridges to Independence program had a significant impact on
youth income and locus of control and a positive impact on exit-housing,
employment, health, and youth exposure to post-secondary education.
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Most of the participants exited the program into stable housing, with
fiving-wage jobs and good health.
The program did not have a positive impact on youth self-esteem,
problem-solving, depression, or continuing enrollment in post-secondary
education. The study suggested the need for expansive mental-health
services as a core program service.
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Overview
Characteristically, youth in out-of-home care have histories of
maltreatment that compromise their abilities to live independently as
young adults. As foster youth approach the age of emancipation, they
often lack financial, emotional, and social support networks, as well as
consistent family ties.
Children enter foster care for protection from neglect or abuse.
But many exit foster care as adults ill-equipped for independent or
interdependent living (Aldgate, Maluccio, & Reeves, 1989). This study
discusses youth who enter the child welfare placement system and are
discharged into adulthood from the child welfare placement system, as
well as the system of supportive services available to them. It also
addresses outcomes reflected in current literature related to this
population, methodology, findings resulting from this study, and
implications related to these findings.
Studies have consistently found that many foster youth have
emotional, behavioral, psychological, physical impairments that impede
independent living. Additionally, many need remedial training. The 1990
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Westat National Evaluation of Title IV-E Foster Care Independent Living
Programs for Youth (Cook, 1991) found that youth exiting from foster
care had a number of significant problems and needs that interfered with
their ability to lead productive adult lives, including lack of educational
achievement, limited job skills and experience, physical and mental
health issues, and housing needs.
More youth exit out-of-home care as adolescents than at other
ages. It is estimated that nationally, approximately 20,000 teenagers
age out of foster care annually (Mech, Ludy-Dobson, & Huselman,
1994). Increasing numbers plan to emancipate into independent living
rather than return to their families, as many do not have the support of
families (DeWoody, Ceja, & Sylvester, 1993). Often these youth leave
foster care lonely, without families, ill-educated, lacking in social skills,
vulnerable to unemployment, and various forms of substance abuse, and
homelessness.
This study evaluated the impact of a specialized homeless
prevention program in improving outcomes for youth who emancipated
from Los Angeles County foster care between 1996 and 1999, were
homeless or at substantial risk of homelessness, and participated in the
Bridges to Independence Transitional Housing Program (BTl). An
outcome evaluation of this program provides information about this
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population in relation to their cohort, and assists program administrators
in determining the degree to which the BTl makes a difference for
emancipated foster youth at risk for homelessness.
A program evaluation also fulfills the ethical responsibility of social
workers to determine if clients are being helped (Royse & Thyer, 1996).
Consequently, this study adds to the limited database and describes
outcomes of former foster youth who experienced this experimental
intervention.
Child Entrance into Foster Care
and Jurisdictional Authority
Children enter foster care when the public child welfare agency
investigates, and the dependency court determines, that children are at
substantial risk of maltreatment and parents are unable to adequately
fulfill parental roles of child protection and/or provision. In California,
maltreated persons under the age of 18 are conferred dependency
status based on provisions of Sections 300-399 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code (WIC) and its subsections that describe maltreatment in
terms of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, exploitation,
and substantial risk of abuse (West’s California Juvenile Laws, 1994).
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Public welfare agencies are responsible for investigating and
ensuring child safety and enacting a surrogate parent system when out-
of-home placement is necessary. In Los Angeles County, the
Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) is responsible for
this role.
Out-of-home placement represents a major upheaval in the lives
of children and adolescents. The goal of out-of-home placement is to
provide time-limited safe and stable custody for children until the
parental home can be made safe for their return or they can be adopted
into a new permanent family (Downs, Costin, & McFadden, 1996; 42
USC 677,1980). The term “ foster care" includes relative care, foster
homes, group homes and residential placements. Some conditions or
situations make family reunification unlikely or impossible.
When children are neither reunified with parents nor adopted,
they remain under agency legal custody until adulthood or emancipation.
When the public agency is unable to shift to, or share, youth preparation
responsibility with parents, the child welfare system has the responsibility
for preparing adolescents for independent living. Until the juvenile court
terminates jurisdiction in a formal hearing, foster youth are not
emancipated from foster care and the supervision of the public agency.
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Unfortunately, this challenge is not always successfully met and
significant numbers of youth exit agency jurisdiction ill-prepared to
manage the tasks of adult living. These youth are in need of transitional
housing and supports to cushion their passage into adult living.
The Problem
Foster adolescents preparing for discharge from foster care often
need specialized assistance in transitioning into adulthood. Studies
suggest adolescents in foster care transition into adulthood less well
than adolescents not in foster care (Aldgate et a!., 1989; Cook, 1994;
Festinger, 1983; Iglehart, 1994; Mech et ah, 1994; Mech, 1988;).
Failure to equip emancipating foster youth with the necessary skills for
self-sufficiency prior to discharge from foster care often results in poor
adult outcomes. Youth exiting from foster care without the skills and
preparation needed to live self-sufficient lives are at high risk for
homelessness, unemployment, poor physical and mental health, and
educational deficits which limit their chances for productive lives.
Literature consistently cites educational and employment deficits,
continuing health and mental health needs, daily life skills deficits and
unresolved psychosocial issues as risk factors (Aldgate et ah, 1989;
Barth, 1990; Barth, 1989; Cook, 1994; DeWoody et ah, 1993; English,
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Kouidou-Giles, & Plocke, 1994; Iglehart, 1994; Mech, 1994a;
Scannapieco, Schagrin, & Scannapieco, 1995; Stone, 1987). Yet, little
research on the adult functioning of former foster youth has been
conducted (Mech, 1988).
Adolescents in foster care are confronted with the challenges
facing adolescents, in general, plus the demands inherent in their foster
care status (Aldgate et al., 1989). These demands are both physical
and emotional.
The anxieties associated with exiting foster care, attaining adult
status and responsibilities, and establishing an adult identity can be
overwhelming. While the mental health needs of emancipating youth
have not been extensively assessed, many of these youth suffer from
high levels of depression and discouragement; however, reviews of
outcomes for foster children also suggest that some have the capacity to
adjust rather well (Barth, 1986; Maluccio, Fein, & Olmstead, 1986).
Adolescents leaving care need help in adjusting to life on their
own (Faller, 1991). Transitional supportive services can be instrumental
in reducing anxieties related to emancipation and in providing the
necessary training and experiences needed to succeed in the adult
world. Homelessness appears to be a frequent result of aging out of
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foster care, with as many as 30% to 40% of the homeless population
having a history in foster care (Scannapieco et al., 1995; Barth, 1990).
Scope and Significance of the Problem
In 1989, more than one-third of youth living in out-of-home
placements were teenagers (DeWoody et al., 1993). Although the
majority of children entering foster care return home to their families or
are adopted, many are not privileged with the support of families
(DeWoody et al., 1993). Approximately one in four will remain in out-of
home placement until late adolescence (Barth, 1986), where they either
age out of the foster care system to more or less planned interdependent
living or exit care by means of one of several less auspicious routes,
such as running away, being incarcerated, or entering psychiatric
facilities (Courtney & Barth, 1996).
With increasing numbers of youth emancipating from foster care,
child welfare agencies search for models of effective services and
transitional support to assist youth in gaining the requisite skills for
adulthood. The BTl is one such model of transitional supportive
services.
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Los Angeles County Supportive Services
for Emancipating Foster Youth
The Los Angeles County Independent Living Program operates
under the guidelines established by the federal Independent Living
Program. Woven throughout the literature is the finding that many youth
discharged from child welfare agencies approach adulthood with limited
pre-discharge preparation. The DCFS, in collaboration with public and
private non-profit organizations, offers several programs and services to
assist youth transition to adult self-sufficiency: the Independent Living
Program, United Friends of the Children Bridges to Independence
Transitional Housing Program (BTl); and the Alumni Resource Center
(ARC). The independent living program provides pre-emancipation
skills, activities and services to assist foster youth age 16 to 18. The BTl
and ARC provide post-emancipation independent living program
services and supports to former youth age 18 to 20.
independent Living Program
The Los Angeles County Independent Living Program (ILP),
authorized under the federal independent living program and the
California Department of Social Services (CDSS, 1996), provides basic
living skills curriculum, specialized workshops, experiential life simulation
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activities, high school completion incentives, and college and vocational
assistance to youth in foster care age 16 and older. The ILP is the
umbrella under which emancipation preparation programs are offered in
Los Angeles County and throughout the United States. It is also the
umbrella under which post-emancipation services, including ILP
aftercare, are offered. Services are modeled in accordance with best
practice standards recommended by the Child Welfare League of
America (CWLA, 1989).
Substantial outreach activities to youth are conducted by DCFS
and its contracted agencies to encourage youth to take advantage of this
program. Youth enrolling in ILP classes receive $50 incentive payments
for each month of participation. Youth participating in the Bridges to
Independence Transitional Housing Program are eligible for services
and benefits provided by the ILP.
The continuum of ILP services is not a discrete program but an
approach that promotes foster youth growth and self-sufficiency (Cook,
1988). In a nationwide study of ILP programs, services, funding, and
youth outcomes, Cook (1991) estimated that nationwide, 60% of youth
had received some type of independent living service training before
discharge but only 31% had been enrolled in an independent living
program. Skill training content areas tended to include personal
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appearance, health, social skills, money management, decision-making,
housekeeping, housing food management, transportation, and utilizing
community resources.
In a study of independent living programs, Scannapieco et al.,
(1995) found that youth who participated in independent living programs
were more likely to complete high school than non-participants (50%
versus 13%), have employment histories and employment at discharge
(100% versus 72%), and were more likely to be self-supporting at the
closing of their case.
The Federal Independent Living Program was first authorized in
1986 with the passage of P.L. 99-272, the “Independent Living Initiative”
(42 USC 677, 1986). The Independent Living Program legislation was
federal acknowledgment of its parenting role in public child welfare and
the vulnerability and special needs of adolescents entering adult life
directly from foster care. The Independent Living Program authorized
states to provide an array of preparatory services and skills to enable
youth to transition from foster care into society. Authorized services
include educational and vocational training supports, counseling, training
in daily-living skills, outreach, coordination of services, a required written
transitional independent living plan, and other services and assistance to
improve youth transition to independent living (Allen/Bonner, &
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Greenan, 1988; 42 USC 677,1986). Independent Living Program
funding for room and board or medicai expenses was explicitly
prohibited.
In December 1999, P.L. 106-169, the Foster Care Independence
Act of 1999, was signed into law (42 USC 677,1999). This legislation
increased the ILP allocation and amended the Social Security Act to
provide states with more program services and flexibility to develop and
conduct programs designed to help foster children transition into
adulthood. The new legislation restructures independent living programs
by:
1. Allowing states to ensure Medicaid coverage to youth between
the ages of 18 to 21 who were in foster care on their 18t h birthday
by creating a new optional Medicaid eligibility group.
2. Allowing states to use up to 30% of their allocation for room and
board for youth age 18-21 who have aged out of foster care but
have not yet attained their 21s t birthday.
3. Increasing the assets that a foster youth can accrue in foster care
and still retain eligibility for Title IV-E funded foster care from
$1,000 to $10,000.
4. Requiring states to ensure the adequate preparation of adoptive
parents, foster parents, group-home staff and case managers,
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both initially and on a continuing basis, to address the issues
confronting adolescents preparing for independent living
5. Authorizing additional funding for adoption assistance payments
to states to assist in finding permanent homes for children in
foster care.
6. Promoting concurrent permanency placement and independent
living activities.
7. Increasing annual funding for ILP activities from $70 million to
$140 million dollars.
8. Permitting expenditures for room and board for young people
ages 18 to 21 who are leaving foster care.
9. Allowing states flexibility to define their own age guidelines for
services other than room and board without regard for the
previous eligibility provisions that required Title IV-E Foster Care
program participation.
10. Defining eligible youth as those who are likely to remain in foster
care until age 18 and children aging out of foster care regardless
of whether they are eligible for the Title IV-E Foster Care Program.
11. Requiring states to make benefits and services available to Indian
(Native American) children on the same basis as other children.
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12. Requiring youth to directly participate in the design of their
program activities and accept personal responsibility for achieving
independence.
13. Requiring states to use a portion of their funds for assistance and
services for youth age 18 to 21 who aged out of foster care.
14. Increasing state accountability for developing and measuring
outcomes for young people transitioning from foster care.
15. Imposing penalties for misuse of funds or noncompliance with
data reporting requirements.
16. Requiring states to consult widely with public and private
organizations in implementing the new program and developing a
5-year plan.
17. Encouraging the participation of youth previously served by the
child welfare system to assume at least an advisory capacity in the
development of the 5-year plan.
18. Giving states full discretion in choosing public and private sector
providers for independent living activities. This permits private not-
for-profit and for-profit facilities to receive funds and provide
services.
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Post-Emancipation Services
The Bridges to Independence Transitional Housing Program (BTl)
represents the end point of a continuum of child welfare services that
began with youth entrance into foster care. Organizationally, the BTl is
an auxiliary of United Friends of the Children, a nonprofit organization
dedicated to foster youth in need of support. The goal of the
organization is to assist all of the youth who emancipate from foster care
to achieve independent self-sufficient living. Since the inception of the
program in 1996, 595 youth have participated in the BTl.
The BTl program is a 12 to 24 month service-enriched homeless
prevention program that provides transitional housing and necessary life
skills training and services to youth age 18-21 who are former foster
youth and are not ready to live independently. The BTl currently
provides experiential training and experience to 234 youth, in both
cluster-site and scatter-site apartments. Approximately 70% of youth live
in cluster-site apartments.
The BTl represents a unique partnership between private and
public stakeholders interested in the welfare of youth discharged from
the jurisdiction of Los Angeles County foster care. The BTl is a
collaborative effort between United Friends of the Children Bridges, the
Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, the
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Los Angeles County Community Development Commission, the
Weingart Foundation, the Los Angeies Community Enhancement
Corporation, the federal government, and other public and private sector
agencies. United Friends of the Children is the lead agency in this
collaborative which provides coordination, fiscal oversight, and
fundraising support.
The BTl was developed in 1996 to assist DCFS in meeting the
transitional housing and supportive service needs of emancipated youth.
Youth eligible for this program have been discharged from DCFS foster
care and are homeless or at imminent risk for homelessness. The
program is funded by 11 grants solicited from the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) by DCFS and the Weingart
Foundation. The Weingart grant is monitored by the collaborative group.
Collectively, these sources fund the housing, furnishings, and
DCFS personnel that provide program administration and services. The
Los Angeles County Community Development Commission acquires
structurally and environmentally safe apartment buildings located in
multi-ethnic areas that have access to public transportation, markets,
community colleges, and community resources.
The program staff includes a director, an operations manager and
a service manager, eight social workers, three case assistants, and two
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clerical support staff. Three student interns assist program participants
completing surveys and with practical daily living tasks such as
shopping, cleaning, and organizing their apartments.
In cluster-site apartments all or the vast majority of tenants are
program participants. Residents benefit from ongoing peer support and
immediate staff availability as they experiment with new skills and
experiences in the community. Sometimes, youth are confused about
the role of staff and mistake their living environment for an extension of
foster care. Youth in scatter-site apartments integrate into the culture of
their complexes. Staff assigned to cluster-sites are also responsible for
monitoring the progress of youth living in proximate scattered-site
apartments.
Throughout the course of this study the staff to participant worker
ratio ranged from 18 to 1 to 30 to 1. BTI social workers assist new
residents in moving into their apartments, provide weekly ILP skills
training, monitor youth progress, and arrange youth interviews for
program research staff. Social workers assigned to cluster-sites have an
office on the premises. Management staff complete monthly reports that
describe individual resident’s employment, income, and education
status. These reports update resident information monthly.
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For purposes of program admission and youth assessment,
referents are categorized into three classifications. The first
classification is youth who are high-functioning college- and career-
bound youth who need temporary housing as they await college dorms,
pending stable housing arrangements, or acceptance into live-in training
programs, such as California Conservation Corps and Job Corps. Few
of these youth enter the BTI because they are capable of independently
meeting their housing and resource needs. None of this classification
were part of this study.
The second classification of youth is the emancipated youth for
which the BTI was created. These youth function at moderate to high
levels and benefit the most from the experiential services the program
provides. These youth were included in this study.
The third classification youth is characterized by mental health
challenges and need structured clinical supervision and support. Some
of these youth are accepted into the program in designated sites under a
joint supervision model with the Department of Mental Health assuming
the clinical lead in monitoring their care and functioning. The needs of
these youth exceed the clinical and supervisory capacity of the BTI.
None of these youth were included in this study.
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The BTI is not appropriate for all applicants. The program model
requires residents to be capable of functioning safely and with minimum
supervision. Physical violence, habitual drug use, refusal to work,
possession of weaponry, and serious disregard to the safety of others
are grounds for early termination.
Referrals to the BTI emanate from children’s social workers,
former care providers, and youth themselves. Referrals are screened to
ensure the appropriateness of the program in meeting youth needs.
Only youth who are capable of living independent of ongoing direct
supervision are accepted in the BTI. Eligible youth cannot be on a
regimen of psychotropic medication, have active juvenile justice
involvement, or histories of violence or chemical addictions. Youth with
children and physical disabilities who are capable of working and
benefiting from the program are eligible to participate.
The program provides a wide range of supportive services.
These services include a completely furnished apartment, paid utilities,
$200 per month food stipends, case management services, individual
counseling, job search assistance, transportation support, assistance in
attaining medical coverage, assistance in attaining permanent housing,
basic life skills, intensive independent living skills training, nutrition,
health and dental information, educational guidance, permanent housing
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assistance, child care allowances, and follow-up support services to
ensure smooth transition to adult self-sufficiency. Additionally, the BTI
provides a specialized career training and employment preparation
program designed to equip youth with marketable job skills.
Residents progressing in the program but not able to reach their
goals in 18 months may receive month-to-month extensions, based on
the results of case conferences that assess their sincerity and
motivation.
The DCFS Alumni Resource Center (ARC) was developed in
partnership with the United Friends of the Children Bridges to
Independence and the Weingart Foundation to fill in service and
resource gaps and provide post-emancipation services to graduates of
the Independent Living Program. Many participants in the BTI utilize
ARC services and are included in ARC social worker’s assigned
caseloads.
The ARC was developed in 1998, two years later than the BTI, to
provide additional HP aftercare and drop-in resource services for
emancipated foster youth. The ARC was aiso created to fill in identified
gaps in service to emancipated youth. Emancipated foster youth were
found to need a variety of services such as medical services, stable
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housing, employment, computer literacy, educational support, legal
support, and referrals to available community resources.
The ARC offers Medi-Cal enrollment services, provided by a
Medi-Cal eligibility worker out-stationed at the ARC, referrals to
community housing, employment, medical and legal resources, post
secondary financial and advocacy support, and crises counseling to
youth experiencing difficulties in handling dimensions of their adult-living
situations. The need for Medi-Cal services remains until provisions
permitted by the new Independent Living Program medical authorization
are in place.
The goal of the ARC support services is to equip youth
emancipating from foster care with the skills and resources needed for
transitioning to self-sufficient adult living. The drop-in resource center
provides scholarships and tangible and intangible after care support
services to youth who emancipate from foster care and wish to continue
educational or vocational training. These services include employment
counseling and referrals, workshops related to financial aid and college
pre-entrance documents, legal services, scholarship services, computer
instruction classes, and referrals to need-based specialized resources.
Adolescents in transitional settings need buoys and markers to
measure their course of independence (Furrh, 1983). Transitional living
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arrangements offer youth the chance to try living more-or-less on their
own with a safety net under them but without the foster parent/
adolescent conflict that often results during the last years (Barth, 1990).
Residents learn about consequences of their daily actions and decisions,
and have the opportunity to plan leisure experiences. Staff are able to
actively discourage criminal activity and involvement with drugs.
Collectively, these points of intervention provide comprehensive
services and support to many youth discharged from, or preparing to
discharge from, the Los Angeles County foster care system.
Nonetheless, many youth fall between the cracks and others leave foster
care ill-prepared for the responsibilities of adult living and independence.
Research Questions and Hypotheses
This study describes the effects of participation in a service
supported transitional housing program (BTI) for former foster youth
discharged from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and
Family Services. The study population participated in Bridges to
Independence, a specialized homeless prevention transitional housing
program, after discharge from foster care. These youth were either
homeless or at high risk for homelessness.
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This study describes findings related to the following research
questions:
1. Does the BTI make a difference in housing, employment,
educational attainment, and health outcomes for BTI youth?
2. Does the BTI affect psychosocial functioning in areas of self
esteem, problem-solving, locus of control, and depression of BTI
youth?
The BTI is expected to improve outcomes in several areas of
adult functioning. The expected results are related to the following
hypotheses: (a) The BTI will have a positive effect on youth educational
attainment, (b) the BTI will have a positive effect on youth employment,
(c) the BTI will have a positive effect on post-BTI housing, (d) the BTI will
have a positive impact on youth health, (e) the BTI will have a positive
impact on youth self-esteem, (f) the BTI will improve youth problem
solving skills, (g) the BTI will improve youth measures of internal locus of
control, and (h) the BTI will reduce youth measures of depression.
Significance of the Study
The scope of this study extends beyond existing literature by (a)
examining a large population of emancipated youth, (b) evaluating the
effectiveness of a new transitional living program along several
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23
instrumental domains, (c) assessing the mental health status by
evaluating the psychosocial functioning of emancipated foster youth who
participated in the program, and (d) establishing a database of youth
who emancipated from Los Angeles County foster care in 1996 that
provides a baseline for comparative analysis. This study also assists in
establishing a snapshot of the youth emancipating from the Los Angeles
County Department of Children and Family Services.
In contrast to the 1991 Cook research, this study establishes a
database for discharged youth, analyzes pre-discharge planning for
adult self-sufficiency and establishes a baseline for analysis. Findings
from this study will provide valuable information for similar transitional
housing models and provide suggestions for replication in other cities
and states throughout the United States. In summary, findings from this
study will contribute to knowledge-building and point to areas of inquiry
and intervention to improve post-discharge outcomes for youth.
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24
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
Research initiatives
Little empirical research has been published on outcomes for
youth who emancipate from foster care or their preparation for adult
independent living (Mech & Rycraft, 1995). Thematically, results from
studies of former foster youth suggest this population is at substantial
risk for unemployment or underemployment, homelessness, and
educational challenges.
Transition from dependent living to independent or interdependent
living presents exceptional challenges for many foster youth embarking
on emancipation from foster care. Often, their foster youth years were
characterized by family breakdown, maltreatment, educational deficits,
health and mental health challenges, multiple placements, limited
personal decision-making, and the absence of positive role models or
mentors. Consequently, many youth emancipate from foster care and
public agency supervision ill-prepared to fully mange the responsibilities
associated with adult self-sufficient living.
Presently, the empirical database consists of seven studies: (a) a
1983 study by Trudy Festinger that provided a follow-up report on 277
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25
former foster youths in New York City; (b) a 1984 follow-up study that
described the adult functioning of 328 former foster youth in West
Virginia conducted by Jones and Moses; (c) a 1990 study by Richard
Barth that described the experiences of 55 young adults who left foster
care in the San Francisco area; (d) a 1991 two-stage multi-state follow-
up study of the early adult functioning of 810 former foster youths
conducted by Ronna Cook, principal investigator for Westat Inc.; (e)
phase one and two of a three-wave study by Courtney and Piliavin
(1998, still in progress), that explored the experiences and adjustment of
141 Wisconsin youth discharged from out-of-home care; (f) a 1996 study
by Benedict, Zuravin and Stallings of the adult functioning of 214 former
foster youth discharged from Baltimore City Department of Social
Services that compared kinship and non-relative outcomes; and (g) a
1999 study conducted by McMillen and Tucker that assessed the exit
status of 252 youth discharged from the Missouri Division of Family
Services.
In aggregate, the database of outcomes for emancipated foster
youth contains information on 2,077 former foster youths.
Characteristically, outcome variables referenced in literature may be
summarized as educational attainment and status, employment and
income, family characteristics, post-discharge housing arrangements,
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patterns of young parenthood, support networks, cost to community, and
preparation for independent living (Mech, 1994a). Additionally, health,
mental health and criminal activity are frequently referenced and
discussed as indicators of post-emancipation functioning.
These studies describe various domains of youth post-discharge
functioning in somewhat different epochs. The Festinger (1983) and
Jones and Moses (1984) studies were retrospective research that
predated legislation that modified the Social Security Act to ensure
permanency planning for children (Adoption Assistance and Child
Welfare Act of 1980) and transitional independent living planning for
emancipating foster youth (Independent Living Initiative, 1985).
Nationally, child planning and monitoring was unaccountable and
disorganized (Allen & Knitzer, 1983) and public assistance was more
widely used as the imminent post-discharge plan for emancipating
teenagers. The ensuing legislation, which marked a positive shift in
government responsibility in monitoring and supporting emancipated
youth, was influenced by these studies.
These studies developed a conceptual framework for assessing
service gaps and youth post-discharge functioning. Respondent
comments provided important information on the failure of child welfare
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27
systems to adequately identify and prepare older teenagers for transition
to adulthood.
The Festinger study (1983) described the adult functioning and
experiences of former foster youth discharged from the New York
metropolitan area who were 18 to 21 years at the time of discharge. The
detailed description was from the perspective of the youth.
The Jones and Moses study (1984) described outcomes of youth
discharged from the West Virginia foster care system in 1984. The
purposes of the Jones and Moses study were to determine the
adjustment into the community and adult functioning of former foster
children and evaluate the foster care system after 1977.
These studies opened the doors to research on former foster
youth, providing new information, insights and a baseline from which
future research might draw. The Cook (1991), Barth (1990), Courtney
and Piliavin (1989), Benedict, Zuravin, & Stallings (1996), and McMillen
and Tucker (1996) studies were conducted after implementation of
permanency planning and independent living legislation, but preceded
the implementation of the Foster Care Independence Act of 1999.
Contemporary emancipated youth outcome research reports
findings related to services, programs and policy. The Cook (1991) and
Courtney and Piliavin (1998) studies reported findings of the programs
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and services intended to prepare and support adolescents in their
transition to adulthood. The Barth (1990) and the McMillen and Tucker
(1996) studies were intended to influence the development of program
and policy initiatives to improve pre-emancipation preparation of youth.
In this context, these studies provided a concrete view of youth aging out
of foster care and potential points of pre-emancipation intervention to
improve post-emancipation outcomes for foster youth.
The Benedict et al. study (1996) evaluated the effects of the types
of pre-emancipation placement on the adult functioning of former foster
youth. Adult functioning was evaluated in terms of education,
employment, health and mental health, and housing.
The Cook study (1991) was a comprehensive two-phase National
Evaluation of Title IV-E Foster Care Independent Living Programs for
Youth that evaluated (a) the influence of Independent Living Initiatives
(PL 99-272) on States’ development of programs, policies, and services,
and (b) the impact of independent living skills training and services on
outcomes for older youth discharged from foster care.
The goal of the Cook (1991) evaluation of independent living skills
services was to determine the extent to which youth were self-sufficient
two-and-one-half to four years after discharge from foster care.
Indicators correlated with youth self-sufficiency were employment,
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29
education, economic self-sufficiency, parenthood, support networks,
drug and alcohol use, housing, and health care. Outcomes were
conceptualized as maintaining a job for at least one year, completing
high school, accessing medical care, avoiding cost to community,
avoiding parenthood, overall life satisfaction, development of social
networks, and a composite variable that measured the ability of youth to
live independently. Results of this study were generalized to represent
emancipating foster youth throughout the United States. Findings
suggested that youth needed focused pre-emancipation skill training to
avoid poverty class outcomes.
Barth (1990) conducted a study of 55 young adults who had been
discharged from foster care in the San Francisco Bay area for more than
one year. Respondents reported their functioning in terms of health,
mental health, employment, housing, drugs and alcohol, and criminal
arrests. The sample was found to be struggling with ill-health, poor
education, severe housing problems, substance abuse, and criminal
behavior. Barth suggested that study respondents may be functioning
better than former foster youth who were unavailable for study (Barth,
1990).
The McMillen and Tucker study (1999) discussed youth post
emancipation status and outcomes as indicators of a system’s
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30
effectiveness in preparing foster youth for adult life. Administrative
databases and case records of 252 discharged foster youth were
carefully reviewed to (a) determine the extent to which system exits were
planned, and (b) to evaluate adult functioning at the time of discharge.
The authors found that most youth left foster care in unplanned ways,
and without a job or high school diploma.
The Courtney and Piliavin (1998) study is ongoing (beginning in
1995 and continuing through 2000), describing 141 Wisconsin youth
aging out of foster care. This was a post-care exploratory study of youth
who had tenures in out-of-home care. Initial findings suggest that a
significant proportion had difficulty making the transition from
dependency to self-sufficiency, especially in areas of employment,
housing stability, and obtaining medical care (Courtney & Piliavin, 1998).
Benedict et al. (1996) conducted a two-phase comparative study
to explore associations in the adult functioning of kinship versus non-
relative emancipated youth. Although few differences were found
between these young adults, both groups demonstrated low rates of
school completion and high rates of unemployment, mental health
distress, substance abuse, and trouble with the law.
This review of literature represents substantial efforts to maintain
the integrity of the variables as measured by the different researchers
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over time. Consequently, concepts related to post-discharge living
arrangements, well-being, and independent living are interpreted in the
context of contemporary policy and language.
This review of literature frames and discusses outcome measures
that reflect continuity of needs and services. This section discusses and
integrates research findings related to general youth characteristics,
educational attainment, employment, income and cost to community,
housing and living arrangements, health, mental health, and substance
abuse. These categories best capture the researchers’ themes and
linkages to adult functioning.
Research Findings on Characteristics
of Emancipated Foster Youth
Research literature associates several pre-discharge and post
discharge youth characteristics with outcomes for emancipated youth.
Cook (1991) found that youth discharged from foster care had numerous
problems and service needs that challenged their adaptation into adult
self-sufficiency after discharge, in that almost one-half were
handicapped, over one-third were clinically diagnosed as emotionally
disturbed, almost two-thirds had not finished high school or completed a
GED at the time of discharge, 70% entered care as adolescents, less
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• 32
than one-third had received comprehensive independent living services,
about one-sixth had substance abuse problems, and one-sixth of
females had experienced at least one pregnancy by the time of
discharge.
Festinger (1983) found that less than 50% of sampled youth felt
they had been prepared for discharge and adult living. Festinger found
that, on the average, young adults from foster care did not differ from
young adults nationally in their sense of happiness or in their satisfaction
with life as a whole. Also, although unemployment and use of public
assistance figures were high for respondents, they were not inconsistent
with the general population rates for the race, age, and region of the
country. However, Festinger (1983) found that in comparison with youth
discharged from foster homes, youth discharged from institutions had
the poorest sense of well-being and had completed fewer years of
school.
Festinger (1983), Jones and Moses (1984), Barth (1990), and
Courtney and Piliavin (1998) found that overall, the vast majority of
respondents rated their foster care experience between neutral and
somewhat good. The vast majority felt their lives would have been worse
or much worse had they not entered foster care. However, youth
adjustment to adult living was difficult for many former foster youth.
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Educational deficits, employment challenges, difficulties in accessing
routine health care, and acquisition of basic living skills were consistent
themes throughout the literature.
McMillen and Tucker (1999) found that the majority of youth were
discharged from care through unplanned exits. Forty-five percent left
care without a job and without completing high school. The author
suggested that unplanned exits were contributory to poor outcomes.
Emancipated foster youth enter adulthood with a combination of
deficits that reduce their chances for success. Many have educational
challenges, mental health and emotional challenges, and many have
difficulty obtaining and maintaining employment, housing and ongoing
medical care.
Educational Attainment
Generally, indicators of school performance and educational
achievement are included in follow-up research (Mech, 1994a). In
each of the studies, youth discharged from foster care demonstrated
educational deficits and a low rate of high school completion. Festinger
(1983) found that in most respects foster care graduates were more alike
than different from other population cohorts, however, emancipated
foster youth lagged behind in scholastic achievement.
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34
Festinger (1983) and Jones and Moses (1984) found that many
foster youth fell behind in school during placement, and once a lag
developed they never recovered. In both studies only 34% of the
respondents had completed high school at the time of discharge.
Generally, rates of high school completion were low for
emancipated foster youth (Scannapieco et al, 1995). In the Cook
(1991) and Benedict et al. (1996) studies, only 31% completed high
school before leaving foster care. Although only 39% of the McMillen
and Tucker (1999) sample completed high school or attained their GED
at discharge, another 25% were making academic progress toward high
school completion.
In the Barth (1990) study, only 45% left care with a high school
diploma. At the time of interview 38% had not graduated. Forty-three
percent of those who had not finished high school at the time of
discharge had participated in subsequent education or training. In total,
73% of the total sample went on to further training or school.
Youth who left foster care at older ages demonstrated higher
rates of high school completion and post-secondary education.
Festinger (1983) found that 65% had graduated by the time they
discharged. However, many of these youth remained in foster care until
age 21. Consistent with Festinger’s findings, Cook (1991) found that
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among youth who had been in care the longest and left care at age 19
rather than age18, 62% completed high school after discharge.
Cook (1991) found that the high school completion rate for study
youth age 18 and 19 years old was 48%, a level 25% lower than the
national level of 64%. Cook (1991) and McMillen and Tucker (1999)
found that youth leaving care at older ages and without handicaps were
more likely to complete more schooling. Benedict et al. (1996) found
that at the time of interview (several years after discharge), 58% of the
respondents had completed high school or gone on to post-secondary
education.
The Festinger (1983) and Jones and Moses (1984) studies
suggested that female youth discharged from foster homes tended to
complete more years of school than males who leave group settings.
These studies also found that women averaged more years of education
than men, irrespective of the setting from which they were discharged.
Although the Cook study found no differences in the high school
completion rate of young men and young women, Black and White
respondents were far more likely to complete high school than Hispanic
youth. McMillen and Tucker (1999) found that only 17% of minority
males completed high school or obtained their GED prior to leaving
foster care. However, Benedict et al. (1996) found that completion of
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36
high school was not impacted by race or type of placement but was
positively correlated with increased age at interview, being White, male,
and returning to family from out-of-home care. Behavior problems while
in foster care were negatively associated with high school completion.
In both the Jones and Moses (1984) and Festinger (1983)
samples the average number of years of schooling completed, and the
percentage of high school and college graduation for emancipated foster
youth, were low in comparison to the general populations in their
respective regions. In both studies, the comparison between
educational achievement and employment, use of public assistance,
trouble with the law, well-being, and life-satisfaction were directly
correlated with years of high school completion (Jones & Moses, 1984). .
Jones and Moses reported 63% of respondents had completed the 12th
grade or a high school equivalency program, 7% of which had gone on
to college, and 19% were currently attending school or taking courses at
the time of interview.
In the Cook (1991) study, approximately 30% of the sample
continued educational pursuits after discharge with 86% completing high
school, 4% completing their GED, and 2% completing college at the time
of interview. However, the educational status of discharged foster youth
more closely resembled that of youth living below the poverty level than
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37
that of the general population. In this regard, no difference was found in
the high school completion rate of young men and young women.
Respondents indicated lack of finances was a significant barrier to
pursuing post-secondary education and training. Seventy-four percent
of youth who had not completed college indicated money was the
primary obstacle.
The Courtney and Piliavin (1998) sample was interviewed prior to
being discharged from foster care. Courtney and Piliavin found that 71%
of the respondents expected to enter college prior to emancipation.
However, less than 50% had completed their high school requirements
at the close of the academic year and only 55% had completed high
school. Another 9% had entered college 12 to 18 months after
discharge. Cook and Courtney and Piliavin suggested that youth
academic progress was impeded by their assignment to special
education, failure to pass a grade level, and for frequent school
transfers.
Completion of high school was positively correlated with several
positive outcomes. Cook determined that youth who left care with a high
school diploma had significantly better post-discharge outcomes with
regard to stable employment and nonuse of public assistance. High
school completion at discharge led to better outcomes regardless of
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38
whether or not youth received independent living skills training. Cook
also found that factors negatively associated with obtaining a high school
degree were being of Hispanic origins, the presence of physical or
emotional handicaps, and/or indications of drug abuse prior to discharge.
Completion of high school requirements was found to be
associated with youth well-being. Youth completing more education
were more likely to report having a support system, were generally
happier, and had a better sense of personal well-being. These youth
were more apt to be employed and have good feelings about their
chances of getting a good job if they actively sought employment.
The literature suggests that most emancipated youth lag behind in
educational attainment and do not graduate from high school on time.
Also, youth level of education distinguished males with and without
criminal records in the Festinger (1983) sample. Only 39.2% of those
with arrest records completed high school. Festinger found that males
with no records finished 12.5 years of school. Those with records
completed only 11.3 years, were less apt to be employed or involved in
community organizations, and were more likely to receive public
assistance. Also, only 30% of the respondents who were discharged
with serious social and emotional problems had completed or gone
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39
beyond high school by the time of discharge, compared to more than
84% of those who were discharged without such serious problems.
Educational attainment was found to be an important measure of
the opportunities afforded youth after discharge from foster care.
Literature associates educational attainment with several factors related
to employment, income, and housing. Consequently the educational
guidance component of the BTI plays an important role in long-term risk
reduction for program participants. However, for discharged foster
youth, educational pursuits are often secondary to the development of
action plans for predictable means of income and housing.
Employment. Income and Cost to Community
Throughout the literature, emancipated foster youth were found to
experience difficulties with unemployment and underemployment, and
large proportions utilized public assistance. Festinger (1983) and Cook
(1991) found that discharged youth were underemployed in comparison
to the general population. Barth (1990) and Jones and Moses (1984)
found the vast majority of working respondents were employed but
working in the unskilled labor market. In addition to problems earning a
living wage, these young adults often had difficulty finding suitable stable
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40
housing and were at high risk of homelessness and reliance on public
assistance.
In the Cook (1991) study the employment rate for emancipated
youth was lower than that of the general population. At the time of
interview, Cook found that 49% of respondents were employed, in
comparison to 60% of the general population. Although 90% of the
Cook respondents had held at least one job at the time of interview, only
38% had been able to maintain a job for more than one year, with males
more likely than females to retain a job. Further, the average
employment income of discharged foster youth was only 78% of their
general population cohort.
While 81% of the Courtney and Piliavin sample (1998) and 75%
of the Barth (1990) respondents were employed during care or
immediately upon discharge, only 38% of the McMillen and Tucker
(1999) sample were employed. Also, employed former foster youth were
not very successful at maintaining employment. Twelve to eighteen
months after discharge, only 61% of the Courtney and Piliavin sample
were employed with one third reporting not feeling well prepared to
obtain a job or manage money. Forty-four percent of the Benedict et al.
(1996) respondents reported working, and 65% reported income from full
or part time work within the last year.
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Thirty-two percent of the Courtney and Piliavin respondents
received some form of public assistance, with 40% of females and 23%
of males receiving AFDC, Supplemental Social Security Income, General
Assistance, or housing assistance. Twenty-one percent of the Benedict
et al. respondents reported AFDC as their primary source of income.
The literature correlates several factors with employment.
Benedict et al. (1996) found that increasing age was positively
associated with employment and adjustment, and behavioral problems
during foster care were negatively associated with current employment.
Festinger (1983) found that although level of education was
positively related to employment, race was a factor in the number of jobs
held, irrespective of education. The Jones and Moses (1984) and Cook
(1991) studies found that White race and male gender were positively
associated with employment, Festinger found that Black respondents
had held the fewest full-time and total number of jobs, and had more
difficulty obtaining jobs. Hispanics had less job stability, and both Blacks
and Hispanics had been unemployed more often than Whites. Courtney
and Piliavin found that Africans Americans earned 90% of the salaries
earned by Caucasians and females earned 81% of the salaries earned
by males.
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42
Jones and Moses (1984) found that older males were more likely
to be employed full-time than younger respondents and females. Also,
42% of the Jones and Moses sample reported earnings as their primary
source of income when discharged from foster care, and 30% reported
receiving assistance from foster parents.
Festinger (1983) found 75% of males and 55% of females were
gainfully employed, with more from foster homes employed than from
congregate settings. Youth with social and emotional problems at
discharge were unemployed more frequently. Males with less education
had been unemployed more often than males with more education, and
the duration of unemployment was linked to education. Sixty percent of
the sample had held a job prior to discharge. At time of discharge, 63%
of males and 38% of females were employed full or part time. However,
youth who had completed high school were more likely to be employed
than respondents who had not graduated. McMilien and Tucker (1999)
found that youth who completed high school were 3.27% more likely to
be employed at discharge from care than youth who did not complete
high school.
Working did not ensure self-sufficiency. Although 75% of the
respondents in the Barth (1990) study were employed, only 51% had
paid vacations, 36% had sick leave, and 44% received health benefits.
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43
Approximately 12% reported receiving AFDC or General Assistance and
24% indicated former foster parents or group home parents were
available to help them adjust to living on their own when they were
preparing to leave care.
In the Cook (1991) study, 32% percent of those working indicated
partial dependence on others for economic support and another 30%
reported receiving some welfare benefits, including AFDC, Food Stamps,
Medicaid, or General Assistance. This study also found that women who
bore children had lower rates of high school completion, continuing
education past high school, being employed, maintaining a job for at
least one year, and utilizing community resources.
In summary, the majority of youth discharged from foster care
were not totally self-supporting and many experienced unemployment
and underemployment. Deficits in areas of education and employment
posed tremendous barriers to youth who had aged out of foster care and
were attempting to live on their own (Iglehart, 1995). North, Mallabar,
and Desrochers (1988) reported that finding and keeping a good job is a
high priority for emancipating adolescents. The BTI emphasis on
employment and employability is strongly supported by literature as a
service that should make a difference.
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44
Employment status is a critical determinant in where and how an
individual lives. Housing opportunities are largely derived from
employment income and stability. Emancipated foster youth tend to
have limited housing options and often have to rely on the support or
benevolence of others.
Housing and Living Arrangements
Festinger (1983) found that 98% of males were discharged from
care to their own responsibility, with most living on their own in the
community, enlisting in the armed forces, or residing at a college. Cook
(1991) determined that extended family provided the most frequent living
arrangement at the time of discharge (54%) and 10% remained with
foster parents. By the time of the interview, 33% were still living with
extended family and 5% more had sought out this living arrangement,
compared to 52% of the general population that either lived with parents
or in dormitory situations.
About two-thirds of the Jones and Moses (1984) sample were 18
years or older when they left care and 30% had spent 11 or more years
in care. Upon discharge, 31 % stayed with their foster family, 19% with
natural parents, 7% with other relatives and siblings, 17% with a spouse,
and 7% with friends. Females were more likely to live on their own or
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45
get married than males, who were more likely to return to their natural
parents, relatives, friends, remain with foster parents, or reside in
institutions. Approximately 16% of the entire discharged population were
receiving public assistance.
Courtney and Piliavin (1998) found that securing stable housing
was difficult for some youth, although most were able to obtain housing,
often with the help of family. Approximately 40% had to leave their last
foster care setting upon discharge from the foster care, another one-third
were able to remain in their previous residence for some period after
discharge and 15% left under other conditions. At their first post
discharge interview, 14% of the males and 10% of the females reported
being homeless at least once, with 22% living in four or more separate
places since discharge. Although 37% were living in an independent
living arrangement, another 31% were living in the home of a relative,
and the remaining 32% lived with a friend, spouse or partner, institution
or other non-independent living situation.
Sixty-three percent of the McMillen and Tucker (1999) sample left
care by means of unplanned exits with 30% living with relatives and 18%
living with other foster care providers. Only 22% were living on their own
and 12% were living with romantic partners or the families of romantic
partners. Approximately 25% of the Courtney and Piliavin (1998)
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46
sample and 27% of the Benedict et al. (1996) sample reported that they
had spent at least one night without a place to live and had to rely on
public resources or the street for their shelter. To Courtney and Piliavin
this suggested that homelessness for the majority of youth (55%) was a
result of lack of personal resources in a time of crisis. After discharge
from care, approximately one-third of the Courtney and Piliavin study
had lived in five or more different places, and 30% of the Benedict et al.
sample had lived in three or more places. Not surprisingly, the majority
of youth surveyed by Courtney and Piliavin were not satisfied with their
living arrangements.
Each of the studies suggested that attaining stable post
emancipation housing was difficult for many foster youth. Many were
fortunate enough to have former caregivers or friends capable of
providing temporary housing support. However, many spent at least one
night homeless and many more lacked the resources to maintain stable
permanent housing. Housing instability often complicated the health,
mental health and overall functioning of many of these youth.
Health. Mental Health, and Substance Abuse
The health and mental health needs of former foster youth were
concerns raised in each of the studies. The emphasis of these studies
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47
was not placed on the relative percentages of health complaints as much
as on the implications related to overall youth functioning and well-being.
In the Festinger (1983) study 79% of the respondents indicated no
particular physical health troubles. Twenty-two percent exhibited
moderate to severe emotional problems while in placement, and nearly
17% had serious problems at discharge. In both the Festinger (1983)
and Jones and Moses (1984) studies, the health status of female
respondents was worse than that of male respondents. However, the
proportion of respondents reporting health problems was no greater than
that of the general population.
In the Cook (1991) sample 85% of youth reported good to
excellent health. Of the remaining 15%, females were more likely to
indicate poor health than males. Youth indicating difficulty in obtaining
needed health care since discharge cited lack of money and health
insurance as primary obstacles. However, 65% of the respondents in
the Cook study reported being successful in accessing health care.
Courtney and Piliavin (1998) reported that 40% of respondents
had difficulty acquiring medical care most or all of the time. Fifty-one
percent had no health insurance and another 38% indicated medical
care was too expensive. Also, 28% had difficulty obtaining dental care,
with 90% reporting either no dental insurance and prohibitive cost.
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48
Respondents in the Courtney and Piliavin study tended to
experience more psychological distress than their general population
cohort, and were less likely to receive mental health services after
discharge from care. While 47% of the sample reported receiving some
kind of mental health service prior to discharge, only 21 % reported
receiving such service since discharge. There was no indication that the
need for mental health services decreased.
Seventy-eight percent of the Benedict et al. (1996) respondents
reported their physical health as good or excellent and 66% reported
good to excellent mental health. However, 18% reported being
diagnosed with emotional or nervous conditions by a health professional.
Barth (1990) found that 44% had serious medical situations since
leaving foster care, with 24% of the sample requiring hospitalization.
Fifty-three percent of the sample reported very good to excellent health,
and 62% had health or medical coverage at the time of interview.
Fifteen percent were medically covered through Medicaid. However,
100% of these respondents had high depression scores, problems with
depression, or mental health hospitalization. Forty-seven percent of this
group had received AFDC or General Assistance.
Abuse of chemical substances posed challenges for many of the
males in the Festinger sample. While 27% of women and 14% of men
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49
had not had any liquor in the previous month, 12% of women and 29% of
men reported some liquor consumption at least three times per week.
The situation for drug use was similar, with 81% of males and 66% of
females reporting drug usage during the year.
In the Jones and Moses (1984) study 80% of the respondents
reported never having a problem with alcohol and 83% reported never
having a problem with drugs. Thirteen percent reported a past problem
with alcohol and 16% with drugs. In summary, 26% had a problem with
either drugs or alcohol, with male respondents more likely to report
alcohol problems than females.
Barth (1990) found that 19% of the respondents reported drinking
once a week or more while in foster care (comparable to a random
sample of high school students) and 56% indicated using street drugs
regularly during their foster care stay, a higher rate than the general
population. Twenty percent of the sample reported using drugs in the
past month.
Benedict et al. (1996) found high rates of current and past alcohol
and drug use among respondents. One-third of the respondents
reported alcohol use in the past year with almost one-half reporting
taking at least three drinks per day. Twenty-eight percent of kinship and
11% of non-relative youth in the Benedict et al. study reported heroin
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50
use. Thirteen percent of the McMillen and Tucker (1999) study
respondents were found to be abusing chemical substances.
The literature suggests a high rate of self-reports of good physical
health as well as high rates of social, emotional, mood and anxiety
problems for these young adults. When health problems arise, many of
these young adults lack the necessary financial resources or insurance
to obtain timely care. Characteristically, the former foster youth who
experience poorer health tended to be female, discharged from group or
congregate care, or challenged with social or emotional problems.
Summary of Findings from the Literature
The literature suggests that for many maltreated youth, foster
care is a necessary and accepted life experience. The child welfare
agency, support staff, and care providers are responsible for providing
these youth with experiences that support educational attainment,
preparation for responsible and independent adult living, and
encouragement to practice healthy life patterns. Often, singly and
collaboratively, they fail to meet this responsibility.
For significant segments of the population of emancipated youth,
pre-emancipation education and employment preparation is insufficient
for meeting the requirements of adult life. At the time of the
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emancipation event, many youth are not prepared for adult living and are
not emotionally ready for discharge.
Most of these youth do not compiete high school prior to
emancipation and do not find living wage employment. Post-discharge
living arrangements are not always planned or stable, employment
opportunities and lack of income put many youth in poverty rather than in
the working class (Cook, 1991), and resources for health and mental
health problems are needed but difficult to attain. The risk of
homelessness and unemployment is substantial and support-networks
are tenuous for emancipated foster youth. The literature supports the
need for service-enriched transitional living programs, such as the BTI,
as supportive interventions.
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52
CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
This is an exploratory/descriptive study that evaluates outcomes
for DCFS youth who emancipated from foster care, were at risk for
homelessness, and participated in the Bridges to Independence
Transitional Housing Program (BTI). It also compares these youth to the
cohort of youth than emancipated from DCFS foster care in 1996. The
exploratory/descriptive method is appropriate for this topic because of
the limited literature and research on this topic.
Descriptive statistics were used to summarize and analyze
characteristics of the 1996 cohort (n = 710) and BTI respondent groups.
Descriptive statistics enabled the management of the wide scope of data
and accommodated analyses of the disproportionate entrance-to-exit
survey response ratio. BTI data were derived from questionnaires and
administrative records. Cohort data were derived exclusively from DCFS
case record documents.
Respondents did not form a unified group. From the inception of
the program in 1996, most of the respondents who completed entrance
surveys did not return exit surveys and some youth completed only exit
surveys. Consequently, thorough analyses of youth progress and
functioning required analysis of three distinct respondent groups:
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53
respondents who submitted entrance surveys and may have submitted
exit surveys (n=257), respondents who submitted exit surveys and may
have submitted entrance surveys (n=83), and respondents who
submitted both entrance and exit surveys (n=47). Although yielding
different results, each group provided additional information about the
entire BTI population, especially in relation to the cohort.
Descriptive data for the entire population of youth who
emancipated from DCFS foster care in 1996 were compiled and
summarized to define a cohort and establish a comparative baseline for
study participants. This is a distinctive feature of this research. A
subgroup of this cohort that entered the BTI (n=25) is also described in
relation to both the cohort and the population of BTI participants who
completed surveys. The subgroup of the 1996 cohort is described to
evaluate the degree to which BTI youth are representative of the cohort.
Data related to the cohort subgroup was derived exclusively from case
record documents.
Four dimensions of adult psychosocial functioning were measured
at program entrance and exit-self-esteem, problem-solving, locus of
control, and depression-to determine gains in these areas and
correlations with exit outcomes. Measures of psychosocial functioning
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54
provide an indices of the overall mental health functioning of BTI
participants.
Qualitative analysis was used to describe participant’s evaluation
of the BTI. Participants’ responses to open-ended questions provided
information about their needs and about the benefits and structure of the
program from their perspective. Content analysis involved systematic
coding of these responses.
This section describes the study population, study design,
instrumentation and study variables, data collection, and data analysis.
Study Design
An exploratory/descriptive design was used because the study
population constituted a formed group and, as a result, has no pre
designed comparison group. First, a one-group pretest-posttest model
enabled measurement of participant gains between program entrance
and exit. Such designs are commonly used to study direct services,
planning, and administration, and provide immediate and practical
feedback (Berger & Patchner, 1988; Royse & Thyer, 1996). The One-
Group Pretest-Posttest model has been found as a pre-experimental
design that is quite useful in evaluating a program intervention when it is
not practical to gather a control group (Cresswell, 1996).
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Second, comparative analysis was used to determine
associations and strength of relationships between interval level
variables as youth entered and exited the program. This enabled
comparison of BTI youth status and functioning at program entrance and
exit, and BTI youth status in relation to their larger cohort. Also, data
related to the cohort was compared to that of the respondent groups.
Third, regression and partial correlation were used to determine
associations and statistical significance in youth status and performance.
These analytic statistical tools were also used to control and assess the
effects of the independent variables and covariates to best determine the
impact of the BTI on participant outcomes.
The Study Population
The study population was emancipated foster youth who were
formerly supervised by the Los Angeles County Department of Children
and Family Services (DCFS), aged out of foster care between January 1,
1996 and December 31, 2000, and were admitted into the Bridges to
Independence (BTI) program. Each of these youth were homeless or at
substantial risk for homelessness. A single cohort of all youth who
emancipated from DCFS foster care between January 1,1996 and
December 31, 1996 is also described for comparative purposes.
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Information related to the cohort was derived exclusively from case
record information. Twenty-five of these youth entered the BTI.
Instrumentation and Study Variables
The BTI entrance and exit surveys solicited personal
characteristic data that included race, gender, type of pre-emancipation
placement, pre-discharge participation in ILP, education history and
current status, past and current employment, savings and banking
information, health, dental, and safe sex practices, youth self-perception
of health, and drug use history. Additionally, respondents were asked to
evaluate the benefit and utility of BTI in terms of child care, employment
assistance, individual and group counseling, educational guidance,
independent living skills training, health and dental services, and
permanent housing assistance.
Several open-ended questions elicited participant feedback at exit
as to whether youth had significant adult support, periodicity of financial
hardships, youth contact with family and significant others, youth
problems with law enforcement and criminal activity, youth self
perception of readiness for adult self-sufficient living, youth involvement
in community activities, youth evaluation of the BTI, specific helpful
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program benefits, skills learned as the result of the BTI, and ways in
which the program or program elements could be improved.
Four standardized instruments were incorporated into the
entrance and exit surveys to assess mental health status by measuring
youth psychosocial functioning along four domains: self-esteem,
problem-solving, locus of control, and depression. The psychosocial
instruments were a 25-item Index of Self-Esteem (Hudson, 1992), a 35-
item Problem-Solving Inventory (Heppner & Anderson, 1985), a 29-item
Internal-External Locus of Control Scale (Rotter, 1966), and a 23-item
Depression Inventory (Beck, Ward, Mendelson, Mock, & Erbaugh, 1961)
(Appendix B).
The Index of Self-Esteem (ISE) measures the degree, severity, or
magnitude of a problem a person has with self-esteem. Self-esteem
may be considered as the evaluative component of self-concept, central
to social and psychological difficulties. The ISE demonstrates good
internal consistency with a mean alpha of .93 and good construct validity
scores.
The Problem-Solving Inventory (PSI) is a tool in assessing
respondents’ perception of their problem-solving behaviors and attitudes,
and measures how individuals believe they generally react to personal
problems in their daily lives. Although the PSI does not measure actual
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problem-solving skills, it does measure the evaluative awareness of
one’s problem-solving abilities or style. The PSI has good internal
consistency, with alphas ranging from .72 to .85 on subscales and .90
for the total measure. Extensive testing of the PSI indicates good
concurrent and construct validity.
The Internal-External Locus of Control Scale indicates an
individual’s beliefs as to generalized expectancy about the causation of
reinforcements, measuring the sense of personal control youth believe
they exert over their lives. An internal locus of control suggests
outcomes based on the person’s actions, characteristics or qualities. An
external locus of control demonstrates outcomes primarily determined by
outside forces, such as luck, social contexts, or other persons. It has an
internal consistency coefficient of .70, correlating well with social
desirability scales.
The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) has been widely used for
the assessment of cognitions associated with depression and measures
levels of clinical depression. Meta-Analysis of different efforts to
establish internal consistency has ranged from .73 to .92 with a mean of
.86. In the 35 years since its introduction, it has been used in well over
1,000 research studies. Evaluation of content, concurrent, and
discriminant validity has generally been favorable.
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Data Collection
Data related to cohort youth were provided by DCFS case
records. DCFS 5200 forms provided data related to youth:
demographics, pre-emancipation activities and plans, educational
attainment, housing plans, financial maintenance plans, and most recent
health exams. Other demographic data included gender, race, typology
of pre-discharge placement and participation in ILP. This form is
attached to termination court reports and is a checklist of pre
emancipation activities and services provided to youth before they are
discharged on their own.
Questionnaires were used to survey socio-demographic
information and measure psychosocial functioning of BTI youth after
they entered the program and as they left. The entrance survey
(Appendix A) was a group of pencil and paper instruments that was
administered in-person by trained MSW students. It consisted of a
general questionnaire that elicited pre-emancipation information and four
standardized tests related to psychosocial functioning.
Exit surveys were given to youth as they left the program. This
instrument elicited socio-demographic data and progress data related to
education, employment, permanent housing, health and dental
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60
coverage, saving patterns, and psychosociai functioning as youth exited
the BTI. Token incentives were provided throughout this study to
encourage youth participation. Initially, movie tickets provided the token
incentives for youth to return the questionnaires. However, the low rate
of exit responses resulted in the offer of a $25 incentive payment and
department store vouchers for exit responses. DCFS, the BTI, and ARC
staff assisted in collecting questionnaires as youth exited the program.
The 1996 emancipation cohort (Group 1) describes a single
formed group of 710 youth. The 47 youth who completed entrance and
exit surveys (Group 2) provided the richest data base enabling various
levels of comparison and statistical analyses. The 221 youth who
completed only entrance surveys (Group 3) provided valuable
information related to youth functioning as they entered the BTI. The 83
youth who completed only exit surveys (Group 4) provided the most
definitive information related to youth functioning as they exited the BTI.
One additional group, the 25 youth who emancipated in 1996 into the
BTI program, was described for purposes of determining comparability of
the cohort and BTI groups.
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61
Data Analysis
Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, and cross
tabulations) were used to describe demographic characteristics of both
the 1996 population of youth who emancipated from foster care and the
surveyed youth. These characteristics include age, type of pre
emancipation placement, ILP participation, educational status,
employment status, health and dental exam periodicity, and post
emancipation housing plans. Study youth also provided information
related to use of public assistance and psychosocial functioning.
Central tendencies and variation were measured for study youth
on each of the psychometric variables—self-esteem, problem-solving,
locus of control and depression. These variables were measured at
program entrance and exit for each group and were described by mean
and standard deviation. Because the majority of respondents did not
complete both entrance and exit surveys, and some youth only
completed entrance or exit surveys, statistical tests were conducted for
the separate entrance and exit survey groups. The findings from each
group were compared. Available entrance and exit data were included
in all survey groups.
Inferential statistics were used to conduct parametric tests of
significance for BTI youth. T-tests were the parametric test used to
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62
compare entrance and exit ratio level criterion variable means from the
various respondent groups. T-tests measured the strength of
relationships and levels of significance of aggregate entrance and exit
scores related to entrance and exit levels of psychosocial functioning,
educational attainment, and income.
Associations and strength of associations between each of the
psychometric variables and educational attainment, income, employment
status, post-BTI housing, and health were determined by multiple
regression analyses. Squares of the beta coefficient provided
information on the relative contribution of sets of selected predictor
variables.
Two software programs were used to analyze data— Microsoft
Excel and SPSS. Data derived from the DCFS 5200 forms were
compiled and analyzed in the Microsoft Excel program. Data derived
from entrance and exit surveys of BTI youth were compiled and
analyzed in the SPSS program.
For all data, tests of significance were determined at the .05 alpha
level. All collected data were coded for statistical analysis. Content
analysis that involved systematically coding key words enabled a
quantitatively consistent and meaningful coding scheme for open-ended
responses on the questionnaire.
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63
CHAPTER 4
RESULTS
This chapter describes demographic data and findings related to
emancipated foster youth who participated in the BTI between 1996 and
2000 and compares these youth to a 1996 cohort of all youth who
emancipated from DCFS. This chapter is divided into nine sections:
Group 1, 1996 Cohort
Group 2, Paired Group Respondents
Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondents
Cohort Youth who Participated in BTI
Group 4, Exit Survey Responses
Group 1, Group 3 and Group 4 Comparison
Post-BTI Living Arrangements
Youth Evaluation of Program Services
Summary of Results
The majority of respondents did not complete both entrance and
exit surveys. A total of 257 youth completed entrance or exit surveys.
Two hundred twenty-one youth completed entrance surveys, 83
completed exit surveys, 47 completed both entrance and exit surveys
and 36 completed exit surveys only. There were respondents in each of
the survey groups who completed both entrance and exit surveys. Also,
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64
characteristics of the cohort of youth who emancipated from DCFS foster
care in 1996was derived exclusively from secondary data.
Except for group 1, for purposes of analyses, respondents were
assigned to groups based on the surveys completed (Table 1). Findings
related to each group were analyzed separately, according to their
explanatory value, and then compared to evaluate similarities and
differences in youth outcomes. Cohort and respondent data groups
were then triangulated to describe respondent outcomes and functioning
relative to the baseline and to each other. BTI management reports
provided missing information related to respondent groups.
Table 1. Cohort and Respondent Groups
Group Number Entrance
Surveys
Exit
Surveys
Case
Records
Total
Responses
1 710 710
Subgroup 25 25
2 47 47 47
3 221 36 257
4 47 83 . 83
Four instruments were used to evaluate youth psychosocial
functioning at program entrance and exit— Problem-solving Inventory,
Index of Self-Esteem, Locus of Control, and Beck Depression Inventory.
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65
Each instrument established normative functioning standards for
individuals. Youth functioning and gains were measured relative to
these standards. For each instrument, lower scores reflected higher
functioning.
Study Group Distinctions
Group 1.1996 Cohort
The Group 1 designation represents the cohort composed of all of
the DCFS youth who emancipated from foster care in 1996. Youth in
this cohort left foster care from a variety of placements and varied
circumstances. Pre-discharge placements included foster homes, group
homes, relative homes and other. Youth from group-home placements
were not distinguished from youth who lived in residential-treatment
facilities. Also 104 of this cohort left foster care under runaway or AWOL
conditions.
All data related to cohort youth were derived from case record
documents. Secondary data were used because it was not possible to
locate a representative sample of this cohort to effect interviews. As a
result, cohort information was gathered from case record termination
documents filed at the Juvenile Dependency Court for every
emancipated foster youth.
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66
The cohort group, group 1, forms a comparison group for all BTI
respondents. Group 1 provides a context for the array of characteristics
and experiences of emancipating foster youth in Los Angeles County.
Characteristics of this group are described in Table 2. The
characteristics include age, gender, race, pre-emancipation placement,
IIP participation, educational status, pre-emancipation placement, post
emancipation housing plans, post-emancipation financial self
maintenance plans, and medical and dental periodicity.
The average age of the cohort was 18.9 years. The majority of cohort
youth were 19 years old or younger, minority, female, and planned to live
in dependent housing arrangements after discharge from foster care.
Some of the data from this group was incomplete, primarily due to the
large number of runaway/AWOL youth. Data related to AWOL youth
was the least complete and demonstrated the least achievement.
Group 2. Paired Group Respondents
Group 2, the paired group, represents the 47 youth who
completed both entrance and exit surveys (Table 3). This group
provided the most information on how individual youth progressed
between program entrance and exit. However, all of these youth did not
entirely complete both surveys.
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Table 2. Group 1 Summary (N = 710)
Characteristic______________________________ n_________ %
Age
<17 19 3
18 389 54
19 244 34
20 54 8
21 4 1
Gender '
Female 427 60
Male 283 40
Race
African-American 361 51
Hispanic 214 30
White/Non-Hispanic 103 15
Asian 19 3
Other/missing data 14 2
Pre-Emancipation Placement
Foster home 271 38
Relative 164 23
Group home 134 19
Other/missing data 141 20
ILP Participation
Youth who completed ILP 438 62
AWOL and youth offenders 70 10
Nonparticipation - other 84 12
Missing data 118 17
Educational Status
High school diploma/GED 379 54
College/vocation program 154 22
Dropout/AWOL/missing data 167 24
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Table 2. Group 1 Summary (continued)
________________________________________ (N = 710)
Characteristic n %
Post-emancipation Plan for Financia!
Self-maintenance
Employment 227 32
Parents/Relatives 105 15
Foster parents/guardians 11 2
Government assistance 160 23
Unrelated adults 40 5
Spouse 10 2
School/Military/Transitional housing 77 11
AWOL/Missing data 80 11
Initial Post-emancipation Plan for Housing
Self-supported apartment 82 12
Parents/Relatives 245 35
Unrelated Adults 154 21
Spouse ' 8 1
Student/military housing 54 8
Transitional housing 41 6
Mental health/licensed board and care 30 4
AWOL/incarcerated/missing data 84 12
Medical and Dental Care
Medical visit < one year 494 70
Medical visit > one year/ AWOL 86 12
Medical visit missing data 130 18
Dental visit < one year 452 64
Dental visit > one year/AWOL 72 10
Dental visit missing data______________ 186_________26
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Table 3. Group 2, Paired Group Demographic Summary
I NziZl,
Characteristic n %
Age at Exit
18 1 2
19 14 30
20 16 34
21 15 32
22 1 2
Gender
Female 29 62
Male 18 38
Race
African-American 29 62
Hispanic 14 30
White/non-Hispanic 3 6
Asian 1 2
ILP Participation
Yes 37 79
No 10 21
Exit Living Arrangement
Own apartment 13 46
Apartment with roommate 9 32
Relative home 3 11
Other 3 11
Number of Children
None 40 85
One 5 11
Two 2 4
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70
Also, additional data related to youth entrance and exit income
was collected from administrative records. Consequently, the number of
responses to study variables does not equal the group sample size.
It is expected that, in most areas, this group of 47 youth is
representative of the entire BTI population. This expectation is based on
the demographic and psychosocial similarities between this group and
the groups of youth described in the entrance and exit survey groups.
Additionally, youth in this group are actually described in group 3 and/or
group 4. Although this is the smallest group, it provides comparative
data related to youth functioning and performance at program entrance
and exit. As a result, this group facilitates bivariate and multivariate
analyses.
Most of these youth (96%) were between 19 and 21 years old and
92% were either African-American or Hispanic. Most youth in this group
previously participated in ILP (79%), exited the program into their own
apartments (78%), and were childless (85%). Sixty-two percent of this
group were female.
Paired t-tests describe significant differences between youth at
entrance and at exit in terms of educational attainment, income, and
psychosocial functioning (Table 4). Education, income, problem-solving,
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self-esteem, locus of control, and depression were the only interval level
variables in this study.
Between program entrance and exit, respondents in this group
demonstrated significant gains in income and locus of control. The gain
in income was significant at the .000 level. Also, these youth
demonstrated modest increases in educational attainment and problem
solving.
Table 4. Paired T-Tests
Independent
Variable N
Entrance
Score SD
Exit
Score S.D. T-Stat
Sig.
Level
Education 48 12.33 0.66 12.60 1.72 -1.05 No
Income 131 $426 $390 $1016 $422 -8 .2 3 .000
Problems-solving 39 84.75 19.74 83.25 20.57 -.490 No
Self-esteem 40 14.11 9.78 16.15 10.16 -1.49 No
Locus of control 40 10.31 3.51 8.95 3.13 2.07 .05
Depression 32 8.00 8.57 8.52 7.52 -0.32 No
These youth also demonstrated modest declines in self-esteem
and depression. The education, problem-solving, self-esteem, and
depression results were not statistically significant.
Table 5 describes paired group respondents functioning at
program entrance and exit relative to the established normative
standards for each of the psychometric instruments.
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72
Table 5. Paired Group Respondent Psychosocial Results
Instrument
Normative
Standard
Entrance
Score
% >
Standard
Exit
Score
% >
Standard
%
Difference
PSI 98 84.75 83 83.25 73 + 10%
ISE 30 14.11 95 16.15 90 -5%
LO C 12 10.32 74 8.95 83 + 9%
BDI 10 8.00 79 8.52 69 - 10%
At exit, the average problem-solving scores were slightly higher
than at entrance. Although the aggregate problem-solving scores
improved, the proportion of individual youth functioning at the
established normative standard substantially decreased. Similarly, the
proportion of youth functioning at normative self-esteem and depression
standards decreased between entrance and exit. Locus of control was
the only area in which youth demonstrated improvement between
entrance and exit.
There were no single variables that predicted or explained
variability or patterns of association related to youth outcomes.
Consequently, the effects of a combination of variables was measured to
describe changes in youth functioning and performance. Multivariate
regression analyses identified several combinations of entrance
variables that accounted for notable variance in exit outcomes. Five
factors-length of time in the program, and entrance scores on the Beck
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Depression inventory, Index of Self-Esteem, Problem-Solving Inventory,
and Locus of Control-accounted for greatest amount of variance
(Table 6).
Table 6. Multivariate Analysis of Time in Program and Entrance Psychosocial
Measures
Independent
Variable R Square Adj. R Square Sig. Partial Com Sig. Level
Exit Self-Esteem .632 .568 Entrance ISE .005
■ Entrance PS I .05
Exit Locus of Control .418 .318 na na
Exit Depression .426 .311 Entrance BDI .01
Exit Problem-solving .371 .259 Entrance PSI .05
This combination of five factors accounted for 57% of variance
related to exit self-esteem scores, 32% of the variance related to exit
locus of control scores, and 31% of the variance related to exit
depression scores (Appendix D). Entrance level of self-esteem and
problem-solving awareness were significantly correlated to exit
depression scores. Exit depression results were significantly correlated
with entrance depression level. The measurement of exit problem
solving was significantly related to entrance problem-solving awareness.
Between 15% to 18% of the variance in exit problem-solving self-
reported health and education level is accounted for by the three factor
combination. Problem solving at exit was impacted by entrance health
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74
status at the .05 significance level. Youth locus of control at exit was
significantly associated with the length of time youth remained in the BT1.
Group 3. Entrance Survey Respondents
Group 3 represents the largest group of respondents. All
respondents in this group completed entrance surveys. Some of these
youth also completed exit surveys. Two hundred twenty-one youth
completed entrance surveys and 36 of these youth completed exit
surveys. Data from this group provides the most definitive information
related to youth functioning, performance, and status as they entered the
BTI. The entrance and exit surveys from this group provide outcome
information about youth most approximating the average age of the
cohort. Table 7 provides demographic information about youth who
completed entrance surveys. Every respondent who completed an
entrance survey is included in this group.
The age of Group 3 respondents averaged 19.5 years and ranged
from 16.8 to 22.4 years. Seventy-four percent of these respondents
were between 18 and 19 years of age. Most of these respondents
participated in ILP, were female, childless and either African-American or
Hispanic. More than one-half of these youth entered the BTI from family
rather than from congregate care settings.
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75
Table 7 describes data related to entrance survey respondents’
age, educational, finances, employment, health, medical status, and
dental status at program entrance and exit. Table 8 summarizes
entrance survey respondents’ outcomes.
Table 7. Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondent Demographic Summary
( N = 257)
Characteristic n %
Age at Entrance
16-17 2 1
18 50 23
19 113 51
20 41 19
21 -22 15 6
Gender
Female 161 63
Male 96 37
Race
African-American 168 66
Hispanic 54 21
White/non-Hispanic 25 10
Asian 5 2
ILP Completion
Yes 137 70
No 59 30
Prior Living Arrangement
Foster home 95 38
Group home 74 30
Relative home 47 19
Friends 24 10
Other 10 3
Number of Children
None 207 81
One 45 18
Two 3 1
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Table 8. Group 3, Entrance Survey Respondents’ Outcome Sum m ary
(N = 257)
Characteristics N At Entrance At Exit Difference
Average age (in years) 220 19.5 20.4 + 0.9
Education level (in years) 223 12.1 12.6 + 0.5
Average monthly income 234 $348 $967 + 278%
Bank accounts 219 69% 83% + 14%
Completed high school 223 88% 92% + 4%
Some post-secondary education 223 23% 68% + 45%
Current post-secondary training 220 55% 45% - 10 %
Currently employed 231 65% 87% + 22%
Public assistance recipient 213 3% 5% + 2 %
Average or better health 217 92% 98% + 6 %
Current medical coverage 220 70% 76% + 6 %
Current physical exam 225 74% 74% nc
Current dental exam 226 70% 63% - 7 %
Self-reported substance abuse 220 8% 15% + 7 %
Between entrance and exit, entrance survey respondents
demonstrated gains in several areas such as education, financial self
maintenance, and medical and dental care. At program entrance, 88%
had completed high school and 23% had taken at least some college
courses. At exit, 92% of the Group 3 respondents had completed high
school and 68% had enrolled in post-secondary courses.
The proportion of these respondents enrolled in continuing
educational training programs decreased 10% between entrance and
exit. Continuing educational options included continuing high school
through completion, completing requirements toward their GED,
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77
vocational training schools, Job Corps, California Conservation Corps
and military service, community college, vocational schools, and 4 year
colleges and universities.
Also, respondents’ income increased 278%, their rate of
employment increased 22% and the proportion of participants with bank
accounts increased 14%. However, the proportion of youth utilizing
public assistance at exit increased 2%, from 3% to 5%.
Results related to respondents’ health were less uniform.
Between program entrance and exit, the proportion of youth who rated
their health as average or better increased 6%. Although the proportion
of youth with current medical exams was the same at program entrance
and exit, 6% more respondents had medical coverage at exit. However,
fewer youth had current dental examinations, and more youth indicated
using chemical substances at exit than at entrance.
Cohort Youth Who Participated in the BTI
A segment of the cohort group (n = 25) participated in the BTI.
Identification and description of this subgroup enable evaluation of the
extent to which BTI respondents were comparable to, and representative
of, the cohort youth. Table 9 compares characteristics of the subgroup
to the cohort.
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78
The BTI cohort subgroup was representative of the cohort group
in several areas that included average age, gender, and pre
emancipation placement. However, BTI subgroup youth demonstrated
higher rates of ILP training, post-secondary enrollment, employment,
medical and dental examinations, and independent housing plans. The
subgroup youth performed at higher levels in each outcome area of this
study than the cohort.
Cohort youth were more similar to the entrance survey group
(Table 9). The cohort and entrance survey groups were similar in age,
gender, rates of ILP training, pre-emancipation placement, and medical
and dental examinations.
Table 10 presents a comparison of cohort and entrance survey
responses. On average, entrance survey youth were 10 months older
and, proportionately, more likely to complete ILP skills training before
emancipation than cohort youth. BTI subgroup and entrance survey
youth were more likely to complete high school, be enrolled in post
secondary training, be employed; and have stable and independent
post-discharge plans than cohort youth.
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Table 9. Larger Cohort and BTI Subgroup Comparison
Category Cohort Group
(N = 710)
BTI Subgroup
(N =25)
Average Age in Years 18.9 19.3
Gender
Female 60% 52%
Male 40% 48%
Race
African-American 51% 72%
Hispanic 30% 16%
White 15% 12%
Asian 2% 0%
Completed ILP skills training 62% 96%
Completed high school/GED 54% 88%
Post-secondary enrollment 22% 48%
Employed/employment plans 32% 52%
Last DCFS placement
•Foster home 34% 32%
Relative home 23% 28%
Group home 19% 40%
Current medical examinations
Physical 70% 84%
Dental 64% 88%
Housing Plans
Independent/apartment 21% 12%
Relatives/last caretakers 39% 8%
Transitional or subsidized 6% 80%
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Table 10. Comparison of Cohort and Entrance Survey Responses
Category Cohort Group
(Group 1)
(N = 710)
Entrance Survey Group
(Group 3)
(N = 257)
Average Age in Years 18.9 19.5
Gender
Female 60% 63%
Male 40% 37%
Race
African-American 51% 66%
Hispanic 30% 21%
White 15% 10%
Asian 2% 2%
Completed ILP skills training 62% 70%
Completed high school/GED 54% 88%
Post-secondary enrollment 22% 55%
Employed/employment plans 32% 66%
Last DCFS placement
Foster home 34% 38%
Relative home 23% 19%
Group home 19% 30%
Current medical examinations
Physical 70% 74%
Dental 64% 70%
Housing Plans
Independent/apartment 21% 77%
Relatives/last caretakers 39% 6%
Transitional or subsidized 6% na
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Cohort and entrance survey respondents were similar in
periodicity of health examinations, rates of ILP skills completion, and
rates of emancipation from family-type settings. Entrance survey
respondents demonstrated substantially higher rates of continuing
education than cohort youth. Approximately one-half of the entrance
survey group continued their education past high school. Eighty-eight
percent of these youth had completed high school at program entrance,
as compared to 54% of larger cohort youth. Although the average rate
of post-secondary education enrollment for entrance survey respondents
decreased by 10% between program entrance and exit, only 21% of
cohort youth pursued post-secondary training after emancipation.
Eighty-eight percent of entrance survey youth completed high
school. Twice the proportions of Group 3 youth were employed as
cohort youth. Also, few cohort youth developed post-emancipation plans
independent of relatives or public assistance. Only 27% of cohort youth
indicated plans for independent living arrangements. In contrast, 77% of
the entrance survey group developed independent or transitional
housing plans.
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Group 4. Exit Survey Respondents
Group 4 represents all 83 respondents who completed exit
surveys, only 47 of whom completed entrance surveys. Data from this
group provided the most definitive information related to youth
functioning and performance as they exited the BTI (Table 11). Every
respondent who completed an exit survey is included in this group.
Group 4 (exit survey respondents) demographic data were very
similar to that of entrance survey respondents. However, exit
respondents were older and were more likely to have participated in ILP
skill training than cohort or entrance survey respondents. Also, the
differences between entrance and exit survey respondents were more
related to the magnitude of changes, not differences in outcomes
(Table 12).
Similar to respondents in the entrance survey group, respondents
in Group 4 demonstrated gains in educational and financial self
maintenance areas, but not at as high a level as entrance survey
respondents. Child-bearing patterns were similar between groups.
Medical status results were mixed. The average educational
attainment level increased 0.6 years and the proportion of youth
completing high school increased 5%. However, 12% fewer exit
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respondents were enrolled in post-secondary education at program exit
than at entrance.
Table 11. Group 4. Exit Survey Respondents’ Demographic Summary
(N = 83)
Characteristic n %
Age at Exit
18 4 5
19 ' 27 32
20 28 34
21 19 23
2 2 -2 3 5 6
Gender
Female 54 65
Male 29 35
Race
African-American 53 64
Hispanic 23 28
White/non-Hispanic 6 7
Asian 1 1
ILP Completion
Yes 71 86
No 11 13
Prior Living Arrangement
Own apartment 17 33
Apartment with roommate 18 35
College or military 4 8
Relative home 8 15
Other 5 9
Number of Children
None 69 84
One 9 11
Two 4 5
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Table 12. Group 4, Exit Survey Respondents’ Outcome Sum m ary
(N =83)
Characteristics N Entrance Exit Difference
Average age (in years) 83 19.5 20.4 + 0.9
Education level (in years) 81 12.1 12.7 + 0.6
Average monthly income 70 $420 $1017 + 242%
Bank accounts 81 77% 84% + 7%
Completed high school 81 88% 93% + 5%
Some post-secondary education 81 43% 68% + 25%
Current post-secondary training 79 55% 43% -12%
Currently employed 83 71% 86% + 15%
Public assistance recipient 80 3% 5% + 2%
Average or better health 79 96% 98% + 2%
Current medical coverage 80 89% 84% -5 %
Current physical exam 79 74% 79% + 5%
Current dental exam 79 70% 66% -4 %
Self-reported substance abuse 79 8% 14% + 6%
Between entrance and exit, the proportion of exit respondents
with bank accounts increased 7%, the proportion employed increased
15%, and personal income increased 242%. Also, 2% more of these
youth utilized public assistance at program exit than at entrance.
Between entrance and exit, 5% more youth had current physical
examinations and 2% more reported average or better health. However,
between program entrance and exit, the proportion of youth with current
dental examinations decreased by 7%, the proportion of youth medically
covered decreased by 5%, and the self-reported substance abuse
increased 6%.
Findings related to the psychosocial functioning of exit
respondents were inconsistent (Table 13). Problem-solving awareness
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and depression measures showed substantial decline compared with
entrance. At exit, 14% fewer youth were functioning at the normative
problem-solving standard and 8% fewer were functioning at the
normative depression standard. Youth self-esteem also declined.
Table 13. Exit Respondents’ Psychosocial Results
Instrument
Normative
Standard
Entry
Score
%>
Standard
Exit
Score
%>
Standard
%
Difference
PSI 98 84.12 83 85.06 69 -14%
ISE 30 13.80 95 14.37 91 -4%
LOC 12 10.16 73 9.19 84 +11%
BDI 10 7.16 79 7.05 71 -8%
Only locus of control showed a gain between program entrance
and exit. The gain in locus of control was substantial.
Group 1. Group 3. and Group 4 Comparison
Table 14 compares demographic data related to the cohort
(Group 1), entrance respondents (Group 3), and exit respondents
(Group 4). This comparison enables evaluation to which the data
collected describe the BTI population at different stages of program
participation as well as their ranges of functioning.
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86
Table 14. Group 1 (Cohort), Group 3 (Entrance Respondents) and
Group 4 (Exit Respondents) Demographic Comparison
Category Group 1
(N = 710)
Group 3
C N =257L_
Group 4
(N =83)
Average age in years 18.7 19.5 20.4
Average time in program in months na 6.2 12.6
Gender
Female 60% 63% 65%
Male 40% 37% 35%
Completed ILP skills training 62% 70% 86%
Completed high school/GED 54% 88% 93%
Enrolled in post-secondary training 22% 55% 43%
Employed/employment plans 32% 66% 71%
Last DCFS placement
Foster home 34% 38% 47%
Relative home 23% 19% 20%
Group home 19% 30% 27%
Current medical examinations
Physical 70% 74% 79%
Dental 64% 70% 66%
Housing Plans
Independent/apartment 21% 77% 75%
Relatives/former caretakers 39% 6% 15%
Transitional or subsidized 6% na na
The three groups were similar in relation to gender distribution,
relative medical periodicity, and dental periodicity. However, data
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87
related to BTI participants (Groups 3 and 4) were similar in relation to
high school completion, employment, and post-BTI housing
arrangements in comparison to youth in the cohort. Racially, African-
Americans and Hispanics accounted for 87% of Group 3 (Table 7) and
92% of'Group 4 (Table 11). Also, more than 60% of both groups were
female.
In comparison to Group 1 youth, respondents in Groups 3 and 4
had higher rates of ILP completion, high school completion, enrollment in
post-secondary education, employment, foster home pre-emancipation
placement, medical periodicity, dental periodicity, and independent adult
housing plans.
In comparison of the three groups, Group 4 respondents
demonstrated the highest rates of high school completion, employment,
medical periodicity, dental periodicity, and rates of independent housing
comparable to Group 3. However, Group 3 youth were most likely to be
enrolled in post-secondary education.
Comparison of the psychosocial functioning of entrance and exit
groups provide important insights into the mental health functioning of
BTI youth (Table 15). The proportion of youth functioning at or above
the normative clinical standards provide information about the degree to
which youth in the entrance and exit groups made gains.
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88
T able 15. Group 3 and Group 4 Comparison of Psychosocial Results
Instrument
Normative
Standard
Entry
Score
%>
Standard
Exit
Score
%>
Standard
%
Difference
PSI Group 3 98 87.36 68 85.03 69 + 1%
PSI Group r 98 84.12 83 85.06 69 -14%
ISE Group 3 30 15.35 90 14.39 91 + 1%
ISE Group 4 30 13.80 95 14.37 91 -4 %
LOG Group 3 12 9.60 81 9.39 83 + 2%
LOC Group 4 12 10.16 73 9.19 84 + 11%
BDI Group 3 10 7.57 72 6.38 76 + 4%
BDI Group 4 10 7.16 79 7.05 71 -8 %
Respondents in both groups made gains in locus of control
between entrance and exit. Locus of control slightly increased for Group
3 respondents and substantially increased for Group 4 respondents. At
entrance, 81% were functioning within the normative range and at exit,
84% of the respondents were functioning within the normative range.
Measurement of youth problem-solving produced mixed results.
Between program entrance and exit, youth problem-solving awareness
slightly increased for Group 3 respondents but substantially decreased
for Group 4 respondents. Sixty-nine percent of both groups were
functioning within the normative range at exit.
Self-esteem slightly increased for entrance respondents and
slightly decreased for exit respondents. At exit, 91% of both entrance
and exit group respondents were functioning within the normative range.
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89
Overall depression scores improved between entrance and exit.
Group 1 made notable gains between entrance and exit, with 72%
functioning within the normative range. At exit, 71% to 76% of the
respondents were functioning within the normative range.
Post-BTl Living Arrangements
At exit from BT! , 75% of respondents had secured stable
permanent housing. Thirty-three percent lived singly in their own
apartments, 35% lived in apartments with roommates, and 7% lived in
college or military housing. Eight percent returned to parents or other
relatives, and the remaining 18% lived in other arrangements or did not
provide exit addresses.
Youth Evaluation of Program Services
Educational guidance, counseling, medical, employment, and
permanent housing services were available to all BTI participants.
Respondents were encouraged to evaluate these and other program
service components. The survey questions were open-ended to
encourage the widest range of feedback. Table 16 describes youth
responses.
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Table 16. Youth Evaluation of BTI Services
Service Useful Used Service Responses
Intensive ILP 75% 60% 175
Permanent Housing 75% 53% 160
Health/Dental Services 68% 45% 160
Individual Counseling 64% 31% 142
Employment 60% 45% 153
Educational Guidance 59% 29% 143
Group Counseling 56% 49% 149
Respondents found the. ILP and permanent housing services
most useful, health and dental services moderately useful, and group
counseling and educational guidance least useful. Educational guidance
and individual counseling were the least utilized services.
Qualitative Analyses
The BTI provides supportive services that include a furnished
apartment, monthly food stipends, paid utilities, individual and group
counseling, intensive independent living skills training, job search
assistance, transportation support, permanent housing assistance,
educational guidance, health and dental information, and child care
when indicated. Entrance and exit surveys contained several open-
ended questions that elicited responses from participants about their
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91
current needs, program benefits and program structure. These
responses provided consumer feedback and informed program planners
of the effectiveness and user-friendliness of service components.
The range was extreme of youth self-assessment of needs. Two
percent indicated they needed every service the program offered and
5% indicated they wanted nothing more than the tangible provisions of
housing, utilities, and food vouchers.
Almost 33% of entrance survey respondents reported deficits in
budgeting and money management, and 20% indicated deficits in
domestic skills. Although youth were required to shop and save money,
many indicated the BTI impressed them as an artificial environment that
did not adequately prepare them for the “real” world. Many of these
youth expressed the desire to develop better daily-living skills and
practice responsible adult living.
Eighteen percent of the entrance survey respondents
recommended an expansion of the independent-living program
component, as well as hands-on opportunities for resource utilization
and practical money management. These youth recommended
additional workshops related to saving money, financial planning, credit,
consumer practices, and responsibility. Further, the majority of these
youth wanted to develop additional employment skills.
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92
Several of the entrance and exit survey respondents indicated
that the program for food and rental provisions deprived them of the
opportunity to practice adult responsibility related to budgeting and
planning. These youth indicated that giving them too much crippled
them and hindered their motivation.
However, some youth indicated they were not provided sufficient
guidance and support. Ten percent of exit survey respondents indicated
the program tended to be rigid and controlling. The program structure
was described as inconsistent and arbitrary, especially in relation to
establishing personal youth goals and enforcing stated policies. As a
result, some youth had difficulty measuring their progress or anticipating
consequences of actions. Also, it was difficult for some of these youth to
distinguish their responsibilities in apartment living from those of the
congregate care facilities from which they emancipated. Several of
these youth requested better clarification of their respective rights and
responsibilities as program participants, tenants, and working adults.
Approximately 12% of exiting youth indicated program rules were not
consistent or user-friendly.
Eight percent of the program participants indicated that
educational opportunities were limited and discouraged by staff. Several
youth had difficulty reconciling the program goals aimed at achieving
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93
adult self-sufficiency, yet their personal goals were shaped toward full
time employment and away from educational development.
Conversely, 42% of the exit survey respondents indicated the
program was well designed and met their needs. Seventy-five percent
of the exit survey respondents indicated they learned money
management and budgeting skills, and 63% learned basic living skills.
Summary of Results
in comparison to their cohort, the BTI participants demonstrated
higher educational achievements. More than two-thirds had enrolled in
some form of post-secondary training and almost one-half were currently
enrolled in a post-secondary program. However, a lower rate of
respondents were enrolled in school at program exit than at entrance.
The effects of the BTI program relative to income was significant.
BTI participants had substantially higher rates of employment than their
cohort at program entrance, and even a higher rate at exit. At exit,
between 86% to 87% of respondents were employed. Additionally, more
than 80% of the BTI participants had bank accounts when they exited
the program. Further, twice as many of the BTI entrance respondents
indicated employment as their primary self-maintenance plan as their
cohort.
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94
Entrance and exit survey respondents were in good health, had
moderate rates of medical coverage, and generally had current medical
and dental examinations. The BTI and cohort youth demonstrated
similar rates of current medical and dental examinations. The majority of
the BTI youth were functioning within normative psychosocial ranges in
both the entrance and exit groups. Youth locus of control significantly
improved between program entrance and exit. None of the other
measured areas of youth psychosocial functioning were significantly
impacted by participation in the program. However, entrance scores on
problem-soiving, self-esteem and depression instruments, in
combination with length of time in the program and entrance health
status, yielded some explanatory influence in describing youth outcomes
related to exit mental-health functioning.
Youth evaluations indicated the permanent housing and ILP
components were most useful. Many of the youth indicated the program
lacked flexibility and user-friendliness. However, BTI youth outcomes
related to housing, employment, education, and health were better than
those of cohort youth. Most youth exited the BTI into stable living
arrangements. In contrast, the majority of cohort youth relied on
relatives, former caregivers, or others to provide some form of
dependent housing.
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95
CHAPTER 5
DISCUSSION
Outcomes Related to BTI Participants
This study evaluated the impact of a service-enriched homeless
prevention program for emancipated foster youth in improving post
emancipation outcomes related to employment, permanent housing,
health, education, and psychosocial functioning for a population at
substantial risk of homelessness. The purposes of this study were to:
(1) determine the degree to which the BTI makes a difference for foster
youth at risk of homelessness, (2) conduct a comparative analysis of BTI
youth in relation to their cohort, and (3) enhance the outcome research
database related to emancipated foster youth.
The BTI did not purport to singularly erase all of the pre
emancipation deficits and life experiences but rather provide services,
resources, and experiences to enable better psychosocial functioning
and stable post-discharge housing, employment, health and educational
outcomes. Psychosocial functioning was evaluated and measured in
terms of self-esteem, problem-solving propensities, locus of control, and
clinical depression.
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96
The BTI provided a variety of practical daily living and survival
skills. Youth were required to work, participate in experiential training
activities, manage their personal finances, save money, prepare for post
secondary education, and plan acquisition of stable exit-housing. In
combination, these services and experiences were expected to develop
the skills that enable youth to associate reinforcements with their
actions. Youth were expected to develop competence and confidence,
gaining a sense of control over their lives.
Post-BTI Living Arrangements
All BTI youth entered the program homeless or on the brink of
homelessness. The majority of BTI participants exited the program into
independent self-sufficient living arrangements. A small percentage,
8%, moved to parents or other relatives. In contrast, almost 40% of the
cohort planned to return to their families or former care providers at
emancipation. Between 30% to 60% of the emancipated youth
described in the research literature moved in with relatives or living
arrangements of questionable stability
From this perspective, the BTI was very helpful in supporting
independent permanent post-BTI living arrangements. The majority of
youth utilized the permanent housing service component of the BTI and
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97
indicated satisfaction with this service. Permanent housing information
and assistance appears to be a very important part of the program.
Additionally, upon exit from the BTI, youth were provided up to six
months after-care services to provide encouragement and advisement
as they began to live totally on their own. Some youth refused aftercare
services and/or declined to inform B it staff of their addresses.
Youth who moved to relatives do not necessarily represent
program failure. In many instances youth had been unable to develop or
nurture relationships with biological family while in placement due to
agency restrictions and barriers. At the time of emancipation, youth
efforts of reunification with family may be untimely or unfruitful. Reunion
fantasies may have contributed unrealistic expectations for both youth
and their families. The BTI offered some youth time for healing,
developing relationships, and realistically evaluating their families. It
also allowed families the opportunity to reconsider the youth as a family
member and to reconstruct to incorporate the youth.
Youth Employment and Financial Self-Maintenance
The literature provides varying pictures of youth post
emancipation employment outcomes. Eighteen months after
emancipation, employment rates were found to range from 38% to 63%
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98
and public assistance rates ranged from 12% to 30%. Additionally,
many youth reported receiving substantial financial support from
relatives and former care providers. In contrast, only 5% of youth exiting
the BTI utilized public assistance.
Compared with the 1996 cohort, twice the proportion of BTI youth
indicated employment as their source of income. Also, BTI participants’
employment, income and banking patterns significantly increased
between entrance and exit. The increase in income was statistically
significant at the p = .000 level.
It should be noted that the exit survey group entered the program
with higher rates of employment, income, and bank accounts than the
entrance survey group. Again, this suggests that BTI youth entered the
program at a higher functioning level than their cohort. However, both
entrance and exit respondent groups made gains in the program. Sixty
percent of respondents indicated the program employment service
component was useful and 45% utilized this service. These finding
suggest that the BTI made a significant positive difference in youth
financial self-maintenance. There were no single or cluster of variables
that were predictive of youth financial self-management.
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99
Education
Outcome research has provided little information about the
academic achievements of emancipated youth after their discharge from
foster care. The existing literature suggests that both cohort and BTI
youth should have low rates of high school completion and post-
secondary education at emancipation and higher rates of enrollment a
year or more after emancipation.
The proportion of cohort youth who completed high school was
54%, comparable to the proportion referenced in previous studies.
However, the rate of BTI participant high school completion, 88%, far
exceeded that of emancipated youth in the other outcome studies. Also,
the rate of BTI youth advancing into post-secondary education exceeded
the rate of youth in the other outcome studies.
These finding suggest that youth entered the BTI functioning at a
higher educational level than the general cohort. Consequently, BTI
youth were better prepared to advance into post-secondary education.
Further, BTI youth did not have to wonder about their short-term board
and care and were able to explore educational pursuits.
However, fewer youth continued post-secondary pursuits as they
continued in the program. This finding may be the result of the
exceptional emphasis placed on attainment and maintenance of
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100
employment, and on saving money. Continuing education was a
secondary emphasis. In fact, most of BTI youth enrolled in college and
vocational programs were also working.
Although almost 60% of surveyed youth found the educational
guidance component of the program useful, only 50% of the respondents
used this program and just more than 10% attributed their enrollment in
post-secondary education to BTI. This suggests at least a minimal level
of support for continuing youth education. However, it also suggests that
the educational guidance component is ineffective in encouraging and
motivating most youth to improve their earning potential and long-range
career outcomes through education.
This finding further suggests that it may not be reasonable to
expect large numbers of emancipated youth to handle employment,
continuing education, and the emotionally charged issues surrounding
living on one’s own, re-establishing family and community relationships,
and separation from agency supervision.
This finding also suggests that BTI selection criteria is structured
to attract the highest-functioning youth. This perspective suggests that
lower-functioning youth, arguably the largest population in need of
service-supported housing, are subjectively excluded from this program.
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101
A more objective perspective suggests that the BTI offers the
program to youth most capable of benefiting from the provided services.
The BTI does not have a clinical treatment component or clinical staff
assigned to the program. Youth with assigned regimens of psychotropic
medications or with histories of violence or program noncompliance
would require attention that exceeds the service capability of the existing
program. A significant proportion of Group 1 youth were chronic
runaways or had organic or emotional challenges. Youth fitting this
description were referred to programs that have clinical and behavioral
supervision components.
Health and Mental Health
Generally, the physical health of study participants was good at
program entrance and exit. The overwhelming majority of BTI youth self
evaluated their health as good or better, a rate much higher than
indicated in previous studies. Also, more than 70% of BTI participants
had obtained recent medical and dental examinations. The cohort group
reflected very similar periodicity in regard to medical and dental
examinations. This finding was consistent with results from previous
research.
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102
Characteristically, the concern centers on the availability of
medical and dental coverage for this population. Thirty to forty percent
of youth described in outcome research had difficulty obtaining medical
coverage. In contrast, more than 80% of BTI entrance and exit survey
respondents obtained medical coverage. A major focus of BTI was
improving youth health by directing them to health resources, including .
Medi-Cal, and emphasizing constructive health practices.
Generally, youth participating in the BTI had high rates of medical
coverage and recent medical examinations. The overwhelming majority
reported being in good health. At exit, 98% indicated average or better
health, 76% had medical coverage, and 74% had recent medical
examinations. The rates of medical examinations of BTI participants
slightly exceeded those of their cohort. Also, participants in the BTI
received training and resource information on accessing medical and
dental care, as well as on avoiding risk behaviors. Ninety percent of BTI
youth indicated awareness of safe sex practices. Although Cook (1991)
found the rate of drug and alcohol problems for emancipated foster
youth was slightly less than the contemporary general population, the
remaining outcome literature suggests that high proportions of
emancipated foster youth face substance abuse challenges, with overall
rates reported as high as 65% (Festinger, 1983).
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103
BTI youth reported relatively low rates of substance abuse, both
at program entrance and exit. However, at exit, nearly twice the
proportion of youth reported challenges with drugs than at entrance. On
the surface, it appears that the BTI did not successfully deter youth from
involvement with chemical substances. However, the rate of use at exit
was still below that of the previous studies.
Youth self-reports of increased drug use may accurately reflect
participant experimentation and drug challenges. However, it is also
likely that youth under-reported drug experiences at program entrance to
avoid jeopardizing their admission into the program. Consequently,
there is insufficient information to determine the impact of the BTI in
regard to drug deterrence.
The mental health of emancipated foster youth was a concern
expressed throughout the literature, with as many as 100% of one study
group (Barth, 1990) diagnosed as clinically depressed. The mental
health of the BTI participants was assessed in terms of their
psychosocial functioning. Youth psychosocial functioning was measured
in four instrumental domains— self-esteem, problem-solving, locus of
control, and depression. Each of these constructs are interrelated in
describing youth functioning,
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104
Self-esteem is a major evaluative component of self-concept.
Self-esteem, life skills acquisition and social competence are complex
by-products of interactions with families, schools, and the total
environment. Literature suggests that most foster youth have low self
esteem and need special help in this area (Beyer, 1990; Hahn, 1994;
Jaklitsch &, Levine, 1990; Mauzerall, 1983; Stone, 1987).
Youth self-esteem, as measured by the ISE and paired t-tests,
decreased between entrance and exit. Typically, low self-esteem is
common for maltreated youth and is often associated with depression
(McFadden, Rice, Ryan, & Warren, 1989). Literature suggests that the
stress of leaving a familiar setting triggers attachment behaviors in older
youth placed in foster care (Penzerro & Lein, 1995). Low self-esteem
and depression findings may more be a reflection of youth concerns
related to personal competence and control in their perceived abilities to
handle adult responsibilities than a decrease in self-esteem. The level of
entrance self-esteem was most predictive of youth exit self-esteem.
Clearly, the BTI was not effective in increasing the self-esteem of
participants. It is likely that exit from the BTI and the BTI community of
friends and associations forced respondents to confront the realities
related to full self-responsibility.
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105
It is also likely that exit from the program re-introduced issues of
separation and past rejections. Future program service development
might consider buttressing the aftercare program, providing more
intensive pre-termination self-esteem enhancing activities, and utilizing
appropriate family or former care providers as resources to support
participant’s transition to self-sufficiency.
The Problem-solving Inventory (PSI) measures how individuals
believe they react to personal problems in their daily lives. This
instrument measured the evaluative awareness of an individual’s
problem-solving abilities and styles, not actual problem-solving skills.
Problem-solving skills, such as defining a problem and generating
possible solutions, help resolve difficulties that pose threats or serve as
obstacles in reaching goals. Two types of abilities have been found to
distinguish individuals who struggle almost continually with adverse life
circumstances from those who manage--problem-solving skills and
coping skills (Jaffe, 1998).
Literature suggests that foster care systems often fail to balance
youth growth needs and self-sufficiency needs with the security and
dependency needs of children (Cook, 1988). Further, stress theorist
suggest that certain styles of coping result in deficiencies in problem
solving skills as abused children approach adolescence (Jaffe, 1998;
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106
Rutter, 1983). Patterns of solving problems and fully taking
responsibility for decisions can be overwhelming for former foster youth.
Youth problem-solving awareness slightly decreased between
entrance and exit for the larger BTI entrance group. However, paired t-
test scores showed a slight increase. This suggests that, at the time of
exit, youth were less aware of their problem-solving ability and styles.
This would result in less solid strategies to comfortably address short
term and long-term situations. Youth level of problem-solving was highly
correlated with exit measures related to self-esteem and problem
solving.
This result suggests that the BTI does not exert a positive impact
on youth cognitive problem-solving processes and awareness. A more
intensive living skills program of longer duration might have a more
positive impact in this area. Development of a mentor program might
also assist youth in this area.
The locus of control construct indicates self-perception of
personal control over one’s life. Literature suggests that foster youth
often have difficulty understanding role relationships because they
cannot accurately predict outcomes of behavior. As a result, their sense
of competence and control tends to be impaired (McDermott, 1987).
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107
Also, foster care living arrangements are not always conducive to
developing personal competencies. Throughout their lives foster youth
have many non-parent adults making the decisions that affect the
courses of their lives, which limit opportunities for them to learn and
incorporate the skills necessary for responsible daily living (Cook, 1991:
Cook, 1988). In many cases, youth entering the BTI have few
experiences in housekeeping, managing money, handling business
affairs or otherwise being self-responsible. Often agency licensing and
supervision standards prohibit providing certain experiences. In other
cases, the lack of graduated training may represent a lack of caring and
a generalized sense of disenfranchisement.
In both aggregate pretest and posttest measures and paired t-
tests, youth locus of control increased significantly between program
entrance and exit. This suggests that the BTI had a positive effect in
providing a large number of youth with a sense of control over their lives,
irrespective of their awareness of problem-solving propensities.
Throughout the literature depression was found to be a mental
health challenge very common to emancipated foster youth. Anderson
and Simonitch (1981) found reactive depression to be common among
adolescents preparing for emancipation and independent living. At the
time of the emancipation event, many youth are not prepared for adult
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108
living and are not emotionally ready for discharge. Consequently, a high
level of depression may be the expected, if not a normal, reaction to
termination from agency-supported housing.
The entrance and exit depression group scores indicated youth
depression decreased between program entrance and exit. However,
the paired t-test results indicated depression levels increased between
entrance and exit. Does this suggest that youth are more depressed as
they prepare to leave the program? Possibly.
The depression measure may reflect youth anxiety related to the
uncertainty of independent living without the safety net of agency
supervision. However, there is no information on the depression levels
of the cohort of emancipated foster youth in Los Angeles County, or any
other child welfare system. Also, there was no depression measurement
of the BTI respondents immediately after they were discharged from
foster care. Consequently, it is very possible that if measured at the time
of emancipation, the respondents would have exhibited significant levels
of depression, perhaps even greater than that measured in the BTI
entrance survey. It is noteworthy that entrance depression scores were
partially predictive of exit depression scores.
It is also likely that the formal action of emancipation, i.e.,
termination of agency jurisdiction, is a precipitating event that triggers an
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109
array of anxious feelings related to housing and self-care. If measured
immediately at emancipation or other times of pre-entrance life, these
anxious feelings may have reflected in high depression scores.
Entrance into the BTI, as a anxiety-reducing influence, may have
produced artificially low measurements.
Conversely, BTI youth may, in fact, become more depressed as
they progress through the program. Based on this premise, plans for
non-intrusive mental health services to be integrated into the program
are currently under development by program collaborators.
Both perspectives suggest that mental health services are as
much a need for these youth as are board and care provisions.
Summary
Generally, BTI respondents entered the program functioning at
higher educational and psychosocial levels than their cohort. The
program had a significant impact on youth income and locus of control.
The BTI also made a positive difference in post-BTI housing,
employment, educational enrollment, and health. The program did not
have a positive impact on youth educational progression, self-esteem,
depression, or problem-solving.
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110
The majority of youth exited the BTI into stable permanent
housing with living wages. BTI participants indicated the permanent
housing component of the program was helpful. However the most
prominent impact of the BTI was in the area of youth financial self
maintenance. Average participant income more than doubled and rates
of employment substantially increased between entrance and exit. Also,
the vast majority of participants exited the program with bank accounts.
Additionally, only 5% of program participants found it necessary to resort
to public assistance at exit. This proportion is much lower than that of
the cohort and of respondent groups referenced in the literature.
Typically, youth entered and exited the program in good health.
Positive health patterns were demonstrated throughout the program.
Most youth exited the program with health coverage and with current
medical and dental examinations. Also, youth indicated good awareness
of safe sex practices. However, twice as many youth indicated drug
usage at exit than at entrance.
Youth educational status did not significantly improve after
entering the program. Although average years of education slightly
improved, fewer youth were enrolled in post-secondary education at exit
than at entrance. Youth education did not appear to be strongly
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111
supported by the BTI. However, the level of functioning of BTI youth in
all outcome areas exceeded that of their cohort.
Removing children from their biological families and placing them
in foster care can create unintended problems with youth psychosocial
health which are not fully understood by practitioners. Measurement of
youth psychosocial functioning at program entrance and exit, at most,
provide snapshots of two life junctures characterized by housing crises.
These findings do not necessarily inform us of youth functioning under
less traumatic circumstances.
Youth psychosocial functioning was not significantly impacted by
the BTI. On average, youth demonstrated slight declines in self-esteem,
problem-solving and depression, and an increase in locus of control.
This suggests that youth felt more in control of their lives but did not
have confidence in their competence and abilities. The result was higher
depression and loss of self-esteem. The findings from this study
strongly suggest that emancipated foster youth need mental health
services. This further suggests that mental health services should be a
core program service of transitional housing and transitional living
programs. These areas need to be addressed in programmatic and
service development components of the BTI.
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112
Conclusion and Final Remarks
In America, many young adults age 18 to 22 do not live in
independent living arrangements and many continue to live with their
biological parents. Each youth entering the BTI did not have parents or
parent figures able to provide a satisfactory housing option. Instead,
they were homeless or on the verge of becoming homeless. Social
workers, administrators, and policy makers must continue to develop
programs and focused interventions that prevent youth from exiting
foster care without the resources that enable transition into stable
housing.
Emancipated foster youth represent an understudied high-risk
population. Outcome research on emancipated foster youth suggests life
skills knowledge and the ability to perform a variety of daily practical
tasks are essential for self-sufficiency. The degree of youth preparation
for adult living is directly related to youth acquiring key independent
living skills, attitudes, and behaviors.
It was difficult to gather information on the post-emancipation
living arrangements of many of the youth who exited the BTI. Literature
suggests that emancipated youth are difficult to locate one year or more
after discharge from agency supervision. Cook (1994), Barth (1990),
and Festinger (1983) suggested that many of these youth do not tend to
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113
remain in their post-discharge residence very long, and as a result, this
population tends to be very transient.
Some youth preferred tota! termination of contact with DCFS-
related programs and the implicit authority the agency had exercised
over them, in the BTI and throughout their lives. Others moved
precipitously or experienced unplanned exits in advance of their program
exit dates, failing to provide information related to their whereabouts.
Youth who participated in the BTI benefited from structured
guidance and training that was unavailable to most emancipated foster
youth. It is impossible to predict the adult outcomes for the program
graduates. However, the life skills, money management and work
ethics, that youth derive from this program should enable them to
maintain stable housing and employment. Also, program participants
had the opportunity to practice accessing community resources to meet
specific needs. Consequently, it is expected that the majority of these
youth will be self-sufficient adults aware of constructive life choices that
lead to productive lives, but with mental health issues that may present
some barriers.
Although the same optimism cannot be shared for their cohort,
DCFS and United Friends of the Children Bridges continue to outreach
to emancipated foster youth to take advantage of the available benefits
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114
and services. Although a significant proportion of these youth are
gainfully employed or are preparing for meaningful careers, it is likely
that many young adults in this group have experienced uncertain
housing situations, unemployment or underemployment and debilitating
mental health challenges.
Limitations of this Study
This study design was subject to several factors that threatened
internal validity including history, maturation effects, testing effects,
regression effects, and the interaction of each of these factors (Campbell
& Stanley, 1963). As a result, it is difficult to postulate cause-effect or
single-source relationships between the transitional housing program
and the observed changes at the time of measurement.
Also, various areas of youth self-report data were not verified by
review of agency case data. In some instances, favorable response
biases were possible. Many of the youth reported having been
psychometrically tested throughout their agency lives. Some youth
indicated they recognized the relationships between answers and
subsequent treatment, and resented this intrusion into their lives.
Further, it cannot be assumed that changes related to post
emancipation or post-BTI living arrangements, employment, and
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115
educational choices were not impacted by individual histories and
maturational factors, as well as reactions to the exit events, testing,
financial situations and other crises, as well as the interaction of these
factors.
Also, this design is not strong in terms of external validity.
Findings from this study represent only this population in the context of
the described environment and variables. Generalizability to other
populations is not suggested. However the large sample size (N1 = 257,
N2 = 83) and population homogeneity increases the degree to which
findings from this study may be generalized to very similar populations.
Survey responses were skewed toward entrance surveys.
Despite several outreach strategies, entrance respondents did not
submit the expected number of exit surveys. Consequently, the power
of analysis was limited.
Further, the study population was only a segment of the youth
who emancipated from the Los Angeles County foster care system.
These youth met requirements/criteria of homelessness and were able
to successfully apply for the transitional housing program. It is
questionable that BTI youth are representative of the local emancipated
foster population. Future research activities might begin a process of
tracking youth in advance of their termination from agency supervision,
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116
similar to the strategy currently being conducted at the University of
Wisconsin.
Suggestions for Future Research
Emancipation research would benefit from longitudinal studies of
this population to determine (a) the stability of post-BTI youth living
arrangements one and two years after exit, (b) the stability of post-BTI
youth living arrangements in comparison to their non-dependent cohorts,
and (c) the most effective points of pre-emancipation intervention to
prevent homelessness for discharged youth.
Also, experimental designs would be helpful in evaluating the
comparative effects of targeted skills training, transitional housing, and
other interventions. In addition to providing information to programs like
BTI, these interventions could influence the provision of independent
living skills training, vocational training, mentor programs, and self
esteem activities.
Future research might evaluate youth outcomes related to the
effects or impact of completing high school and enrolling in post
secondary education, having a job at emancipation, having children at or
before emancipation, being in good health at emancipation, and the
effect of drug and alcohol challenges at emancipation. Experimental
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117
designs would be helpful in developing a comparative understanding of
youth strengths and deficits, and justifying explanatory studies.
Presently, this study is only the eighth study evaluating the post
discharge outcomes of youth. The new research and evaluation
provisions introduced by the Chafee Independence Program (42 USC
677,1999) should encourage the measurement of youth outcomes
related to emancipation preparation and status, as well as longitudinal
research as to the status of former foster youth as they advance into
adulthood. The new legislation supports evaluating and reporting the
progress of emancipated foster youth.
Finally, the aggregation of data into regional and national
databanks would enable the context, design, and strategies of
interventions to be shared and possibly standardized. Availability should
extend to both researchers and practitioners. This suggestion is
consistent with recommendations by Mech (1994b) and Mech and
Rycraft (1995).
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118
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APPENDIX A
ENTRANCE SURVEYS
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B R ID G ES TO IN D E P E N D E N C E PR O G R A M
IN FO R M E D CO NSENT
124
The purpose o f this research is to evaluate the Transitional Living
Program run by the Department o f Children and Family Services for Los Angeles
County. Our primary interest in this regard is the effect o f the program on you as
a participant. Your responses to this interview are, therefore, very important. We
are also interested in learning some personal information about you when you
enter and leave the program.
Everything that you say w ill remain confidential. W e w ill not include
your name, nor any other identification, in our final report. Neither w ill we
discuss the content or conduct o f this interview with anybody. A ll questionnaires
w ill be stored in a locked file. The USC research team members, directed by
Madeleine Stoner, are the only people who will have access to these data. They
w ill be numerically coded and all names w ill be removed. They w ill be destroyed
upon completion ofithe evaluation
Your cooperation is voluntary, and w ill, in no w ay, affect your status in
the Bridges to Independence Living Program. I f you do not wish to answer any o f
the questions, you are free to refuse and this w ill not be held against you. You are
also free to w ithdraw from the interview at any time. This interview w ill take
approxim ately 45 m inutes.
W e w ill be asking some questions about child care. I f any information is
revealed that indicates child abuse, wc are required to report this to the
Departm ent o f Children and Fam ily Services. How evei, we w ill not be asking
any specific questions about child abuse
The State o f California also requires us to report any evidence o f elder
abuse and spousal abuse. This interview d o rs not include any questions related to
such abuse.
Please read the following statem ent carefully and sign your name before
answering any interview questions.
I have read the above and agree to respond to the interview questions.
Name Date
Interviewer
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Interviewer
B R ID G E S T O IN D E P E N D E N C E P R O G R A M
Date of Interview
I. Identifying Information
Name:
Date of Birth:
Gender: Male Female
Dependent Children Yes No
If ves. number of children
Race/Ethnicitv:
H. Residence Information
Current Residence:
Address:_______________________________________ ________________
Phone___________________________
Date moved into current residence_____________________________ _
Months/Weeks in Bridges to date________________________________ _______
Former participant in the Independent Living Program Yes No
Living Situation prior to entering Bridges housing
Group home Foster home Family Friends Other
Relative Former Caregiver Spouse Transitional Housing Other_ _ _
Monthly income at time of entry to Bridges________________________
On Public Assistance at time of entry to Bridges Yes No
If yes, what type of Assistance? _______________________________
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126
Other forms of income at time of entry to Bridges
Savings Account at time of entry to Bridges Yes No
Checking Account at time of entry to Bridges Yes No
UL Education Information
What is the highest level of education obtained prior to entry into Bridges
a.) Elementary school
b.) Some high school
c.) High school graduate or GED
d.) Completion of some trade school classes
e.) Completed some college units
Are you currently enrolled in an education program? Yes No
I f enrolled, please explain the nature of the school program?__________________
Did you find the educational program with the assistance of Bridges staff? Yes No
3. What are the educational goals you are working on while in Bridges?
a.) Completion of high school or GED program
b.) Enrollment in a certification program for a trade
c.) Enrollment in adult education courses
d.) Graduation from a two year college program
e.) Graduation from a four year college program
f.) None
IV. Employment Information
Did you have any paid employment experience (full or part time) prior to entering Bridges?
Yes No
Part-time employment Number of months_____________________________________
Full time employment Number of months_____________________________________
List most recent part-time experience first and work back.
Job Title_________________________________________________________________
from:_____ : ___________________________ to (dates if known)
Job Title
from:_ _
Job Title
to
from: to
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127
List most recent foil time experience first and work back.
Job Title____________________________________________________________________
from:_________________________________ to (dates if known)
Job Title____________________________________________________________________
from:________________________________ t o _________________________________
Job Title__________________________
from:________________________________to _________________________________
Are you currently working? Yes Fulltime Part time No
I f yes, what is your job description?
V. Health Care Information
Do you have any health benefits for yourself?
If yes, what benefits?
Yes No
How would you rate your own health?
a.) excellent
b.) very good
c.) average
d.) fair
e.) poor
Did you have a physical exam prior to entering Bridges? Yes No
Did you have a dental check-up prior to entering Bridges? Yes No
Have you had any problems with substance abuse prior to Bridges? Yes No
Did you feel informed about safe sex practices prior to Bridges? Yes No
VL Evaluation of Current Program Services
A ) Child Care Service (if applicable)
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
If no, why not?
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128
2. How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
B) Employment Assistance
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
I f no, why not?________________________________________________
2. How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
C) Individual/Group Counseling
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
Individual Yes No
Group Yes No
If no, why n o t? ^
How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
Individual Gtoud
a. extremely useful a. extremely useful
b. useful b. useful
c. undecided c. undecided
d. somewhat useful d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful e. not at all useful
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129
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?
D) Educational Guidance
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
If no, why not?______________
2. How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
E) Independent Living Skills, in particular money management
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
If no, why not?________________________________________________
2. How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
F) Health and Dental Services
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
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130
If no, why not?
2. How do you rate this service in terms of currant or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
G) Permanent Housing Assistance
1. Do you currently use this service? Yes No
If no, why not?________________________________________________
2. How do you rate this service in terms of current or future usefulness in your life?
a. extremely useful
b. useful
c. undecided
d. somewhat useful
e. not at all useful
3. Do you have any additional comments about this service?__________________
VII. Other Information
1 . What skills do you feel you need for living independently?
2. Do you have one significant adult whom you can count c m for financial or emotional
support? Yes No
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3. Do you find yourself in financial crises?
Ail the time Often Sometimes Rarely Never
4. Have you had any contact with parents, siblings, relatives or forma- foster parents in the
last 12 months? If so, which ones?_______________________________________
5. Are you involved in any volunteer or community work activities? Yes No
6. Do you have any suggestions or recommendations for the Bridges program planners?
If yes, what?_________________________________________________________________
PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOUR SCALES ON THE FOLLOWING PAGES AS
INDICATED
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132
ISE
This questionnaire is designed to m easure how you see yourself. It is not a test,
so there are no right or wrong answers. Please answer each item as accurately as
you can by placing a num ber by each one as follows:
1 = Rarely or none of the tim e
2 = A little of the tim e
3 = Som e of the tim e
4 = A good part of the tim e
5 = Most or all of the tim e
1. I feel that people would not like if they really knew m e well.
2. I feel that others get along much better than I do.
3. I feel I am a beautiful person.
4. W hen I am with other people I feel they are glad I am with them.
5. I feel that people really like to talk to m e.
6. I feel that I am a very com petent person.
7. I think I m ake a good impression on others.
8. I feel that I need m ore self-confidence.
9. W hen I am with strangers I am very nervous.
10. I think that I am a dull person.
11. I feel ugly.
12. I feel that others have m ore fun than I do.
13. I feel that I bore people.
14. I think my friends find m e interesting.
15. I think I have a good sense of humor.
16. I feel very self-conscious when I am with strangers.
17. I feel that if I could be more like other people I would have it m ade.
18. I feel that people have a good tim e when they are with me.
19. I feel like a w all flow er when I go out.
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20. I feel I get pushed around more than others.
21. I think I am a rather nice person.
22. i feel that people really like m e very much.
23. I feel that I am a likeable person.
24. I am afraid I will appear foolish to others.
25. M y friends think very highly of me.
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134
ROTTER INTERNAL-EXTERNAL LOCUS OF CONTROL
I am going to read to you two sentences at a tim e. Choose the one that most
closely describes w hat you believe or the way you feel about things
1. a. Children get into trouble because their parents punish th a n too much.
b. The trouble with most children nowadays is that their parents are too easy
on them .
2. a. M any of the unhappy things in people’s lives are partly due to bad luck,
b. People’s m isfortunes result from the m istakes they m ake.
3. a. In the long run people get the respect they deserve in the world.
b. There will always be wars, no m atter how hard people try to prevent them .
4. a. In the long run people get the respect they deserve in the world.
b. Unfortunately, an individual’s worth in this world often passes unrecognized
no m atter how hard s/he tries.
5. a. The idea that teachers are unfair to students is nonsense.
b. Most students don’t re a lize the extent to which their grades are influenced
by accidental happenings.
6. a. W ithout the right breaks one cannot be an effective leader.
b. C apable people who fail to becom e leaders have not taken advantage of
their opportunities.
7. a. No m atter how hard you try, som e people just don’ t like you.
b. People who can’t get others to like them don’t understand how to get along
with others.
8. a. Heredity plays the m ajor role in determ ining one’s personality,
b. It is one’s experiences in life which determ ine what one is like.
9. a. I have often found w hat is going to happen will happen.
b. Trusting to fate has never turned out as well for m e as m aking a decision
to take a definite course of action.
10. a. In the case of th e well prepared student there is rarely if ever such a thing
as an unfair test.
b. M any tim es exam questions tent to be so unrelated to coursework that
studying is really useless.
11. a. Becoming a success is a m atter of hard work, luck has little or nothing to
do with it.
b. Getting a good job depends m ainly on being in the right place at the right
tim e.
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135
12. a. The average citizen can have an influence in governm ent decisions.
b. This world is run by a few people in power, and there is not much the little
guy can do about it.
13. a. W hen I m ake plans, I am almost certain that I can m ake them work.
b. It is not always w ise to plan too far ahead because m any things turn out to
be m atter of good or bad fortune anyhow.
14. a. There are certain people who are just no good,
b. There is som e good in everybody.
15. a. In my case, getting w hat I w ant has little or nothing to do with luck.
b. M any tim es w e might just as w ell decide what to do by flipping a coin.
16. a. W ho gets to be the boss often depends on who w as lucky enough to be in
the right place first,
b. Getting people to do the right thing depends on ability, luck has little or
nothing to do with it.
17. a. As fa r as the world is concerned, most of us are the victims of forces w e
can neither understand nor control,
b. By taking an active part in political and social affairs people can control
world events.
18. a. Most people don’t realize the extent to which their lives are controlled by
accidental happenings,
b. There really is no such thing as “luck”.
19. a. O ne should always be willing to adm it mistakes,
b. It is usually best to cover up one’s m istakes.
20. a. It is hard to know w hether or not a person really likes you.
b. How m any friends you have depends on how nice a person you are.
21. a. In the long run the bad things that happen to us are balanced by the good
ones.
b. Most m isfortunes are the result of lack of ability, ignorance, laziness, or all
three.
22. a. W ith enough effort w e can w ipe out political corruption.
b. It is difficult for people to have much control over the things politicians do in
office.
23. a. Som etim es I cannot understand how teachers arrive at the grades they
give.
b. There is a direct connection between how hard I study and the grade I get.
24. a. A good leader expect people to decide for them selves what they should
do.
b. A good leader m akes it clear to everybody w hat their jobs are.
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136
2 5. a. M any tim es I feel that I have little influence over the things that happen to
me.
b. It is impossible for me to believe that chance or luck plays an important
role in my life.
26. a. People are lonely because they don’t try to be friendly.
b. There’s not much use in trying too hard to please people, if they like you,
they like you.
27. a. There is too much em phasis on athletics in school,
b. Team sports are an excellent way to build character.
28. a. W hat happens to m e is my own doing.
b. Som etim es I feel that I don’t have enough control over the direction my life
is taking.
29. a. Most of the tim e I can’t understand why politicians behave the way they do.
b. In the long run the people are responsible for bad governm ent on a
national as well as local level.
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137
PSI
Read each statement and indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with
that statem ent, using the following alternatives.
1 = Strongly agree
2 = Moderately agree
3 = Slightly agree
4 = Slightly disagree
5 = Moderately disagree
6 = Strongly disagree
1. W hen a solution to a problem was unsuccessful, I did not exam ine why it
didn’t work.
2. W hen I am confronted with a com plex problem, I do not bother to develop
a strategy to collect information so I can define exactly what the problem
is.
3. W hen my first efforts to solve a problem fails, I becom e uneasy about my
ability to handle the situation.
4. A fter I have solved a problem , I do not analyze what went right and what
went wrong.
5. I am usually able to think up creative and effective alternatives to solve a
problem.
6. A fter I have tried to solve a problem with a certain course of action, I take
tim e and com pare the actual outcom e to what I think should have
happened.
7. W hen I have a problem , I think up as m any possible ways to handle it as I
can until I can’ t com e up with any m ore ideas.
8. W hen confronted with a problem , I consistently exam ine m y feelings to
find out w hat is going on in a problem situation.
9. W hen I am confused with a problem , I do not try to define vague ideas or
feelings into concrete or specific term s.
10. I have the ability to solve most problem s even though initially no solution is
im m ediately apparent.
11. M any problem I face are too com plex for m e to solve.
12. I m ake decisions and am happy with them later.
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138
.13. W hen confronted with a problem, I tend to do the first thing that I can think
to solve it.
.14. Som etim es I do not stop and take tim e to deal with my problems, but just
kind of m uddle ahead.
.15. W hen deciding on an idea or possible solution to a problem , I do not take
the tim e to consider the chances of each alternative being successful.
.16. W hen confronted with a problem, I stop and think about it before deciding
on the next step.
.17. I generally go with the first good idea that com es to mind.
.18. W hen making a decision, I weigh the consequences of each alternative
and com pare them against each other.
.19. W hen I m ake plans to solve a problem, I am alm ost certain that I can
make them work.
20. I try to predict the overall result of carrying out a particular course of
action.
21. W hen I try to think up possible solutions to a problem , I do not com e up
with very m any alternatives.
22. In trying to solve a problem , one strategy I often use is to thing of past
problem s that have been similar.
23. G iven enough tim e and effort, I believe I can solve most problems that
confront m e.
24. W hen faced with a novel situation, I have confidence that I can handle
problem s that m ay arise.
25. Even though I work on a problem , som etim es I feel like I am groping or
w andering, and not getting down to the real issue.
26. I m ake snap judgem ents and later regret them .
27. I trust my ability to solve new and difficult problems.
28. I have a system atic m ethod for com paring alternatives and making
decisions.
29. W hen I try not to think of ways of handling a problem , I do not try to
com bine different ideas together.
30. W hen confronted with a problem , I don't usually exam ine what sort of
external things in my environm ent m ay be contributing to my problem.
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139
31. W hen I am confronted by a problem, one of the first things I do is survey
the situation and consider all the relevant pieces of information.
32. Som etim es I get so charged up em otionally that I am unable to consider
m any ways of dealing with my problem.
33. A fter making a decision, the outcome I expected usually m atches the
actual outcome.
.34. W hen confronted with a problem , I am unsure of w hether I can handle the
situation.
.35. W hen I becom e aw are of a problem , one of the first things I do is try to find
out exactly what the problem is.
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140
Beck Depression inventory
PAST WEEK, INCLUDING TODAY!! Circle the statement you pick in each
group. If several statem ents in the group seem to apply equally well, circle each
one. Be sure to read all the statem ents in each group before m aking your choice.
1. I do not feel sad.
I feel sad.
I am sad all the tim e and can’t snap out of it.
I am so sad or happy that I can’t stand.
2. I am not particularly discouraged about the future.
I feel discouraged about the future.
I feel I have nothing to look forward to.
I feel that the future is hopeless and that things cannot improve.
3. I do not feel like a failure.
I feel I have failed m ore than the average person.
As I look back over m y life, all I can see is a lot of failures.
I feel I am a com plete failure as a person.
4. I get as much satisfaction out of things as I used to.
I don’t enjoy things that w ay I used to.
I don’t get real satisfaction out of anything anym ore.
I am dissatisfied or bored with everything.
5. I don’t feel particularly guilty.
I feel guilty a god part of the tim e.
I feel quite guilty most of the tim e.
I feel guilty ail of the tim e.
6. I don’t feel I am being punished.
I feel I m ay be punished.
I expect to be punished.
I feel I am being punished.
7. I don’t feel disappointed in myself.
I am disappointed in myself.
I am disgusted with myself.
I hate myself.
8. I don’t feel I am any worse than anybody else.
I am critical of m yself for my w eaknesses or m istakes.
I blam e m yself all the tim e for my faults.
I blam e m yself for everything bad that happens.
9. I don’t have any thought of killing myself.
I have thoughts of killing m yself, but I would not carry them out.
I would like to kill m yself.
I would like to kill m yself.
I would kill m yself it I had the chance.
10. I don’t cry any m ore than usual.
I cry m ore now than I used to.
I cry al the tim e now.
I used to cry, but now I can’t cry event though I want to.
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141
11. I am no more irritated now than i ever am.
I get annoyed or irritated more easily than I used to.
I fee! irritated all the time now.
I don't get irritated at all by the things that used to irritate m e.
12. I have not lost interest in other people.
I am less interested in other people than I used to be.
I have lost most of my interest in other people.
I have lost all of my interest in other people.
13. I m ake decisions about as w ell as I ever could.
I put off making decisions m ore than I used to.
I have greater difficulty in m aking decisions than before.
I can’t m ake decisions at all anymore.
14. I don’t feel I look any worse than I used to.
I am worried that I am looking old or unattractive.
I feel that there are perm anent changes in m y appearance that m ake m e
look unattractive.
I believe that I look ugly.
15. I can work as well as before.
It takes an extra effort to get started a t doing som ething.
I have to push m yself very hard to do anything.
I can’t do any work at all.
16. I can sleep as well as usual.
I don’t sleep as well as I used to.
I w ake up 1 or 2 hours earlier than I used to and find it hard to get back to
sleep.
I w ake up several hours earlier than I used to and cannot get back to
sleep.
17. I don’t get m ore tired than usual.
I get tired m ore easily than I used to.
I get tired from doing almost anything.
I am too tired to do anything.
18. M y appetite is no worse than usual.
M y appetite is not as good as it used to be.
M y appetite is much worse now.
I have no appetite at all anym ore.
19. I haven’t lost much weight, if any, lately.
I have lost m ore than 5 pounds.
I have lost m ore than 10 pounds.
I have lost m ore than 15 pounds.
20. I am no m ore worried about my health than usual.
I am worried about problem s such as aches and pains; or upset stomach;
or constipation.
I am very worried about physical problems, and it's hard to think of much
else.
I am so worried about my physical problem s that I cannot think of anything
else.
21. I have not noticed any recent changes in my interest in sex.
I am much less interested in sex than I used to be.
I have much less interest in sex now.
I have lost interest in sex com pletely.
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APPENDIX B
EXIT SURVEYS
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BRIDGES TO INDEPENDENCE
PROGRAM EVALUATION
EXIT
QUESTIONNAIRE
Now that you have left Bridges to Independence housing, we would like to learn how
the program cared for you, prepared you for your present independent living, and how
you are doing now? This information is very important for the Bridges to Independence
program. I f you will take just one-half hour to complete this survey and send it to me in
the addressed stamped envelope, I will send you two movie tickets as soon a s I receive
the competed questionnaire in appreciation of your help.
Everything that you write will remain confidential. It will not be seen by Department
of Children and Family Services staff and we will not include your name, or any other
identifying information in any reports. Neither will we discuss the content of this
interview with anybody. All questionnaires will be stored in a locked file. The members
of the research team, located at the University of Southern California School of Social
Work, are the only people who will have access to these data. They will be coded and all
names will be removed. They will be destroyed upon completion o f this research.
Your cooperation is voluntary, and will, in no way, affect your status or ability to
receive other services from DCFS or the Bridges to Independence program. If you do not
wish to answer any of the questions, you may refuse and this will not be held against you.
The State of California requires u s to report any information that indicates child, elder,
or spousal abuse, or your intent to harm yourself or others. This questionnaire does not
contain any questions related to these areas.
Please read the following questions carefully and return the questionnaire to me in the
envelope provided as soon as possible. Please call me if you have any questions or
concerns at the telephone number below.
Thank you very mud
Madeleine R. Stoner, Pfofessor
University of Southern California School of Social Work
Telephone 213-740-0290
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144
ALUMNI RESOURCE CENTER SURVEY
EXIT SURVEY
L Identifying Information
Name:
Date of Birth:
Gender: Male Female
Marital Status: Single Married Divorces
Do you have any children? Yes No
I f yes, number of children and their ages:
Race/Ethnicity:_____________________________________________________
II. Residence Information
Current Residence:
Address:____________________________________________________________
City:__________________________ State:______________ Zip:_________
Phone Number:___________________________
Current living arrangement: Alone Roommate Girlfriend/boyfriend
Relative Former Caregiver Spouse Transitional Housing Other__________
Date moved into current residence:_ _ ___________________
Did you participate in the Independent Living Program? Yes No
If so, what year?_________
Living Situation prior to emancipation:
Foster Home Group Home Relative Other_________________________
Monthly income at the time of emancipation:________ ■ Monthly income_now_________
Have you been on Public Assistance within the last year? Yes No
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145
If yes, what type of Assistance? AFDC Food Stamps Medical SSI
Other forms of income:_________________________
Savings Account: Yes No
Checking Account: Yes No
HL Education Information
1. What grade did you complete before emancipation?
a.) Elementary school
b.) Some high school
c.) High school graduate or GED
d.) Completion of some trade school classes
e.) Completed some college units
2. Have you attended college or vocational school since you emancipated? Yes No
Are you currently enrolled in an education or training program? Yes No
If enrolled, please explain die type of program? _______ ; _________
3. What is your educational/career goal?
a.) Completion of high school or GED program
b.) Enrollment in a certification program for a trade
c.) Enrollment in adult education courses
d.) Graduation from a two year college program
e). Completion of vocational/trade program
e.) Graduation from a four year college program
IV. Employment Information
1. Did you have any work experience prior to emancipation? Yes No
If so, what type of work?_______________________________
2. Are you currently employed? Yes Full time Part time No
3. I f working, how many months at current job?______________ (total)
4. List most recent job experience first, and then other previous jobs.
Job Title_________________________ Duties____________________________
( _____ / ______/ _____ - _____/ ______ / ) (List dates if known)
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146
Job Title_________________________ Duties___________________
( ____ / _______ / _____- _____ / ____ / _______ ) (List dates if known)
Job Title_________________________ Duties___________________
( ____ / _______ / _____- _____ / ____ / _______ ) (List dates if known)
V . Health Care Information
1. Do you have any health benefits for self? Yes No
... for dependents?
If yes, what benefits?_________________________________
2.. How would you rate your own health?
a.) excellent
b.) very good
c.) average
d.) fair
e.) poor
3. Did you have a physical exam 1.) prior to leaving DCFS?
2.) within the last 12 months?
4. Did you have a dental check-up 1.) prior to leaving DCFS?
2.) within the last 12 months?
5. Have you had any problems with substance abuse?
1.) prior to leaving DCFS
2.) within the last 12 months?
6. Did you feel informed about safe sex practices?
1.) prior to leaving DCFS
2.) within the last 12 months?
V I. Other Information
1. Do you have at least one significant adult that you can count on for financial or emotional
support? Yes No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
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147
2. How often do you find yourself in financial crises
All the time Often Sometimes Rarely Never
3. Have you had any contact with parents, siblings, relatives or former foster parents in the last
12 months? If so, which ones?____________________________________
4. Have you been arrested in the last?
1.) 12 months
2.) 24 months
5. Looking back now, do you believe you were ready to handle adult life when you emancipated
from foster care? Yes No
6. Are you involved in any volunteer or community work activities? Yes No
7. Was the fact that you were in a Bridges apartment helpful or discouraging in planning your
present living arrangements? (Please explain).
8. Did the experience in Bridges housing reduce any concern or anxieties regarding moving into
your own apartment? (Please explain).
9. Has living in a Bridges apartment improved your ability to handle basic living skills such a s
cooking, cleaning, money management, and use of transportation to and from work or school?
(Please explain).
10. What specific skills have you learned from participating in the Bridges program?
11. Are there any areas in which the Bridges program could have better prepared you for
independent living? (Please explain).
PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOUR SCALES ON THE FOLLOWING PAGES AS
INDICATED
Yes
Yes
No
No
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148
ISE
This questionnaire is designed to m easure how you see yourself. It is not a test,
so there are no right or wrong answers. Please answer each item as accurately as
you can by placing a num ber by each one as follows:
1 = Rarely or none of the tim e
2 = A little of the tim e
3 = Som e of the tim e
4 = A good part of the tim e
5 = Most or all of the tim e
1. I feel that people would not like if they really knew m e well.
2. I feel that others get along much better than I do.
3. I feel I am a beautiful person.
4. W hen I am with other people I feel they are glad I am with them .
5. I feel that people really like to talk to me.
6. I feel that I am a very com petent person.
7. I think I m ake a good impression on others.
8. I feel that I need m ore self-confidence.
9. W hen I am with strangers I am very nervous.
10. I think that I am a dull person.
11. I feel ugly.
12. I feel that others have m ore fun than I do.
13. I feel that I bore people.
14. I think my friends find m e interesting.
15. I think I have a good sense of humor.
16. I fee! very self-conscious when I am with strangers.
17. I feel that if I could be m ore like other people I would have it m ade.
18. I feel that people have a good tim e when they are with me.
19. I feel like a wall flow er when I go out.
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20. I feel I get pushed around m ore than others.
21. I think I am a rather nice person.
22. I feel that people really like m e very much.
23. I feel that I am a likeable person.
24. I am afraid I will appear foolish to others.
25. My friends think very highly of m e.
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150
ROTTER IN TER N A L-EXTER N A L LOCUS OF CONTROL
I am going to read to you two sentences at a tim e. Choose the one that most
closely describes what you believe or the w ay you feel about things
1. a. Children get into trouble because their parents punish them too much.
b. The trouble with most children nowadays is that their parents are too easy
on them .
2 . a. M any of the unhappy things in people's lives are partly due to bad luck,
b. People’s m isfortunes result from the m istakes they m ake.
3. a. in the long run people get the respect they deserve in the world.
b. There will always be wars, no m atter how hard people try to prevent them .
4 . a. In the long run people get the respect they deserve in the world.
b. Unfortunately, an individual’s worth in this world often passes unrecognized
no m atter how hard s/he tries.
5. a. The idea that teachers are unfair to students is nonsense.
b. Most students don’t realize the extent to which their grades are influenced
by accidental happenings.
6 . a. W ithout the right breaks one cannot be an effective leader.
b. C apable people who fail to becom e leaders have not taken advantage of
their opportunities.
7. a. No m atter how hard you try, som e people just don’t like you.
b. People who can’t get others to like them don’t understand how to get along
with others.
8. a . Heredity plays the m ajor role in determ ining one’s personality,
b. It is one’s experiences in life which determ ine w hat one is like.
9. a. I have often found what is going to happen will happen.
b. Trusting to fate has never turned out as w ell for m e as m aking a decision
to take a definite course of action.
10. a. In the case o f the well prepared student there is rarely if ever such a thing
as an unfair test.
b. M any tim es exam questions tent to be so unrelated to coursework that
studying is really useless.
11. a. Becoming a success is a m atter of hard work, luck has little or nothing to
do with it.
b. Getting a good job depends m ainly on being in the right place at the right
tim e.
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151
12. a. The average citizen can have an influence in governm ent decisions.
b. This world is run by a few people in power, and there is not much the little
guy can do about it.
13. a. W hen I m ake plans, I am alm ost certain that I can m ake them work.
b. It is not always w ise to plan too fa r ahead because m any things turn out to
be m atter of good or bad fortune anyhow.
14. a. There are certain people who are just no good,
b. There is som e good in everybody.
15. a. In my case, getting w hat I w ant has little or nothing to do with luck.
b. M any tim es w e m ight just as w ell decide what to do by flipping a coin.
16. a. W ho gets to be the boss often depends on who w as lucky enough to be in
the right place first,
b. Getting people to do the right thing depends on ability, luck has little or
nothing to do with it.
17. a. As far as the world is concerned, most of us are the victims of forces we
can neither understand nor control,
b. By taking an active part in political and social affairs people can control
world events.
18. a. Most people don’t realize the extent to which their lives are controlled by
accidental happenings,
b. There really is no such thing as “luck”.
19. a. O ne should always be willing to adm it mistakes,
b. It is usually best to cover up one’s mistakes.
20. a. It is hard to know w hether or not a person really likes you.
b. How m any friends you have depends on how nice a person you are.
21. a. In the long run the bad things that happen to us are balanced by the good
ones.
b. Most m isfortunes are the result of lack of ability, ignorance, laziness, or all
three.
22. a. With enough effort w e can wipe out political corruption.
b. It is difficult for people to have much control over the things politicians do in
office.
23. a. Som etim es I cannot understand how teachers arrive at the grades they
give.
b. There is a direct connection between how hard I study and the grade I get.
24. a. A good leader expect people to decide for them selves what they should
do.
b. A good leader m akes it d e a r to everybody what their jobs are.
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152
25. a. M any tim es I feel that I have little influence over the things that happen to
me.
b. It is impossible for m e to believe that chance or luck plays an important
role in my life.
26. a. People are lonely because they don’t try to be friendly.
b. There’s not much use in trying too hard to please people, if they like you,
they like you.
27. a. There is too much em phasis on athletics in school,
b. Team sports are an excellent way to build character.
28. a. What happens to m e is m y own doing.
b. Som etim es I feel that I don’t have enough control over the direction my life
is taking.
29. a. Most of the tim e I can’t understand why politicians behave the way they do.
b. In the long run the people are responsible for bad governm ent on a
national as well as local level.
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153
PSI
R ead each statem ent and indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with
that statem ent, using the following alternatives.
1 = Strongly agree
2 = M oderately agree
3 = Slightly agree
4 = Slightly disagree
5 = M oderately disagree
6 = Strongly disagree
1. W hen a solution to a problem w as unsuccessful, I did not exam ine why it
didn't work.
2. W hen I am confronted with a com plex problem , I do not bother to develop
a strategy to collect information so I can define exactly what the problem
is.
3. W hen my first efforts to solve a problem fails, I becom e uneasy about my
ability to handle the situation.
4. A fter I have solved a problem , I do not analyze what went right and what
went wrong.
5. I am usually able to think up creative and effective alternatives to solve a
problem.
6. A fter I have tried to solve a problem with a certain course of action, I take
tim e and com pare the actual outcom e to w hat I think should have
happened.
7. W hen I have a problem, I think up as m any possible ways to handle it as I
can until I can’t com e up with any m ore ideas.
8. W hen confronted with a problem , I consistently exam ine m y feelings to
find out what is going on in a problem situation.
9. W hen I am confused with a problem , I do not try to define vague ideas or
feelings into concrete or specific term s.
10. I have the ability to solve m ost problem s even though initially no solution is
im m ediately apparent.
_ _ 11. M any problem I face are too com plex for m e to solve.
12. I m ake decisions and am happy with them later.
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154
_13. W hen confronted with a problem, I tend to do the first thing that I can think
to solve it.
_14. Som etim es I do not stop and take time to deal with my problem s, but just
kind of m uddle ahead.
15. W hen deciding on an idea or possible solution to a problem, I do not take
the tim e to consider the chances of each alternative being successful.
_16. W hen confronted with a problem , I stop and think about it before deciding
on the next step.
_17. I generally go with the first good idea that com es to mind.
_18. W hen m aking a decision, I weigh the consequences of each alternative
and com pare them against each other.
_19. W hen I m ake plans to solve a problem, I am alm ost certain that I can
m ake them work.
20. I try to predict the overall result of carrying out a particular course of
action.
.21. W hen I try to think up possible solutions to a problem , I do not com e up
with very m any alternatives.
.22. In trying to solve a problem , one strategy I often use is to thing of past
problem s that have been sim ilar.
.23. G iven enough tim e and effort, I believe I can solve most problems that
confront me.
24. W hen faced with a novel situation, I have confidence that I can handle
problem s that m ay arise.
25. Even though I work on a problem , som etim es I feel like I am groping or
wandering, and not getting down to the real issue.
26. I m ake snap judgem ents and later regret them .
27. I trust my ability to solve new and difficult problem s.
.28. I have a system atic m ethod for com paring alternatives and making
decisions.
.29. W hen I try not to think of ways of handling a problem , I do not try to
com bine different ideas together.
.30. W hen confronted with a problem , I don’t usually exam ine what sort of
external things in my environm ent m ay be contributing to my problem.
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155
,31. W hen I am confronted by a problem, one of the first things I do is survey
the situation and consider all the relevant pieces of information.
32. Sometimes I get so charged up em otionally that I am unable to consider
m any ways of dealing with my problem.
,33. A fter making a decision, the outcome I expected usually m atches the
actual outcome.
34. W hen confronted with a problem , I am unsure of w hether I can handle the
situation.
.35. W hen I becom e aw are of a problem , one of the first things I do is try to find
out exactly what the problem is.
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156
Beck Depression Inventory
PA ST W EEK , IN C LU D IN G TO DAY!! Circle the statement you pick in each
group. If several statem ents in the group seem to apply equally w ell, circle each
one. Be sure to read all the statem ents in each group before making your choice.
1. I do not feel sad.
I feel sad.
I am sad all the tim e and can’t snap out of it.
I am so sad or happy that I can’t stand.
2. I am not particularly discouraged about the future.
I feel discouraged about the future.
I feel I have nothing to look forward to.
I feel that the future is hopeless and that things cannot improve.
3. I do not feel like a failure.
I feel I have failed more than the average person.
As I look back over my life, all I can see is a lot of failures.
I feel I am a com plete failure as a person.
4. I get as much satisfaction out of things as I used to.
I don’t enjoy things that w ay I used to.
I don't get real satisfaction out of anything anym ore.
I am dissatisfied or bored with everything.
5. I don’t fed particularly guilty.
I fe d guilty a god part of the tim e.
I fe d quite guilty most of the time.
I fe d guilty all of the tim e.
6. I don’t fe d I am being punished.
I fe d I m ay be punished.
I expect to be punished.
I fe d I am being punished.
7. I don’t feel disappointed in m yself.
I am disappointed in myself.
I am disgusted with myself.
I hate m ysdf.
8. I don’t fe d I am any worse than anybody else.
I am critical of m yself for my w eaknesses or m istakes.
I blam e m yself all the tim e for my faults.
I blam e m yself for everything bad that happens.
9. I don’t have any thought of killing m yself.
I have thoughts of killing m yself, but I would not carry them out.
I would like to kill m yself.
I would like to kill myself.
I would kill m yself it I had the chance.
10. I don’t cry any m ore than usual.
I cry m ore now than I used to.
I cry al the tim e now.
I used to cry, but now I can’t cry event though I w ant to.
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157
11. I am no m ore irritated now than I ever am.
I get annoyed or irritated m ore easily than I used to.
I feel irritated all the tim e now.
I don’t get irritated at all by the things that used to irritate m e.
12. I have not lost interest in other people.
I am less interested in other people than I used to be.
I have lost m ost of my interest in other people.
I have lost all of m y interest in other people.
13. I m ake decisions about as w ell as I ever could.
I put off making decisions m ore than I used to.
I have greater difficulty in m aking decisions than before.
I can’t m ake decisions at alt anym ore.
14. I don’t feel I look any worse than I used to.
I am worried that I am looking old or unattractive.
I feel that there are perm anent changes in m y appearance that m ake m e
look unattractive.
I believe that I look ugly.
15. I can work as w ell as before.
It takes an extra effort to get started at doing something.
I have to push m yself very hard to do anything.
I can’t do any work at ail.
16. I can sleep as w ell as usual.
I don’t sleep as w ell as I used to.
I w ake up 1 or 2 hours earlier than I used to and find it hard to get back to
sleep.
I w ake up several hours earlier than I used to and cannot get back to
sleep.
17. I don’t get m ore tired than usual.
I get tired m ore easily than I used to.
I get tired from doing alm ost anything.
I am too tired to do anything.
18. M y appetite is no worse than usual.
M y appetite is not as good as it used to be.
M y appetite is much worse now.
I have no appetite at all anym ore.
19. I haven’t lost much weight, if any, lately.
I have lost m ore than 5 pounds.
I have lost m ore than 10 pounds.
I have lost m ore than 15 pounds.
20. I am no m ore worried about my health than usual.
I am worried about problem s such as aches and pains; or upset stomach;
or constipation.
I am very worried about physical problems, and it’s hard to think of much
else.
I am so worried about m y physical problem s that I cannot think of anything
else.
21. I have not noticed any recent changes in m y interest in sex.
I am much less interested in sex than I used to be.
I have much less interest in sex now.
I have lost interest in sex com pletely.
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APPENDIX C
DCFS 5200 FORMS
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LOS ANGELES COUNTY » DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES 1 5 9
EMANCIPATION PLANNING CHECKLIST w o r k e r f ile _# __________
E N T E R R E Q U IR E D IN F O R M A T IO N A N D C H E C K A P P L IC A B L E B O X (E S )
OFFICE LOCATION # _____
1. IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
COMPLETE THIS SECTIOM WHEN A YOUTH W OUT-QF-MOME CARE TURNS FOURTEEN YEARS OF AGE
N A M E O F Y O U T H (F IR S T , M .I., L A S T ) ______________________________________________________________________
A D D R E S S ________________________________________________ C IT Y & Z IP C O D E ____________________________________
T E L E P H O N E N U M B E R ( _____) ___________________D A T E O F _B IR T H ___________ S O C . S E C . # __________________
C A S E N A M E C A S E N U M B E R ___________________________________________
IF T H IS IS A N O N -C O U R T C A S E . C H E C K T Y P E □ LE G A L G U A R D IA N S H IP
□ V O L U N T A R Y F A M IL Y R E U N IF IC A T IO N (V F R )
IF T H IS IS A C O U R T C A S E , C O M P L E T E :
• C O U R T # : (J, JD , LK , B K , C K ) ____________________________________________
• C O U R T R E P O R T IS A T T A C H E D D Y E S □ NO
• O R IG IN A L P E T IT IO N F IL IN G D A T E (r e q u ir e d f o r s ta t is t ic a l pur po ses)______________
• C O U R T D A T E (C U R R E N T C A L E N D A R E D D A T E )__________________________
□ C H E C K B O X IF D E P U T Y D IR E C T O R R E V IE W E D P R E V IO U S D C F S S200 A N D O R D E R E D C O R R E C T IV E
A C T IO N .
SECTIONS 2-10 ARE TO BE COMPLETED AS EVENTS OCCUR
IF T H E D O C U M E N T A T IO N IN TH E S E S E C T IO N S IN D IC A T E S T H A T A R E Q U IR E M E N T W A S N O T C O M P L E T E D ,
T H IS F O R M M U S T B E FA X E D W ITH T H E T E R M IN A T IO N C O U R T R E P O R T T O TH E D E P U T Y D IR E C T O R ,
O P E R A T IO N S O R D E P U T Y D IR E C T O R , S P E C IA L IZ E D P R O G R A M S , F O R A P P R O V A L .
2. DOCUMENTATION
A . IN D IC A T E D A T E Y O U T H W A S P R O V ID E D W IT H E A C H O F T H E F O L L O W IN G : (Mainuin copies in case Me)
1. SOCIAL SECURITY CARO 8. DCFS 6203.60 SUGGESTIONS FOR
1. CERTIFIED COPY OF BIRTH CERTIFICATE PREPARATION
3. DEATH CERTIFICATE OF PAR£NT(S)* 0. WHEREABOUTS OF OCFS-SUPERVISED
4. PLACEMENT HISTORY (C S S PRINTOUT) SIBLINGS*
S. COPY OF MED. REC. & EDUC. PASSPORT 10. S W F O RE: SELEC1WE SVC. REGISTRATION*
FOLDER 11. INFO RE: VOTER REGISTRATION*
6. COPY OF DCFS 4344, FAMILY HISTORY, 12. DATE OF HIS/HER EMANCIPATION
PGS. 6-7 13. PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP/RESIDENCE*
7. INFORMATION ABOUT PROPER USAGE AND
HOW TO OBTAIN A REFILL (IF APPLICABLE)
OF CURRENT MEDICATION*
* IF N O T A P P L IC A B L E , E N TE R “ N /A "
CONFIDENTIAL CASE RECORD PURSUANT TO WIC SECTION 827 AND ORDER OF THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY JUVENILE COURT
76E258A DCFS 5200 (REV 1/96) FILE: PLACEMENT FOLDER (LEFT SIDE); ALWAYS ON TOP OF DCFS 5204
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160
B . IN D IC A T E D A T E O F T H E F O L L O W IN G A C T IO N S :
1. a ssistan ce m o b ta m m o c a . m r n m lic e n s e o r o th e r ld . c m ® ______________
2. WTTOTION OF OCFSS2IM, EMANCIPATION PREPARATION ASSESSMENT GUKJE ______________
3. FOSTER CARE PROVIDER WAS ADVISED OF YOUTH'S EMANCIPATION DATE ______________
«. CSW CONDUCTED/YOUTH REFUSED (CIRCLE O WE) EXIT INTERVIEW ______________
S. CSW VERIFE© THAT YOUTH, UPON EMANCIPATION, STILL HAS
DOCUMENTATION PREVIOUSLY PROVIDED_________________________________________ ______________
3. IN D E PE N D E N T LIVING PROGRAM (ILP SERVICES)
A . D A T E O F R E F E R R A L T O IN D E P E N D E N T L IV IN G P R O G R A M (IL P ) O R E Q U IV A L E N T S E R V IC E ____
B . IS Y O U T H R E C E IV IN G IL P O R E Q U IV A L E N T S E R V IC E S ? □ Y E S □ N O
IF N O , E X P LA IN (E .G ., W A S Y O U T H R E F E R R E D T O IL P , Y O U T H R E F U S E S , E T C .) A ND D A T E
T H E E X P L A N A T IO N _________________ , _________________________________________________________________
C. IF Y O U T H P A R T IC IP A T E D IN A P R O G R A M O T H E R T H A N T H E D C F S IL P , D E S C R IB E
D. D ID Y O U T H C O M P L E T E TH E IL P O R E Q U IV A L E N T S E R V IC E ? □ Y E S □ NO
IF N O , E X P LA IN
E . D A TE O F A P P L IC A T IO N FO R C O L L E G E O R T R A D E S C H O O L S C H O L A R S H IP /L O A N A S S IS T A N C E
________________________________ (A P P L IC A T IO N S A RE T O B E M A D E F O R E V E R Y S E N IO R W H O P L A N S T O
A T T E N D C O L L E G E O R T R A D E S C H O O L , W H E T H E R O R N O T T H E Y A R E IN IL P .)
F. D A T E Y O U T H W A S G IV E N T E L E P H O N E N U M B E R S O F ILP C O O R D IN A T O R A N D T H E F O S T E R Y O U T H
C O N N E C T IO N __________________________________
4A. EDUCATION INFORMATION
D A T E O F T H IS IN F O R M A T IO N ____________________________________
• Y O U T H ’S C U R R E N T G R A D E L E V E L __________________________
• Y O U T H ’S C U R R E N T G R A D E P O IN T A V E R A G E _____________
. N U M B E R O F C R E D IT S N E E D E D T O G R A D U A TE
4B. WAS EDUCATIONAL GOAL ACHIEVED? □ YES □ NO
IF Y E S . C H E C K A P P R O P R IA T E B O X
□ H IG H S C H O O L D IP L O M A □ V O C A T IO N A L TR A IN IN G
□ G E D C E R T IF IC A T E □ C O L L E G E E N R O L L M E N T
IF N O , W H A T IS T H E P L A N ? ___________________________________________________
5. LIVING ARRANGEMENTS
A . IN D IC A T E W H E R E Y O U T H W IL L R E S ID E A F T E R E M A N C IP A T IO N :
□ O W N A P A R T M E N T , R O O M O R H O U S E □ W IT H F R IE N D S
□ C O L L E G E C A M P U S H O U S IN G □ W IT H R E L A T IV E S
□ W IT H B IR T H P A R E N TS /G U A R D IA N S □ H UD H O U S IN G
□ W IT H F O S T E R P A R E N TS □ O T H E R
(S P E C IF Y )________
D A T E L IV IN G A R R A N G E M E N T S V E R IF IE D B Y C S W __________________
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161
B . A D D R E S S A ND TE L E P H O N E N UM B ER O F Y O U T H 'S R E S ID E N C E A F T E R E M A N C IP A T IO N
C . N A M E , A D D R E S S A N D TE L E P H O N E N UM B ER O F C O N T A C T P E R S O N W H O W IL L K N O W T H E Y O U T H 'S
W H E R E A B O U T S A F T E R E M A N C IP A T IO N ______________________________________________________________
6. FINANCIAL SUPPORT
• IN D IC A T E S O U R C E (S ) O F Y O U T H 'S FIN A N C IA L S U P P O R T A T E M A N C IP A TIO N :
□ E M P L O Y M E N T (E M P L O Y E R 'S NAM E)________________________________ _
□ G O V E R N M E N T A S S IS T A N C E (G R , A FD C , E T C .)
□ P A R E N T (S )/G U A R D IA N (S )
□ S O C IA L S E C U R IT Y □ FR IE N D (S )
□ R E L A T IV E S ) □ O T H E R (S P E C IF Y )_________________
□ S C H O L A R S H IP Q N O N E (E X P LA IN )___________________
7. BANK/SAVINGS AND LOAN/TRUST ACCOUNT
A . D O ES T H E Y O U T H H A V E A S A V IN G S O R T R U S T A C C O U N T ? D Y E S Q N O
IF N O S A V IN G S A C C O U N T , E X P LA IN _______________________________________
IF Y E S , T Y P E O F IN S T IT U T IO N _____________________________________________________
8. MEDI-CAL COVERAGE
A . D A TE D C F S 2384 W A S S U B M IT T E D T O C O V IN A F O S T E R C A R E D IS T R IC T T O R E Q U E S T
C O N T IN U A T IO N O F M E D I-C A L A FTER TE R M IN A T IO N O F P L A C E M E N T O R C O U R T J U R IS D IC T IO N
B . D A TE Y O U T H A D V IS E D H O W T O A CC ESS M E D I-C A L A F T E R E M A N C IP A T IO N
C . D A TE O F L A S T D E N T A L E X A M - __________________ ,
D . D A TE O F L A S T P H Y S IC A L E X A M :* ___________________
* EXAMS MUST HAVE BEEN COMPLETED W THIN THREE MONTHS OF EMANCIPATION
“ TO BE COMPLETED AFTER JUVENILE COURT HEARING AMD AT TIME CASE IS TERMINATED. SCSW TO VERIFY BY INITIALING ITEM
8A. AT TIME CIS 2M IS SIGNED. .
9. CLOTHING/EMANCIPATION PARTY
A. O N _______________________(D A T E ), C S W V E R IF IE D T H A T Y O U T H HAS A T LE A S T F O U R C H A N G E S OF
A P P R O P R IA T E C LO T H E S .
IF Y O U T H D O E S N O T H A V E A D E Q U A T E C L O T H IN G , Y O U T H W IL L R E C E IV E (C IR C L E N U M B E R )
1 2 3 4 A D D IT IO N A L C LO T H IN G G IF T C E R T IF IC A T E (S )
B. O N _____________________________(D ATE), G RAM S E N T T O A D M IN .D R A /S T A F F A S S IS T A N T T O
S C H E D U L E Y O U T H 'S P A R T IC IP A T IO N IN E M A N C IP A T IO N P A R T Y , A T W H IC H (S )H E W IL L B E G IV E N
AN ILP T E R M IN A T IO N P A C K A G E A ND G R A D U A T IO N C L O T H IN G G IF T C E R T IF IC A T E .
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162
10. CHILDREN WHOSE W HEREA BO UTS ARE UNKNOW N
A . D A T E Y O U T H ’S W H E R E A B O U T S W A S L A S T K N O W N
B . E F F O R T S T O L O C A T E Y O U T H ______________________________
C. D A T E W A R R A N T IS S U E D O N Y O U T H W H O S E W H E R E A B O U T S A R E U N K N O W N
I DECLARE THAT I HAVE REVIEWED THIS CASE RECORD AND THAT INFORMATION CONTAINED M THIS CHECKLIST IS TRUE AND CORRECT.
___________________________ ____________ L_J____________
C S W S IG N A T U R E D A T E T E L E P H O N E #
I DECLARE THAT I HAVE REVIEWED THIS CASE RECORD.
< )_____
S C S W S IG N A T U R E D A T E T E L E P H O N E *
1 DECLARE THAT I HAVE REVIEWED THE DCFS S 2S ® AND
(IF APPLICABLE) THE ATTACHED COURT REPORT.
_____________________________ _____________ I > ______
D R A S IG N A T U R E D A T E T E L E P H O N E #
□ A P P R O V E S T H IS Y O U T H F O R E M A N C IP A T IO N
DEPUTY DIREC TO R SIGNATURE ** ‘°"9" « < » s s n n c w s « h « e to age reguwemems,
benefits requirem ents and/or Is ready to be-emancipated.}
_________________________________________________________ □ A P P R O V E S T H IS Y O U T H F O R T E R M IN A T IO N O N LY
DEPUTY DIRECTOR SIGNATURE (This termination block is used to sa tisfy the co urt's requirement that the
DCFS 5230 be signed by Deputy D irector fo r a U Q ' o r m issing response
when ordering term ination.)
ANY ITEM WITH A W OR MISSING RESPONSE REQUIRES THE DEPUTY DIRECTORS SIGNATURE
S200T/RW
1/19/35
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APPENDIX D
CORRELATION MATRIX FOR FIVE VARIABLES
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164
CORRELATION MATRIX FOR FIVE VARIABLES
Exit Self-esteem S E B Beta T Sig.T
1 BDI Entrance .156 .178 1.328 .195
2 LOC Entrance .402 .012 .090 .929
3 PSI Entrance .098 .367 2.219 .034
4 ISE Entrance .153 .500 3.376 .002
5 Time in Program .275 .164 1.291 .207
Exit Locus of Control S E B Beta T Sig.T
1 BDI Entrance .059 .274 1.624 .115
2 LOC Entrance .153 .091 .536 .596
3 PSI Entrance .036 .258 1.257 .219
4 ISE Entrance .057 .205 1.122 .271
5 Time in Program .105 -.128 -.793 .434
Exit Depression S E B Beta T Sig.T
1 BDI Entrance .122 .483 2.674 .013
2 LOC Entrance .323 .177 .984 .335
3 PSI Entrance .091 -.342 -1.537 .137
4 ISE Entrance .130 .265 1.284 .211
5 Time in Program .216 -.0 2 9 -.174 .864
Exit Problem Solving S E B Beta T Sig. T
1 BDI Entrance .400 -.307 -1.736 .093
2 LOC Entrance 1.050 -.254 -1.399 .173
3 PSI Entrance .251 .559 25389 .017
4 ISE Entrance .395 -.153 -7.81 .441
5 Time in Program .715 -.119 -.699 .490
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Sanders, Stephen Ryan (author)

Core Title Emancipated foster youth: A study of outcomes of emancipated foster youth in a transitional housing program

School Graduate School

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Social Work

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag OAI-PMH Harvest,Social Work,sociology, individual and family studies,sociology, public and social welfare

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Advisor Stoner, Madeleine (committee chair), Hunt, Darnell (committee member), McCroskey, Jacquelyn (committee member)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c16-108478

Unique identifier UC11338691

Identifier 3027773.pdf (filename),usctheses-c16-108478 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier 3027773.pdf

Dmrecord 108478

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Sanders, Stephen Ryan

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the au...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA