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Foster care placement disruption monitoring and reduction: an innovation study

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Foster care placement disruption monitoring and reduction: an innovation study

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Content Running head: FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 1

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION MONITORING AND REDUCTION:
AN INNOVATION STUDY

by

William C. Hawks

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

May 2020

Copyright 2020 William C. Hawks
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 2

Dedication
To my father God and my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, thank you for your love, favor, mercy,
and grace.
To my extraordinary wife, Leila, thank you for being my partner and rock of love,
accountability, and encouragement. I love you. This accomplishment is ours.
To my children, anything is possible with education, passion, faith, and hard work. Know that I
have loved you my entire life and that you are my greatest achievement. Strike on! Fight on!
To my parents, Cornell and Anthony Sr.: Momma, I love you and thank you for your maternal
love and support. Dad, I love you and wish you the best in life. Strike on! Fight on!
To my siblings, Anthony Jr. and Chanelle: I love you two. Strike on! Fight on!
To my little brother and best man Larnell, his wife Darnetta, and my Godchildren: Thank you for
your support and motivation. I love you all. Strike on! Fight on!
To my Uncle “Pop” (Ken) & Auntie Kim: Thank you for being there when everyone else chose
not to be. I love you two. Strike on! Fight on!
To my comrade Matt: Thank you for being a source of joy and inspiration. Strike on! Fight on!
To my extended family, friends, and colleagues: Thank you. Strike on! Fight on!
To my village of supporters at Tallahassee Community College, Florida Agricultural and
Mechanical University, the Wake Forest University School of Business, and the University of
Southern California Rossier School of Education: I’ll always be a proud TCC Eagle, FAMU
Rattler, WFU Demon Deac, and USC Trojan! Thank you. Strike on! Fight on!
To foster children everywhere: I understand. Keep your heads up and your minds open. You
are not forgotten, and you are not alone. You are capable of accomplishing anything you desire.
Be strong. Endure. Break the cycle.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 3

Acknowledgments
Thank you to my Dissertation Committee Chair, Dr. Cathy Krop.
Thank you to my former professor at the University of Southern California Rossier School of
Education and Dissertation Committee member, Dr. Courtney Malloy.
Thank you to my former professor at the Wake Forest University School of Business,
Dissertation Committee member, and mentor, Dr. Lauren Rhue.
Thank you to my former professor at the University of Southern California Rossier School of
Education and dissertation coach, Dr. Alexandra Wilcox.
Thank you to my former Wake Forest University School of Business Associate Dean and
mentor, retired United States Navy Captain Dr. Derrick Boone.
Thank you to my former professor at the Wake Forest University School of Business and mentor,
Dr. Lisa Dragoni.
Thank you to my recruiter at the Wake Forest University School of Business and mentor,
Natasha Gore.
Thank you to my former professor at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Pi Sigma
Alpha honor society advisor, and mentor Dr. Victor Eno.
Thank you to my former professor at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and
mentor, Leon County (FL) Commissioner William Proctor, JD.
Thank you to my former Black Male Achievers program advisor at Tallahassee Community
College and mentor, Louis Dilbert.
Thank you to my former Librarian at Tallahassee Community College and mentor, Cherry
Alexander.
Thank you all for investing your time, knowledge, and resources in me.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 4

Table of Contents
Dedication 2
Acknowledgements 3
List of Tables 7
List of Figures 10
Abstract 11
Chapter One: Introduction 12
Introduction of the Problem of Practice 12
Organizational Context and Mission 13
Related Literature 14
Importance of Organizational Innovation 16
Organizational Performance Goal 16
Description of the Stakeholder Group 17
Stakeholder Groups’ Performance Goals 18
Stakeholder Group for the Study 18
Purpose of the Project and Research Questions 19
Methodological Framework 20
Organization of the Study 20
Chapter Two: Review of the Literature 22
Foster Care System in the United States 22
Placement Disruption in the Foster Care System and Related Outcomes 28
Promising Initiatives to Minimize Placement Disruption 36

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 5

Clark and Estes’ (2008) Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences 39
Framework: Foster Youth Success at Non-Profit for Community Care
Conceptual Framework 51
Conclusion 53
Chapter Three: Methodology 55
Methodological Framework 55
Qualitative Data Collection and Instrumentation 56
Credibility and Trustworthiness 59
Ethics 61
Chapter Four: Findings 63
Overview of Findings 64
Findings for Knowledge Influences on Performance 64
Findings for Motivation Influences on Performance 72
Findings for Organizational Influences on Performance 77
Summary 81
Chapter Five: Results 84
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences 85
Stakeholder Validated Knowledge Influences and Related Recommendations 85
Stakeholder Validated Motivation Influences and Related Recommendations 91
Stakeholder Validated Organizational Influences and Related Recommendations 93
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan 97
Future Research 112
Conclusion 113
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 6

References 115
Appendices
Appendix A: Interview Protocol 124
Appendix B: Artifacts and Documents 128
Appendix C: Informed Consent for Non-Medical Research 129
Appendix D: Informed Consent to take part in a Human Research Study, 131
Key Information
Appendix E: Informed Consent to take part in a Human Research Study, 138
Consent to interview audio recording
Appendix F: Recruitment Email Letter 139
Appendix G: Recruitment Email Letter (Reminder) 140

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 7

List of Tables
Table 1. Populations Served, Non-Profit for Community Care 13
Table 2. Organizational Mission, Performance Goal, and Stakeholder Goals 18
Table 3. Ethnicity breakdown of foster children in care 24
Table 4. Gender breakdown of foster children in care 24
Table 5. Age breakdown of foster children in care 24
Table 6. Breakdown of New England states foster system activity during FFY 2016 25
Table 7. Breakdown of New England states foster children with parental rights were 26
terminated, foster children adopted, and foster children waiting for adoption
FFY 2016
Table 8. Ethnicity breakdown of Connecticut foster children in care at the end of FFY 26
2016
Table 9. Ethnicity demographic breakdown of the USA, USA foster system children 27
in care at the end of FFY 2016, state of Connecticut, and state of Connecticut
foster system children in care at the end of FFY 2016
Table 10. Age breakdown of Connecticut foster children in care at the end of FFY 28
2016
Table 11. Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care less 29
than 12 months, by percentage FFY 2016
Table 12. Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care 30
between 12 and 24 months, by percentage FFY 2016
Table 13. Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care 30
more than 24 months, by percentage FFY 2016
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 8

Table 14. Adapted from: Foster parents' coping style and attitudes toward parenting. 37
Children and Youth Services Review
Table 15. Knowledge Influence, Knowledge Type, and Knowledge Influence 43
Assessment
Table 16. Assumed Motivation Influences and Motivation Influence Assessment 47
Table 17. Assumed Organizational Influences and Organizational Influence 50
Assessment
Table 18. Sample Strategy and Timeline 56
Table 19. Summary of Assumed Knowledge Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes 65
Table 20. Summary of Assumed Motivation Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes 73
Table 21. Summary of Assumed Organization Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes 77
Table 22. Summary of Assumed KMO Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes 81
Table 23. Validated KMO Influence Gaps on Performance 84
Table 24. Summary of Validated Knowledge Influences and Recommendations 86
Table 25. Child, Family, and School Social Workers Mean and Median Wage Data 89
for United States and New England Area
Table 26. Cost Comparison: Placement Management Software and Cost associated 89
with Manual Input and Analysis of Placement Disruption Data
Table 27. Summary of Validated Motivation Influence Gaps and Recommendations 92
Table 28. Summary of Validated Organizational Influence Gaps and Recommendations 94
Table 29. Taken from Kirkpatrick’s Four Levels of Training Evaluation 98
Table 30. Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes 100
Table 31. Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation 101
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 9

Table 32. Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors 104
Table 33. Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program 108
Table 34. Components to Measure Reactions to the Program 109
Table 35. Example of reporting dashboard adapted from Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick 109

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 10

List of Figures
Figure A. NPFCC Conceptual Framework Visual Graphic 52

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 11

Abstract
Foster placement disruption contributes to adverse short and long-term outcomes for
foster youth. Placement disruption occurs when a foster child is relocated for any reason after
their initial placement. The public foster care system served a total of 671,000 youth in 2015
(USDHHS, 2016). Over 220,000 foster youth across the United States experienced placement
instability in 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016). Placement instability describes a
situation where a child has been relocated three or more times while in the foster system. This
innovation study used the Clark and Estes (2008) methodological framework to evaluate
knowledge, motivation, and organization (KMO) influences impacting senior staff at a non-profit
foster placement agency. Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC; pseudonym) was selected as
the organization of focus for this study because it is a state licensed foster placement agency.
NPFCC has the organizational goal of monitoring 100% of foster placement disruption by
January 2021. This goal was developed to promote the minimization of the agency’s foster
placement disruption rates, which were unknown at the time of the study. The analysis of
information compiled from senior staff interviews and organizational document collection at
NPFCC validated assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational barriers preventing the
consistent monitoring of foster placement disruption activity. The Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick
(2016) New World Model was leveraged to present recommendations based on empirical
findings and a plan for implementation with ongoing evaluation methods. The procurement of a
child placement management system was proposed to establish a consistent cost-efficient method
to record, report, and analyze foster placement activity information on a regular basis.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 12

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Introduction of the Problem of Practice
This study addresses the problem of unstable environments faced by foster youth. Foster
children are exposed to ever-changing household atmospheres while under state care that
contribute to achievement gaps within this at-risk group in a variety of ways (Ahmann &
Dokken, 2017; Crum, 2010; Evans, 2004; Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Sullivan, Jones,
Mathiesen, 2010; Tyler & Melander, 2010; Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). For example, recent
studies have illuminated parental support is imperative in a child’s educational aspirations and
self-expectations (Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Tyler, & Melander, 2010).
Placement disruption jeopardizes a foster child’s exposure to consistent meaningful
parental support required to build academic self-efficacy. Foster systems expose children to
several different residential settings that include group homes, host families, or kinship care.
Adult products of the foster system often lack the skills, education, good health, and social
networks necessary to obtain meaningful employment in adulthood (Hill, Lightfoot, & Kimball,
2010; Krinsky, 2010; Zlotnick, Tam, & Soman, 2012). Placement disruption is important to
address because the consequences of such a combination of adverse elements create inherent
inequities that systematically sever the prosperous potential of impacted individuals (Dworsky,
Napolitano, & Courtney, 2013; Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009; Jones, 2014; Krinsky, 2010).
This research explores the history of this problem, elements that contribute to the
problem, and provides a needs analysis to support the implementation of an evidence-based
solution in a nonprofit setting.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 13

Organizational Context and Mission
Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC; pseudonym) is a non-profit organization
(NPO) based in the New England area. NPFCC has been providing services to kids and families
for nearly 20 years. NPFCC’s mission is to improve the lives of children in need (NPFCC,
2016). This mission is strategically executed through the community services offered by the
NPO’s programs: 1) Foster Care, 2) Youth Community Development, 3) Mentoring, 4)
Educational Support, 5) Nurturing Families, and 6) a High School Academy. NPFCC’s
programs address a local societal need aimed at improving the lives of impacted children. In
2017, NPFCC had a budget of nearly $3 million dollars. The organization employs 50 full-time
and part-time staff members with the support of nine volunteers and three contracted staff
(NPFCC, 2016; NPFCC, 2017).
Reflecting on Simon Sinek’s idea of the golden circle (2013); the “why” of NPFCC is its
mission to ensure that every child counts, the “how” is the identification of specialized needs in
embattled communities, and the “what” are the range of programs designed to improve the lives
of youth within certain groups. According to the NPFCC online GuideStar profile, these
initiatives reach about 500 individuals annually (2016). NPFCC’s programs have specific
populations of focus, see Table 1 below for additional information.
Table 1.
Populations Served, Non-Profit for Community Care
Program Population served
Foster Care Youth of age 0-19 years old
Youth Community
Development
Youth of age 0-19 years old
Mentoring Youth of age 0-19 years old
Educational Support Court-involved children referred by Juvenile Probation Officers
(JPO)
Nurturing Families High risk first-time parents with children of age 0-5 years old
High School Academy Grades 6-12
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 14

Related Literature
Self-perception and parental support are found to be two of the most vital factors in
determining educational aspiration and expectation (Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Tyler,
& Melander, 2010). Though foster youth admitted to institutions of higher education are hopeful
regarding their potential collegiate success, many lack the academic grit, preparedness, and
aptitude to complete degree programs (Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). Other studies suggest that
foster youth lack enthusiasm toward career counselors available on college campuses, leaving
this valuable collegiate resource potentially untapped (Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). With less
than 5% of individuals with foster history successfully graduating from a 4-year college degree
program, research also demonstrates that foster youth have a lower ability to complete collegiate
studies than their non-foster peers who manage to do so at a rate of 24% (Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, &
Colvin, 2013; Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). These scholastic challenges demonstrate the
significance of robust support systems for those who enter the foster care system.
Foster youth also lack the financial support from family which is commonly available for
teens without foster experience (Dworsky, Napolitano, & Courtney, 2013). The average person
living in the United States reaches financial independence at age 26; however, some states still
consider foster youth ineligible for continued support after age 18 (Krinsky, 2010). The absence
of financial support reflects inadequately developed or insufficient adult social relationships
during adolescence. Studies have revealed that former foster youth are likely to possess a
“survival mode” mentality leveraged to endure childhood struggles that in adulthood prevents
them from demonstrating the willingness to develop authentic relationships with others (Unrau,
Font, & Rawls, 2012). Teens exiting the foster care system lack the support network required to
overcome typical obstacles teenagers encounter while transitioning to adulthood and may be
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 15

unwilling to reach out to adults within their community for assistance (Ahmann & Dokken,
2017; Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). The combination of the academic achievement gap, a lack
of family support, and unwillingness amongst impacted youth to build vital relationships can
lead to disastrous consequences post emancipation. Emancipation is a term used to describe the
transition of a foster youth to legal adult independence, when they are no longer part of the foster
care system.
Barriers to accessing people resources and obtaining a quality education contribute to the
problem of economic inequity during adulthood for former foster youth. This conclusion is
supported by a 2014 study of former foster youth finding that just 33.3% of participants reported
having competencies necessary to establish and sustain a good credit score (Jones, 2014). This
conclusion suggests that over 19,000 of the 29,000 adolescents emancipated out of foster care
annually do not understand the adulthood consequences of having an adverse credit history (Hill,
Lightfoot, & Kimball, 2010; Jones, 2014). In a 2010 study, researcher M.A. Krinsky found that
emancipated foster youth earned an average wage of $6,000 annually, well below the 2010
federal poverty line of $10,830 for individuals (U.S. Federal Register, 2010). Employability of
former foster youth is negatively impacted by low skills, minimal academic progress, and a
variety of health issues which may be the result of early hardships.
Unemployment is known to significantly increase the likelihood of criminal behavior.
After aging out of state care, former foster youth are ten times more likely than any other group
to be arrested (Krinsky, 2010). Such supporting evidence further illuminates why just 4% of
young adults between the ages of 18 and 26 without a foster history report ever being homeless,
but over 30% of former foster youth report experiencing homelessness prior to their 26th
birthday (Dworsky, Napolitano, & Courtney, 2013). Those aging out of the foster system are
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 16

disproportionately over-represented amongst the 3.5 million people who suffer from
homelessness annually in the United States (Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009). It is important that
favorable systems and processes are developed to better protect the future of today’s foster
youth.
Importance of the Organizational Innovation
NPFCC must prioritize the success of New England’s most neglected youth by
leveraging foster placement disruption data to increase family placement stability. This problem
is important to resolve because studies have shown that foster placement disruption may
contribute to negative adulthood outcomes for foster youth (Ahmann & Dokken, 2017; Bass,
Shields, & Behrman, 2004; Dworsky, Napolitano, & Courtney, 2013; Fowler, Toro, & Miles,
2009; Hudson & Nandy, 2012; Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Krinsky, 2010; Stott, 2012;
Tyler & Melander, 2010; Zlotnick, Tam, & Soman, 2012). Multiple researchers have also
concluded that the establishment of specialized initiatives and programs is required to provide at-
risk youth sufficient support systems to become independent productive adults (Ahmann &
Dokken, 2017; Bass, Shields, & Behrman, 2004). Monitoring foster placement disruption
encourages long-term positive social networks that may minimize foster youth behavioral
problems, risk of homelessness, unemployment, and increase scholastic achievement (Ahmann
& Dokken, 2017; Evans, 2004; Sullivan, Jones, Mathiesen, 2010).
Organizational Performance Goal
The organizational performance goal is that by January 2021, the NPFCC Foster Care
(FC) program will implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement
disruption. Placement disruption occurs when a child is removed from a foster home for any
reason. This goal will enable regular analysis of the various causes and frequency of foster
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 17

placement disturbance to minimize such events. Goal setting around foster placement disruption
reduction is redundant in the absence of actual placement disruption data. NPFCC senior staff
established this goal in support of the organization’s ongoing efforts to improve the quality of
services provided to children and families. The achievement of this goal will be measured
quarterly in the form of outcomes review during senior staff meetings beginning in April 2021.
It is important for NPFCC to leverage program data to enhance support services offered
to foster families and increase child placement stability. If the organization does not implement
the usage of analytics in program management, it misses the opportunity to circumvent fiscal
waste and better accomplish its mission of improving the lives of children in need (NPFCC,
2016). If there are no data collection methods for monitoring placement stability, NPFCC will
not possess the data or analytical insight to make well-informed program decisions. Thus, failure
to effectively monitor this key area may lead to volatile family placement outcomes and financial
waste.
Description of Stakeholder Groups
The stakeholders contributing to the achievement of this goal include the FC Program
Director, Senior staff, and the Board of Directors. The program director will create and
implement the data collection system within the FC program. Senior staff are responsible for
ensuring the quarterly monitoring and incorporation of new data analysis to inform
organizational decisions. Improving services provided to foster children is the goal of this
initiative. The Board of Directors will set quarterly goals for foster placement disruption
reduction to measure monitoring implementation effectiveness.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 18

Stakeholder Groups’ Performance Goals
Table 2.
Organizational Mission, Performance Goal, and Stakeholder Goals
Organizational Mission
Improving the lives of children in need.
Organizational Performance Goal
By January 2021, the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC) Foster Care (FC) program will
implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement disruption.
Stakeholder Goal
By April 2021, Senior staff will begin quarterly review of data analysis produced by FC to inform
organizational decisions and better monitor placement stability.
Stakeholder 1 Goal Stakeholder 2 Goal Stakeholder 3 Goal
Program Director
By January 2021, the FC
Program Director will create
and implement a data
collection system to capture
100% of foster placement
disruption cause and
frequency.
Senior staff
By April 2021, Senior staff
will begin quarterly review of
data collected to establish a
foster placement disruption
reduction plan and set goals
that promote placement
stability.
Board of Directors
By December 2021, the
NPFCC Board of Directors
will conduct ongoing review of
overall foster placement
outcomes and approve foster
placement stability goals
quarterly.

Stakeholder Group for the Study
While all stakeholders contribute to accomplishment of the organizational performance
goal, senior staff are the stakeholder group of study for this research. Senior staff will promote
the minimization of foster child placement disruption through data-driven decision making. The
collection of information related to their needs to conduct those events is vital for the twelve
senior staff to accomplish their stakeholder goal of quarterly reviewing foster placement
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 19

disruption data to establish a reduction plan and set goals that promote placement stability by
April 2021.
Purpose of the Project and Research Questions
The purpose of this project was to conduct a needs analysis in the areas of knowledge and
skill, motivation, and organizational resources necessary for senior staff at NPFCC to reach their
stakeholder goal of implementing a quarterly review of foster placement disruption data to
inform organizational decisions and monitor placement stability by April 2021. The analysis
initiated by generating a list of possible senior staff needs to accomplish their goal. Next, needs
were examined systematically to focus on actual or validated requirements. While a complete
needs analysis would focus on all stakeholders, for practical purposes, the stakeholder of focus in
this analysis was NPFCC senior staff.
The questions that guided the needs analysis to address knowledge and skills, motivation,
and organizational resources and solutions were:
1. What knowledge influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s understanding of the impact of
data collection and its usage in decision making to reduce foster child placement
disruption?
2. What motivation influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s interest, or lack thereof, in
monitoring foster child placement disruption outcomes?
3. What organizational influences, real, or perceived by NPFCC Senior staff, affect the
implementation of quarterly review of foster child placement disruption outcomes?
4. What are knowledge, motivation, and organizational solutions to these influences on
performance?

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 20

Methodological Framework
The Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis methodically identifies opportunities preventing
organizational achievement of performance goals. The Clark and Estes gap analysis framework
used here is modified to an innovation model to examine stakeholders’ knowledge, motivation,
and organizational needs to reach their performance goal related to a new data system to address
foster youth displacement and solution implementation (Clark & Estes, 2008). The following
knowledge types were investigated during this study: 1) factual, 2) procedural, and 3)
metacognitive (Krathwohl, 2002). Recommendations proposed considered the influence of three
motivational indicators: 1) active choice, 2) persistence, and 3) mental effort (Clark & Estes,
2008). Examples of organizational influences deserving consideration include cultural models
that ultimately shape collective efficacy, direct decision-making, and provide deeper
understanding of potential conflicts within cultural settings (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001).
Such organizational issues are found in procedures, rules, or other visible materials (Clark &
Estes, 2008).
This study leveraged the Clark and Estes’ (2008) gap analysis framework to address the
knowledge, motivation, and organization needs of senior staff to meet their stakeholder goal at
NPFCC.
Organization of the Study
This chapter was used to introduce the purpose of this innovation study and explain
related key concepts. This section also explored NPFCC’s mission, goals, and stakeholders
involved. The methodological framework, the Clark & Estes (2008) gap analysis, was
highlighted in Chapter One as well. Overall, five chapters will shape this innovation study.
Chapter Two addresses recent research and literature related to the development of the foster
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 21

care system in the United States, historical outcomes related to foster placement disruption, and
focus on stakeholder knowledge, motivational, and organizational influences on the creation of
the innovation. Chapter Three explains the selection of participating stakeholders, methods of
data collection, and respective rationale supporting each. Results and outcomes of data
collection efforts are analyzed in Chapter Four. Proposed solutions with recommendations
supported by empirical data and peer-reviewed literature to address illuminated needs are
presented in Chapter Five.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 22

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
Foster placement disruption contributes to adverse short and long-term outcomes for
foster youth. It is important that NPFCC promote placement stability to minimize placement
disruptions and improve the quality of services provided to children in their care. This chapter
provides a review of literature regarding the history of foster care in the United States of
America, the modern foster care system, foster youth demographics in the United States, causes
of foster placement disruption, youth outcomes related to foster placement disruption, adult
outcomes associated with placement disruption, and practices aimed to reduce placement
disruption to help inform the problem of practice. Afterwards, this chapter provides an
explanation of the Clark and Estes (2008) knowledge, motivation and organizational influences
used in this study. The chapter then defines the types of knowledge, motivation and
organizational influences examined and the assumed Senior staff knowledge, motivation and
organizational influences on performance. The chapter ends with a presentation of the
conceptual framework guiding this study.
Foster Care System in the United States
History of System
Today’s foster care system has evolved significantly since the mid-1800s, and, since the
early 1900s, the U.S. foster care system has considerably transformed its foundational model of
providing food and shelter to troubled youth. Independent orphanages throughout the country
originally served as the primary source of shelter for thousands of homeless children until the
concept of modern foster care was envisioned by Charles Loring Brace, a New York City
minister and philanthropist. Starting in 1853, Brace led an organized effort to send
disadvantaged children to families willing to house them (Chiodo & Meliza, 2014). The network
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 23

of homes he compiled would later be known as the Orphan Train and the beginning of foster
families, a home-centered alternative to orphanages (Chiodo & Meliza, 2014).
As this network grew popular, public governance slowly began to adopt similar child
welfare strategies. In the early 1900s, American politicians began to advocate for the
establishment of a government foster system to improve the lives of children and better signify
the importance of family (Barr, 1992; Koh et.al., 2014). By the 1960s, over 250,000 children
were housed in state-regulated foster or adopted family homes, leaving less than 71,000 within
group home environments (Barr, 1992). These historical milestones showcase the actions of
individuals and government to support the upbringing of at-risk youth in stable environments
that resemble a traditional family structure, however, many of today’s foster youth are not
afforded this opportunity (Koh et.al., 2014).
The Modern Foster System
The modern foster system is more bureaucratically complex, having a plethora of
government entities charged with ensuring the safety of at-risk youth throughout the United
States of America. The federal government provides legislation and guidelines that state
governments interpret and administer differently across the country (Zlotnick, Tam, & Soman,
2012). At the state and/or county level, child welfare is often managed extensively in silos by a
web of autonomous public and private organizations. Each state even has its own respective
definition of child maltreatment. This system of systems inherently generates confusion for
stakeholders, especially the children and families it was created to serve (Bass, Shields, &
Behrman, 2004). The ability of states to successfully protect foster youth and develop them to be
productive adults is dependent upon the alignment of the agencies within its respective system.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 24

The complexity of each state’s organizational structure and the increasing volume of children
entering the foster system produces additional challenges.
Demographics of Youth in the Foster System. The United States’ population of foster
youth is diverse, with over half a million children and teenagers receiving some form of the
system’s services annually. The public foster care system served a total of 671,000 youth in
2015, representing a 5% increase since 2012 (USDHHS, 2016). Tables 3, 4, and 5 provide
demographic information for foster children in care at end of government tracking in 2016.
Table 3.
Ethnicity breakdown of foster children in care (USDHHS, 2016).
Ethnicity In care Percentage
White 191,433 44%
Black or African American 101,825 23%
Hispanic- of any race 91,352 21%
Two or more races 30,224 7%
American Indian/Alaskan Native 10,366 2%
Missing data 8,418 2%
Asian 2,290 1%
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander 936 0%

Table 4.
Gender breakdown of foster children in care (USDHHS, 2016).
Gender In care Percentage
Male 227,248 52%
Female 210,166 48%

Table 5.
Age breakdown of foster children in care (USDHHS, 2016).
Age Group In care Percentage
5 and under 178,822 41%
6 to 9 86,082 19%
10 to 14 86,756 20%
15 to 17 73,035 17%
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 25

18 to 20 13,316 3%

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2016) reports that 8% or 20,832
foster youth were emancipated during FFY 2016. Over 300 or less than 1% of foster youth died
while in the foster system in FFY 2016 (USDHHS, 2016). Overall, more than 250,000 youth
exited the foster care system in FFY 2016 with an average of 19 months and median of 13.9
months care (USDHHS, 2016).
Understanding the demographics of the local foster system is important to this research.
Considering NPFCC is in the State of Connecticut, Tables 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 provide overviews of
demographic information available for foster children in Connecticut and its neighboring New
England states.
Table 6.
Breakdown of New England states foster system activity during FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau,
2019; USDHHS, 2016).

State Entered system Exited system
Total children
served
In system at
FFY end
Connecticut 2,040 1,483 5,602 4,119
Maine 916 921 2,758 1,837
Massachusetts 6,661 5,769 16,679 10,910
New Hampshire 751 535 1,752 1,220
Rhode Island 1,087 1,214 2,868 1,654
Vermont 776 751 2,072 1,323

Though Massachusetts is by far the largest foster system in New England by child
volume, Table 6 highlights Connecticut’s position as the second largest. New England accounts
for about 5% or 21,000 of the nation’s foster youth, Connecticut is home to 20% of those
children (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016). This is important because it suggests that
Connecticut’s state foster system and related organizations may potentially face additional strain
related placement challenges compared to other New England states.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 26

Table 7.
Breakdown of New England states foster children with parental rights were terminated, foster
children adopted, and foster children waiting for adoption FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019).

State Parental Rights Terminated Adopted Waiting for adoption
Connecticut 380 529 1,111
Maine 556 399 647
Massachusetts 1,251 669 3,481
New Hampshire 34 85 131
Rhode Island 110 279 296
Vermont 244 216 387

New England accounts for 5% or just over 6,000 of the nation’s estimated 117,000
children awaiting adoption (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016). Table 7 shows that
Connecticut is ranked third among parental rights terminations within New England state foster
systems. This is good news as it implies that although Connecticut may be home to the second
largest foster youth population in New England, 90% or more of those foster children still have
the possibility of being reunited with their biological parents (Children’s Bureau, 2019;
USDHHS, 2016). For example, the state of Maine had a total foster youth population of 1,837 at
the end of FFY 2016 with a 30% rate of parental rights termination. When parental rights are
terminated, a judge or authority having jurisdiction has declared parents unfit and the state is
reclassified from temporary to permanent guardianship. This is a known point where children
involved may live in foster homes until adulthood or be considered for adoption, if possible.
Table 8.
Ethnicity breakdown of Connecticut foster children in care at the end of FFY 2016 (Children’s
Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016).

Ethnicity In care Percentage
Alaska Native / American Indian 8 0%
Asian 16 0%
Black or African American 919 22%
Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander 4 0%
Hispanic 1,495 36%
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 27

White 1,347 33%
Two or more races 280 7%
Missing data 49 1%

Table 9.
Ethnicity demographic breakdown of the USA, USA foster system children in care at the end of
FFY 2016, state of Connecticut, and state of Connecticut foster system children in care at the
end of FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019; U.S. Census Bureau, 2016; USDHHS, 2016).

Ethnicity
USA
Census
data
USA
Foster
system
Connecticut
Census
data
Connecticut
Foster
system
Alaska Native / American Indian 1% 2% 0% 0%
Asian 6% 1% 4% 0%
Black or African American 13% 23% 10% 22%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0% 0% 0% 0%
Hispanic or Latino 18% 21% 16% 36%
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 61% 44% 69% 33%
Two or More Races, percent 3% 7% 2% 7%

Tables 8 and 9 lay out ethnicity demographics of foster youth in the USA and state of
Connecticut. While Table 8 may have stood alone, Table 9 is important to understand the larger
picture nationally and Connecticut comparatively. Ethnic minorities are overrepresented in the
Connecticut state foster system and overall in foster systems across the country. U.S. Census
data (2018) indicates that Whites account for 69% of the general population of Connecticut,
majority of the state. Table 9 shows that White children are only 33% of the Connecticut foster
youth population, a minority. Though Hispanics make up only 16% of Connecticut’s general
population, this group is the largest ethnicity represented in the state’s foster system at 36%.
Black youth, and children with two or more races, are two to three times more represented in
Connecticut’s foster system than general population overall. These highlights are important
because they uncover the diverse make-up of the foster youth population when compared to the
state’s population.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 28

Table 10.
Age breakdown of Connecticut foster children in care at the end of FFY 2016 (Children’s
Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016).

Age Group In care Percentage
5 and under 1,491 36%
6 to 9 622 15%
10 to 14 696 17%
15 to 17 758 18%
18 to 20+ 523 13%
Missing data 41 1%

Table 10 lists children at infant to toddler age as the largest population within the
Connecticut state foster system at 36%. This vulnerable population also makes up the largest age
group in foster care systems across the United States, representing nearly 179,000 or 41% of all
foster youth (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016).
Placement Disruption in the Foster Care System and Related Outcomes
Placement Disruption
Placement disruption occurs when a child is removed from a foster environment for any
reason. The USDHHS (2005) defines placement stability as a foster child experiencing only two
or fewer moves during their time in the foster system. The U.S. Children’s Bureau publishes
Child Welfare Outcomes Report Data (CWO) annually, this information includes foster
placement stability statistics. Tables 11, 12, and 13 provide placement information for the
United States and New England states’ foster children by duration in care at end of government
tracking in 2016.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 29

Table 11.
Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care less than 12 months, by
percentage. FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019)

Less than 12 months in care

≤ 2
Placements
≥ 3
Placements
No Data Children in care
Connecticut 87.3% 12.7% 0.0% 2,233
Maine 89.9% 8.8% 1.3% 982
Massachusetts 70.8% 29.1% 0.1% 7,603
New Hampshire 87.6% 11.5% 0.8% 849
Rhode Island 89.5% 10.3% 0.2% 1,326
Vermont 80.6% 19.4% 0.0% 896
New England Average 84.3% 15.3% 0.4% 12,993
USA Average 84.1% 15.5% 0.5% 317,696

Based on the description of placement stability provided by USDHHS, Table 11 reports
that 84% of foster youth in care for less than 12 months in the United States had placement
stability. In Connecticut this figure is improved to 87% of foster youth in care for less than a
year. The lowest rate shown on the table is in Massachusetts state foster system with about 71%
of foster youth in care for less than 12 months experiencing two or fewer moves. Though the
information above is favorable overall, the table details that in the United States of America
nearly two of every 10 new foster youth will experience three or more placements in less than a
year. This outcome is reduced to about one in every 10 foster youth when considering the state
of Connecticut’s foster youth with three or more placements. Overall, data above concludes that
over 280 of the 2,233 youth that entered Connecticut’s foster system did not experience
placement stability during their first year of care (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016).

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 30

Table 12.
Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care between 12 and 24 months,
by percentage. FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019)

Between 12 and 24 months in care

≤ 2
Placements
≥ 3
Placements
No Data Children in care
Connecticut 75.7% 24.3% 0.0% 1,387
Maine 80.0% 20.0% 0.0% 872
Massachusetts 52.6% 47.4% 0.0% 4,067
New Hampshire 65.8% 33.7% 0.5% 436
Rhode Island 74.0% 26.0% 0.0% 820
Vermont 59.4% 40.6% 0.0% 668
New England Average 67.9% 32.0% 0.1% 8,250
USA Average 64.9% 34.8% 0.3% 182,759

Data related to placements involving youth who have been in foster care for twelve to
twenty-four months shows the probability of placement stability decrease with longer tenure in
the foster system. Just 65% of foster children in the United States of America experienced two
or fewer placements over one to two years in care. Over 63,000 or 35% of American foster
youth across the nation had been moved three or more times in the same time frame.
Connecticut’s placement stability rate is shown above to be 76% for youth in care one to two
years, second best in New England. The chart’s data also reveals that about one in four of
Connecticut foster youth in care one to two years did not have placement stability.
Table 13.
Placement breakdown of New England states’ foster children in care more than 24 months, by
percentage. FFY 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019)

More than 24 months in care

≤ 2
Placements
≥ 3
Placements
No Data Children in care
Connecticut
39.7% 60.3% 0.0% 1,977
Maine
52.8% 47.2% 0.0% 899
Massachusetts
34.1% 65.9% 0.0% 4,981
New Hampshire
43.2% 56.8% 0.0% 465
Rhode Island
49.0% 51.0% 0.0% 717
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 31

Vermont
32.9% 67.1% 0.0% 498
New England Average
42.0% 58.1% 0.0% 9,537
USA Average
38.0% 61.7% 0.3% 183,470

Table 13 concludes that after two or more years in foster care, over 110,000 children in
the United States of America experience placement instability. Over 1,000 or 60% of
Connecticut youth with two or more years in foster care experienced three or more placements.
Three out of the other five New England states listed above outperformed Connecticut in this
area. For example, the state of Maine managed to maintain placement stability for over 50% of
its youth in care for two or more years. Maine’s outcomes serve as evidence that better long-
term results are possible among New England states.
Overall, Tables 11, 12, and 13 demonstrate that children with longer tenure in the foster
systems are likely to experience more placement disruption. This finding is in alignment with
other studies’ conclusions that children in care for three or more years have the greatest exposure
to disruption (Crum, 2010). These tables also cumulatively reveal that over 1,800 Connecticut
foster youth lacked placement stability in 2016, representing over 30% of all children in their
care at that time.
Causes of Placement Disruption
Foster placement disruption has been categorized by researchers to narrow focus on these
four contributing elements: 1) foster system or policy, 2) foster family, 3) the child, and 4)
biological relatives (Blakey, et al., 2012; James, 2004; Koh et al, 2014). All four are known to
be characteristically associated as causes of placement disruption.
Research by Koh et al. (2014) seeking to understand reasons behind placement disruption
among children having experienced placement instability used this categorization method
adopted from James (2004). Koh et al. (2014) analyzed 184 placement changes using data
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 32

collected from the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (IDCFS) over an 18-
month period and found the foster family to be the most frequent reason for placement disruption
occurrences.
The foster family was found to be the largest factor behind child placement disruption
over the 18-month observation period. Issues within the foster family are known to cause the
foster child’s removal from their home (Blakey et al., 2012; James, 2004; Koh et al., 2014).
These types of movements represented 38% of placement disruption during the study (Koh et al.,
2014). The primary reason for this type of disruption was grievances alleged against the foster
parent, representing 51% of placement changes associated with this factor (Koh et al., 2014).
Stress and/or life events impacting the caregiver was indicated to be the result of 49% of cases
behind placement disruption associated with foster families (Koh et al., 2014).
The second largest factor attributed to placement disruption during this study was found
to be related to the foster child’s behavior. Of placement changes observed, 33% were requested
due to the adverse behavior of the child in care (Koh et al., 2014). These requests may be
generated from the foster parent or the foster child. Just 7% of these cases were attributed to a
foster youth request or running away. While 93%, or 56, were due to concerns expressed by the
foster parent.
System or policy related moves accounted for 25% of placement changes observed (Koh
et al., 2014). Some examples of these types of placement moves include relocating a child from
a group home to foster home, movement to be placed with a sibling or relative, and for other
systematic or policy driven purposes. The most frequent reason observed among this category
was due to the change in the level of care provided to the child, which usually indicates
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 33

movement from a group home to foster home. This accounted for 36% or 16 placement moves
over the 18-month period during the study (Koh et al., 2014).
Lastly, foster parents are often encouraged to promote the foster child’s relationship with
biological relatives if circumstances permit these interactions may occur. Unfortunately, this
may become problematic in some cases. While only 1% or just 2 instances resulting in
placement disruption observed during Koh et al.’s 2014 study were attributed to this factor, other
studies have shown that unreceptive foster parent interactions and negative relationships with
biological relatives to cause placement disruption (James, 2004).
Youth Outcomes Associated with Placement Disruption
Over 220,000 foster youth across the United States experienced placement instability in
2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016). Related government organizations report the
frequency of foster placement changes. However, this figure does not fully capture the impact of
placement disruption. For example, there currently exists no systematic government mechanism
to quantify the number of broken friendships, sibling separations, different schools, and new
neighborhoods a child may experience. Repeated events like these can be traumatic, having
long-term negative psychological, behavioral, and educational hindrances to a foster child’s
development (Evans, 2004; Fawley-King et al. 2017; James, 2004; Melkmen, 2015; Pears et al.,
2015; Stott, 2012; Sullivan, et. al., 2010).
Fawley-King, et al. (2017) collected the survey data of 152 foster youth over the age of
six who participated in the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being. Researchers
used the information to learn more about types of experiences encountered during placement
moves for foster youth. 72% of youth in this study reported living in a new neighborhood and
68% stated they had to attend a new school. Most of the youth, 66%, interviewed reported being
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 34

separated from at least one sibling also. Incidentally, none of the above experiences were
observed to be linked to mental health or other adverse risk as seen in other research (Melkemen,
2015).
Foster youth are often academically disadvantaged prior to entering the foster care
system. Researchers Fantuzzo and Perlman (2007) analyzed the data associated with 11,000
foster youth in the second grade. This study concluded that children who experienced poverty,
parental maltreatment, or other abuses typically underperformed in early academic environments
and demonstrated higher risk for poor reading comprehension. School mobility is an expected
part of life. For example, children often transition from elementary school to middle school and
from middle school to high school. However, research has shown that scholastic moves outside
of this normal progressive cycle may contribute to low academic performance to those youth
exposed (Burley & Halpern, 2001; Ferguson & Wolkow, 2012). These negative outcomes are
partially attributed to changing academic curriculums, teachers, and materials. A 2001 study
focusing on the graduation outcomes of foster youth within the Washington public school system
concluded that children in foster care repeated grades at twice the rate of non-foster students
(Burley & Halpern, 2001). Unexpectedly, the same study found no relationship was observed
between the tenure of children in foster care and their academic performance (Burley & Halpern,
2001).
Adult Outcomes Associated with Placement Disruption
Placement disruption or instability is a significant contributor to adverse adulthood
outcomes of former foster youth. The foster child being removed from one assigned foster
family and placed in another foster home, group home, or shelter is the tip of the iceberg. Low
educational achievement, school drop-out rates, identity confusion, low self-esteem, drug use,
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 35

juvenile arrest and incarceration rates, increased mental health care needs, and social network
disruption have all been connected with placement instability (Barber & Delfabbro, 2003;
Blome, 1997; Herrenkohl et al., 2003; Johnson-Reid & Barth 2000; Salahu-Din & Bollman,
1994; Timberlake & Verdieck, 1987). A study by Stott (2012) revealed that former foster youth
participants who experienced high placement instability as foster youth have significantly
increased risk of substance abuse as an adult.
Numerous studies have concluded that former foster children have higher risks of low
academic achievement, homelessness, arrest, chronic health problems, unemployment,
dependency on social welfare programs, and illegal substance use among other calamities in
adulthood (Dworsky, Napolitano, & Courtney, 2013; Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009; Krinsky,
2010). Just 4% of foster youth complete a 4-year degree program at a college or university
(Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013). Foster youth have lower academic self-perception and
parental support when compared to those youth without foster experience; this is important
considering both are considered the most critical factors in shaping educational aspiration and
expectation.
Overall, at any time, approximately 50% of former foster youth are unemployed (Stott,
2012). A 2013 study by researchers Dworsky, Napolitano, & Courtney found that between 36-
46% of former foster youth participating (n= 624) reported experiencing homelessness at least
once prior to their 26
th
birthday.
There is disproportionate over-representation of reported former foster youth within the
nation’s homeless population annually. A 2009 study based in Detroit, Michigan found that
nearly 1 in 5 (53 of 265) former foster youth aged 19 to 23 participating reported chronic
homelessness post foster system emancipation (Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009). The same study
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 36

concluded residential instability to be related to emotional or behavioral difficulties, physical and
sexual victimization, criminal conviction, and/or lack of high school completion. Within two
years of leaving the custody of foster care due to age limitation restrictions, 25% of young adults
exiting the system will be incarcerated (Krinsky, 2010). Several initiatives have been developed
with the goal of enhancing placement stability and improving services provided to foster youth,
Promising Initiatives to Minimize Placement Disruption
Organizations have experimented with various initiatives aimed to increase the presence
of meaningful adult relationships and positive environments amongst foster children. These
initiatives mostly focus on adult figures and foster parents as they have the most influence on
foster youth’s future (Tyler & Melander, 2010). Foster parents must be well-trained and
prepared to provide the parental support foster children need to successfully build positive self-
perception (Crum, 2010; Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Tyler & Melander, 2010). The
mission of foster care institutions is ultimately to return the child to a safe environment with a
parent or relative. When this cannot be accomplished, long-term placement is most desirable.
Foster parent assessments may provide helpful lenses into parenting skill gaps which
may negatively impact a child’s development. Dr. Anthony Garard created a tool that may be
leveraged to measure parental support as a predictor of placement instability called the Parental-
Child Relationship Inventory (PCRI). The PCRI is a survey which investigates about 78 areas in
which foster parents may self-report. The results are used to analyze the parent’s ideas
concerning raising children. The PCRI or a similar assessment may also be used to reveal foster
parent opportunities that require development curriculums prior to a child’s placement in their
care. Researcher W. Crum used this instrument in his 2010 studies of foster parents which
concluded that of all the characteristics measured by PCRI, parental support and limit setting
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 37

were the most impactful areas affecting the possibility of long-term placement. Longer
placement duration was observed among foster parents who were more supportive of their foster
children (Crum, 2010). A negative correlation was observed amongst foster parents who set
strict limits (or house rules), indicating that the less restrictive foster parents had improved
likelihood of long-term placement (Crum, 2010). These findings are important because they
suggest flexible and supportive foster parents facilitate long-term foster care placements. This
aides in the ability of the foster parent to build a meaningful relationship with the child.
Another study leveraged a different tool entitled the Adult Adolescent Parenting
Inventory (AAPI) to measure foster parent style of handling stress and parenting attitudes
(Maeyer et al., 2015). Researchers Maeyer et al. (2015) focused on four categories of parenting
attitudes as listed in Table 14 during their inquiry.
Table 14.
Adapted from: Foster parents' coping style and attitudes toward parenting. Children and Youth
Services Review (Maeyer et al., 2015)

Attitude Description
Inappropriate expectations The measurement of a foster parent’s understanding
of regular child growth and development

Lack of empathy Awareness of the needs (holistic) of the foster child
and ability to create growth-oriented environment for
the child

Parental value of corporal punishment General worth parent has of discipline or alternatives
Parent-child role reversal Role of parent is not assumed by foster child to aide
needs of foster parent

This exercise found that foster parents demonstrating low empathy and a high value for
corporal discipline had a medium risk for negative parenting (Maeyer et al., 2015). These are
important observations to acknowledge prior to placing any children in the care of individuals
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 38

with similar characteristics. While such evidence may not disqualify one from foster parenting,
this information may be useful to foster placement programs to better determine the
appropriateness of placement.
In addition to the assessment of foster parents for fitness and developmental
considerations, it is significantly important for youth to be exposed to positive relatives, mentors,
and coaches regularly (Ahmann & Dokken, 2017). Such figures enable teens to nurture
alternatives to survivalist mentalities by learning to trust others, establishing long-term
relationships, and obtaining valuable life knowledge (Ahmann & Dokken, 2017; DiMaggio &
Garip, 2012; Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009; Krinsky, 2010; Unrau, Font, & Rawls, 2012). These
relationships may be initiated through local non-profits, like the Boys & Girls Clubs of America
or a similar organization. This is important to ensuring the child has adequate exposure to
networks of adults and programs to build skills, knowledge of credit, wealth planning, home
planning, and the significance of obtaining an education (Ahmann & Dokken, 2017; DiMaggio
& Garip, 2012; Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009; Hill, Lightfoot, & Kimball, 2010; Jones, 2014;
Krinsky, 2010). Networks and connections provide foster youth people resources to draw
wisdom, develop identity, and increase the support available to them during transition into
adulthood.
The in-depth valuation of a foster parent’s conceptual outlook on raising children prior to
placement and the establishment of supportive adult networks are two areas which may promote
the improvement of economic inequities plaguing former foster youth after emancipation. These
improvements would be made possible by providing youth with guardians that possess the
aptitude to demonstrate exceptional parental support and encourage the positive self-perception
needed to drive academic success (Kirk, Lewis, Nilsen, & Colvin, 2013; Tyler & Melander,
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 39

2010). Optimal domestic environments promote placement stability, decreasing the frequency of
interruption (Evans, 2004; Sullivan, Jones, & Mathiesen, 2010). This is significant because
placement instability has been shown to negatively affect the child’s behavior (Evans, 2004;
Sullivan, Jones, & Mathiesen, 2010). Long-term placement also provides better likelihood of
trust and relationship building. Community activities and engagement provide opportunities to
build skills and prepare youth to overcome adulthood challenges after emancipation (Ahmann,
Dokken, 2017; DiMaggio & Garip, 2012; Fowler, Toro, & Miles, 2009; Krinsky, 2010; Unrau,
Font, & Rawls, 2012).
Related literature focusing solely on the positive impact of placement disruption
monitoring could not be located. However, researchers agree that data collection and analysis is
vital to improving organizational performance (Bandura, 2000; Campbell, 2002; Heinrich, 2002;
Melendéz, 2001). Studies have also shown that different forms of data collection can lead to the
prediction and/or minimization of foster placement disruption (Crum, 2010; Hurlburt et al, 2010;
Maeyer et al.,2015).
Clark and Estes’ (2008) Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences
Framework: Foster Youth Success at Non-Profit for Community Care
This section leverages the Clark and Estes’ (2008) gap analysis framework to address the
knowledge, motivation, and organization needs of Senior staff to meet their stakeholder goal of
beginning quarterly review of data collected to establish a foster placement disruption reduction
plan and set goals that promote placement stability by April 2021. The Clark and Estes (2008)
gap analysis methodically identifies opportunities preventing organizational achievement of
performance goals. This framework is modified here to an innovation model to enable the
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 40

examination of stakeholders’ knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences needed to
reach their performance goal. Next is a review of stakeholder specific KMO influences.
Stakeholder Knowledge Influences
This examination of research focuses on requirements necessary for Non-Profit for
Community Care (NPFCC) to reach their stakeholder performance goal. Senior staff, the
stakeholder group of focus for this study, has the performance goal of reviewing placement
disruption data produced by FC quarterly to inform organizational decisions and better promote
placement stability by April 2021.
NPFCC must first identify and resolve knowledge opportunities internally to better
promote the accomplishment of their goal to eliminate disruptions in care for foster youth.
Krathwohl (2002) states four types of knowledge are vital to attaining organizational
achievement goals: factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. NPFCC needs to
incorporate a foster child placement disruption data collecting tool and stakeholders need
knowledge to be able to build and effectively use such a tool.
Factual knowledge is foundational information that must be known prior to attempting to
solve a problem or accomplish an organizational goal. A few examples of this knowledge
include awareness of historic trends and familiarity with industry language. Practice is not
required to effectively grasp facts and important information related to performance achievement
(Clark & Estes, 2008; Krathwohl, 2002). Conceptual knowledge is an individual’s
understanding of the causes and consequential effect of observations (Clark & Estes, 2008). This
knowledge is especially important to employees’ ability to transfer theoretical constructs to solve
new problems by leveraging learning from past challenges. Procedural knowledge is
information regarding specific actions or steps required to complete a task. Clark and Estes
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 41

(2008) recommend the use of job aides to remedy procedural or task-related knowledge gaps in
the workplace. Lastly, metacognition is one’s consciousness of and ability to regulate cognitive
processes (Krathwohl, 2002; Baker, 2006). In this respect, metacognitive knowledge is
employees’ mindfulness of themselves.
The next section reviews scholarly research in relation to three knowledge needs related
to NPFCC creating a new data collection system to monitor foster care placement and reduce
placement disruption for foster youth. Each knowledge influence is classified using one of the
knowledge types previously defined. Classifying each knowledge influence by knowledge type
enables the identification of strategies, tactics, and tools to evaluate areas of opportunity within
the foster child placement program at NPFCC to create this new system.
Knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and causes. Senior staff need to
know the placement disruption frequency rate and the various causes for placement disruption in
order to make more successful placements that will inevitably be in the best interests of the foster
child. This is factual knowledge. Multiple studies have illuminated a number of factors that
influence placement disruption after a child is assigned a foster parent (Crum, 2010; Maeyer,
Robberechts, Vanschoonlandt, & Van Holen, 2015). Possessing general knowledge of the
characteristics associated with disruption can positively calibrate unrealistic expectations, enable
contingency planning, and enhance disruption management. A foster child’s age, ethnic
background, history of abuse, case worker turnover, and underprepared foster parents are all
examples of significant causes of placement disruption (Crum, 2010). Children are valuable
resources of information. Many placement agencies fail to request the opinion of foster children
in care to learn more about their experiences. This is important because it emphasizes the
information gap that exists. Without speaking to the child, placement authorities do not hold the
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 42

well-rounded knowledge necessary to fully assess disciplinary and support practices foster
parents demonstrate toward children (Crum, 2010; Maeyer, Robberechts, Vanschoonlandt, &
Van Holen, 2015). This knowledge influence can be used to evaluate the best interest of the
child and his or her perceived ability to develop in each home environment.
Knowledge of how to analyze information for decision making consideration. The
second knowledge influence that the NPFCC Senior staff need to achieve their performance goal
is the ability to analyze information for decision making consideration. This is procedural
knowledge. Nonprofit organizations (NPO) are incorporating data analytics capabilities to
enable increased accountability and transparency with stakeholders (Campbell, 2002; Melendéz,
2001; Rey-Garcia, Liket, Alvarez-Gonzalez, & Maas, 2017). NPOs are often held to higher
standards of accountability than for-profit corporations because of their altruistic organizational
missions and the fact that most depend upon government aid and/or donor financial gifts to
support operations. As an NPO, NPFCC must embrace this beneficial practice to ensure efficient
usage of data to more effectively monitor foster care placement and reduce placement disruption
for foster youth. Data collection and analysis of information builds collective efficacy by
equipping leaders with the best information available to make informed decisions that positively
drive organizational performance (Bandura, 2000; Campbell, 2002; Heinrich, 2002; Melendéz,
2001). This knowledge influence can be used to monitor, measure, and manage placement
disruptions frequency within the program.
Understand how planning, modeling, and measuring performance impacts
systematic outcomes. NPFCC senior staff need to understand how planning, modeling, and
measuring performance impacts systematic outcomes. This is metacognitive knowledge.
Leaders increase the likelihood of organizational success by demonstrating evidence of effective
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 43

metacognition (Baker, 2006; Bandura, 2000; Eccles, 2006). Organizational goals should be
supported by the performance goals of every stakeholder involved (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Effective goals are concrete, challenging, and current. Efforts toward these goals support self-
reflection that may promote performance. Developing organizational plans include
benchmarking other organizations to understand promising practices, key roles, new processes,
and other possibilities. Such goals and related activities sustain employee focus on their specific
role for accomplishing the overall performance goal instead of individual aspirations that may
not be in alignment with moving the organization forward. This knowledge influence is
important because of its significance in directing workforce behaviors toward achieving the
performance goal.
Table 15 below shows the three knowledge influences involving the NPFCC foster child
placement program outlined, the respective knowledge type for each, and potential techniques or
assessments that may be used to reveal knowledge gaps. These are important to identify because
each impacts all associated goals and the organizational mission.
Table 15.
Knowledge Influence, Knowledge Type, and Knowledge Influence Assessment

Organizational Mission
Improving the lives of children in need.
Organizational Performance Goal
By January 2021, the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC) Foster Care (FC) program will
implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement disruption.
By April 2021, Senior staff will begin quarterly review of data to inform organizational decisions
and better monitor placement stability.
Knowledge Influence Knowledge Type
Knowledge Influence
Assessment
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 44

Senior staff need knowledge of
foster placement disruption
frequency and causes to
provide adequate support to
foster children and families
Factual Senior staff were asked to
identify the most frequent
cause of placement disruption
Senior staff must know how to
analyze information for
decision making consideration
Procedural

Senior staff were asked about
their knowledge of how to
analyze information on
placements and their
knowledge of how to use that
data to make more informed
decisions about placements to
improve placement stability.
Senior staff need to understand
how his/her planning (strategy
and resources), practicing,
modeling, and measuring
performance impacts the well-
being and future of each child
in their care.
Metacognitive Senior staff were asked about
the existence of strategic plan
for program leadership to
maximize resource allocation

Stakeholder Motivation Influences
Motivation is the second dimension essential to NPFCC achieving their stakeholder
performance goal of producing and implementing a data collection tool to enable the regular
capture of foster child placement disruption information for analysis by January 2021.
Motivation is the source of one’s intention to direct effort toward anything based mostly on what
they believe (Clark & Estes, 2008; Eccles, 2006; Pintrich, 2003). There are three distinct types
of motivational processes: 1) active choice, 2) persistence, and 3) mental effort. Understanding
all three is vital to enhancing staff motivation at work.
Active choice is simply the decision to do something (Clark & Estes, 2008). For
example, by accepting admission to the Organizational Change and Leadership program a
student actively decides to complete classes toward graduation. One does not need to choose the
goal, ultimately anything someone is working towards is considered their active choice to do so.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 45

Persistence is the willingness of an individual to stay focused on a specific goal more so than
other competing undertakings. Mental effort is the amount used to describe an individual’s
determination of how much mental capacity to give a goal or task. One may apply little or
significant mental effort to any task dependent on their perception of its level of difficulty.
Related issues in those three processes may create motivational challenges that widen gaps to
achieving performance goals. Closing motivational gaps increases the employees’ ability to
reach performance potential and accomplish goals associated with their respective role in the
organization.
NPFCC can accomplish its performance goal by assessing the possibility of motivational
opportunities that may be preventing optimal productivity. Better understanding these
motivation influences will promote positive outcomes for the organization. The next section will
review scholarly research in relation to two motivation theories and related assumed motivation
influences of NPFCC senior staff members. Each assumed motivation influence is classified
using a motivation influence theory. Classifying each motivation influence by motivation theory
enables the identification of strategies, tactics, and tools that may be leveraged to evaluate the
motivation type to identify areas of opportunity within the foster child placement program at
NPFCC.
Attribution theory. NPFCC’s Senior staff need to understand that foster child
placement disruption is partially due to their own efforts. Attribution theory attempts to provide
an explanation to unique individual responses to the same event (Anderman & Anderman, 2006;
Weiner, 1985). The three influences or dimensions of attribution theory are: 1) locus, 2)
controllability, and 3) stability. All three directly impact one’s perception and inherently one’s
approach to overcoming challenges. Locus focuses on the issue; cause is perceived as static or
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 46

variable. NPFCC senior staff must understand that while variables exist that create occasional
unavoidable placement disruption, it is within the program manager’s control to reduce these
occurrences through enhanced program efficiency.
Controllability is one’s belief regarding control of a circumstance or situation (Weiner,
1985). NPFCC has the control to establish new practices that enhance services to increase the
effectiveness of operations impacting placement. Stability describes the perception of the root
source of the problem as constant throughout eternity or not (Anderman & Anderman, 2006,
Weiner 1985). NPFCC needs to acknowledge some disruption may be unavoidable but seek to
minimize excessive child placement volatility. This motivation theory and associated influences
are important because of their significance in directing perception and effort toward achieving
the performance goal.
Expectancy value theory. NPFCC’s Senior staff need to believe in the value of
monitoring the frequency of foster child placement disruptions. Expectancy value theory focuses
on the importance and perceived value of work task to employees (Grossman & Salas, 2011;
Eccles, 2006). This value focuses on the individual’s self-efficacy and idea if goals are worth
mental effort. There are four influences or components of value beliefs: 1) attainment value, 2)
intrinsic value, 3) utility value, and 4) cost belief. All four impact the actions of individuals
toward accomplishing organizational performance goals. Attainment value is the perception of a
task as an extension of self (Grossman & Salas, 2011; Eccles, 2006). With this belief
component, an occupation may be considered a form of self-expression. Monitoring the
frequency of foster placement disruption is in alignment with the organizational goal of
decreasing excessive placement disruption. The individuals serving as the Senior staff should be
dedicated to this goal.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 47

Intrinsic value is the enjoyment one obtains by working toward the task (Eccles, 2006;
Grossman & Salas, 2011). As an NPO, the foundation of the organization is the betterment of
society. Employees of NPFCC seek to improve the lives of children impacted. Utility value is
the perception of the usefulness of achieving a goal or completing a task. Performance goals
should be aligned with organization goals. This configuration establishes threaded utility value
within subsidiary activities required to accomplishing the larger goal. Cost belief concerns the
individual’s willingness to exert personal resources (time, energy, emotion, etc.) required to
accomplish a task. Senior staff need to be willing to dedicate the cost associated with creating
and implementing a new data processing and analysis process. This motivation theory and
associated influences are important because of their significant impact on mental effort and
persistence toward achieving the performance goal.
Table 16 below shows the two motivation influences involving the NPFCC foster child
placement program outlined and potential motivational assessments that may be used to reveal
motivation gaps. These are important to identify because each influence impacts all associated
goals and the organizational mission.

Table 16.
Assumed Motivation Influences and Motivation Influence Assessment

Organizational Mission
Improving the lives of children in need.
Organizational Performance Goal
By January 2021, the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC) Foster Care (FC) program will
implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement disruption.
By April 2021, Senior staff will begin quarterly review of data to inform organizational decisions
and better monitor placement stability.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 48

Motivation Influence Motivation Influence Assessment
Attribution Theory- Senior staff need to
understand that foster child placement disruption
is partially due to their own efforts.
Interview –responses to interview inquiries
were used to determine Senior staff related
attribution perceptions
Utility Value- Senior staff need to believe in the
value of monitoring the frequency of foster child
placement disruptions.
Interview- responses to interview inquiries
were used to determine Senior staff
perceptions of related utility value

Stakeholder Organizational Influences
The last dimension of this review focuses on organizational influences necessary for
NPFCC to reach their stakeholder performance goal. Considering potential organizational
influences is important to ensure related barriers are not hindering individuals from
accomplishing the performance goal (Clark & Estes, 2008; Rueda, 2011). Examples of
organizational barriers include ineffective processes, the lack of standardized procedures, and
inadequate resources. Successful organizations are supported by policies and satisfactory
resources required to get the job done (Clark & Estes, 2008). These characteristics create
cultural models and cultural settings that promote or prevent organizational effectiveness.
Cultural Models and Cultural Settings
Cultural models and cultural settings are two features of a social environment that
significantly contribute to the facilitation of organizational learning and performance. Cultural
models are invisible (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). An example of a cultural model is
individual attitudes that shape perceptions of organizational conditions. The visible context in
which cultural models exist are known as cultural settings (Rueda, 2011). Three examples of
cultural settings are material resources used to accomplish a job task, written company policies,
and work uniforms. Cultural settings are observable components of any environment. This
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 49

section will focus on a cultural setting and cultural model need for NPFCC Senior staff to use
data to inform organizational decisions and improve placement stability.
Need for adequate resources. The organization needs to provide Senior staff with
adequate resources including budget, training materials, and volunteers to support new data
collection and analysis. Clark and Estes (2008) assert that poor procedures or absent resources
can prevent even the most competent and motivated worker from achieving performance goals.
To implement quarterly review of foster placement disruption data for decision making
consideration, NPFCC must provide Senior staff with the resources necessary to do so. Like
many non-profit organizations, NPFCC may have budgetary limitations. Studies have shown
various low-cost methods for non-profit organizations to leverage data collection and analysis
capabilities to improve organizational efficiency (Kloppenborg & Laning, 2014). Examples
include the basic charting of observations to generate illustrative insights around organizational
challenges and using interviews or homemade surveys to gather information. These practices are
important because they are vital to monitoring foster child placement disruption and determine
related causes. Data collected can contribute to informed decisions targeted toward minimizing
events of foster placement disruption. NPFCC Senior staff should have adequate staffing levels
and standard work instructions to support the consistent application of data collection and
analysis techniques.
Need for supportive environment. The organization needs to promote a general
appreciation of data collection processes and methods of analysis. If Senior staff resist change
due to perceptions of substantial additional workload or general negative attitudes associated
with the initiative, NPFCC may not accomplish its performance goal. This is important to
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 50

consider during this gap analysis because even if NPFCC can successfully implement supportive
cultural settings, an adverse cultural model within the organization may resist those changes.
Table 17 highlights the organizational influences described within this section. When
considered together, both will directly promote NPFCC’s ability to create a tool to capture 100%
of foster child placement disruption.
Table 17.
Assumed Organizational Influences and Organizational Influence Assessment

Organizational Mission
Improving the lives of children in need.
Organizational Performance Goal
By January 2021, the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC) Foster Care (FC) program will
implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement disruption.
By April 2021, Senior staff will begin quarterly review of data to inform organizational decisions
and better monitor placement stability.
Assumed Organizational Influences Organization Influence Assessment
Cultural settings- The organization needs to
contribute adequate resources to support new
data collection and analysis.
Interview- responses to interview inquiries
were used to determine Senior staff perception
of availability of resources necessary to
collect and analyze data
Cultural model- The organization needs to foster
a culture that appreciates data collection
processes and methods of analysis.
Interview- responses to interview inquiries
were used to determine Senior staff
experiences with and perception of the
organizational culture around data collection
and analysis

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 51

Conceptual Framework:
The Interaction of Stakeholders’ Knowledge and Motivation and the Organizational
Context
A conceptual framework provides a visual graphic that guides and focuses research
(Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The framework used in this section will place
emphasis on the representation of relationships between Senior staff knowledge and NPFCC
organizational settings and models. Doing so provides clearer context to needs and challenges
related to achieving the goal of NPFCC implementing quarterly review of foster placement
disruption data for analysis and decision making. This framework is based on related scholarly
research. Opportunities are reviewed through the lens of knowledge, motivation, and
organizational influences. This enables the identification of strategies, tactics, and tools to
evaluate areas of requiring attention within the foster child placement program at NPFCC. These
areas are highlighted in in Figure A.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 52

Figure A. NPFCC Conceptual Framework Visual Graphic

Non-Profit for Community Care
Motivation Influences:

Attribution Theory- Senior staff need to understand that foster
child placement disruption is partially due to their own
efforts.
Utility Value- Senior staff need to believe in the value of
monitoring the frequency of foster child
placement disruptions.
Organizational Influences
The organization needs adequate resources to support new
data collection and analysis.
The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates
data collection processes and methods of analysis.

Senior staff Knowledge

Factual- Senior staff need knowledge of foster
placement disruption frequency and causes

Procedural- Senior staff must know how to
analyze information

Metacognitive- Senior staff need to understand
how his/her planning (strategy and resources),
practicing, modeling, and measuring performance
impacts the well-being and future of each child

Senior staff Goal
By April 2021, the Non-Profit for
Community Care (NPFCC) Senior
staff will begin quarterly review of
data collected to establish foster
placement disruption reduction plan
and set goals that promote placement
stability.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 53

The largest shape shown in Figure A is an oval dedicated to the cultural settings and
cultural models within NPFCC. Understanding cultural models is vital to cultivating
organizational influences that improve collective efficacy, drive better decision-making, and
provide deeper knowledge of potential conflicts within cultural settings (Gallimore &
Goldenberg, 2001). Organizational problems related to these areas may be observed in program
procedures, rules, or other visible materials (Clark & Estes, 2008). This information is important
to include within the conceptual framework because it reinforces the research approach methods
and questions utilized during this study. Located within the organizational oval is a smaller oval
focusing on the knowledge of the stakeholder of focus, Senior staff.
The Senior staff knowledge section is located within the larger organizational oval
because these staff are employed by NPFCC. This shape is dedicated to the knowledge
influences of Senior staff. The organizational settings within NPFCC have a significant impact
on these individuals’ knowledge potential. NPFCC must provide supportive resources and
development to empower the Senior staff to achieve performance goals. Senior staff must
demonstrate the cultural models necessary to leverage positive cultural settings at NPFCC. The
productive interaction between these elements will promote the likelihood of senior staff
accomplishing their stakeholder goal. This goal shown at the lower right of Figure A is outside
of the organization and stakeholder of focus shape because it has not been attained by NPFCC
yet. The arrow from the large organizational oval directing to the stakeholder goal in Figure A is
demonstrating this organization can achieve this goal.
Conclusion
This chapter addressed recent research and literature related to the development of the
foster care system in the United States, historical outcomes related to foster placement
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 54

disruption, and promising initiatives to reduce foster care placement disruption. Chapter two
also provided the conceptual framework for this research. This innovation study leveraged Clark
and Estes’ (2008) gap analysis framework to address the knowledge, motivation, and
organization needs of Senior staff to meet their stakeholder goal at NPFCC related to reducing
foster care youth placement displacement. Chapter Three provides the methodological approach
of this study. The next chapter details selection of participating stakeholders, methods of data
collection, and respective rationale supporting each. Results and outcomes of data collection
efforts are analyzed in Chapter Four. Proposed solutions with recommendations supported by
empirical data and peer-reviewed literature to address illuminated needs will be addressed in
Chapter Five.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 55

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
The purpose of this study was to conduct a gap analysis in the areas of knowledge and
skill, motivation, and organizational resources necessary to reach the stakeholder goal of
implementing quarterly review of foster placement disruption data for analysis and decision
making at Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC; pseudonym). While a complete needs
analysis would focus on all stakeholders, for practical purposes the stakeholder that was focused
on in this analysis was Senior staff at NPFCC.
The questions guiding the gap analysis to address knowledge and skills, motivation, and
organizational resources and solutions were:
1. What knowledge influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s understanding of the impact of
data collection and its usage in decision making to reduce foster child placement
disruption?
2. What motivation influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s interest, or lack thereof, in
monitoring foster child placement disruption outcomes?
3. What organizational influences, real, or perceived by NPFCC Senior staff, affect the
implementation of quarterly review of foster child placement disruption outcomes?
4. What are knowledge, motivation, and organizational solutions to these influences on
performance?
Methodological Framework
The methodological approach used for this research study was qualitative. The research
study was conducted using interviews and the gathering of artifacts and documents. A
combination of open and closed pre-determined questions were asked of interview participants.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 56

Using qualitative methods provides opportunity to collect richer, more comprehensive data.
Below, Table 18 provides data collection timeline, strategy, and population information.
Table 18.
Sample Strategy and Timeline

Sampling
Strategy

Number in Stakeholder
population
Number of participants
from stakeholder
population
Start and
End Date for
Data
Collection
Interviews: Purposeful
sample
There are twelve members of
the NPFCC Senior staff
population.
8 out of twelve members
of the NPFCC Senior staff
were interviewed for a
total of 8 interviews
conducted.
July 14, 2019

to

August 17,
2019

Documents: Purposeful
sample
NPFCC Senior staff
provided the following
document types related to
NPFCC foster placement for
analysis:
1) policies, 2) procedures, 3)
training, and 4) budget
documents
N/A July 14, 2019

to

August 17,
2019

Qualitative Data Collection and Instrumentation
A purposeful sampling approach was used for this qualitative research study. This
enabled a focus on all Senior staff at NPFCC (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
Interviews are the best qualitative instrument to gather stakeholder input due to the small size of
this group and purpose of this study. The purpose of this study was to understand the
knowledge, motivational, and organizational influences of NPFCC Senior staff that promote or
may create barriers to their quarterly review of placement disruption monitoring data. This was
accomplished by leveraging interviews to collect information about Senior staff because this
approach allowed for deeper investigation of these influences thoroughly through in-person
dialogue (Clark & Estes, 2008; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016; Weiss, 1994). Various types of
documents were collected to enable the analysis of policies and other areas that make up
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 57

organizational influences at NPFCC (Clark & Estes, 2008; Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). The
use of interviews and document analysis enabled triangulation of information gathered during
this study.
Interviews
Interview protocol. A semi-structured interview protocol was used for the purposes of
this study. This protocol was best for this study as it provided the necessary structure to ensure
consistency while allowing flexibility to react to unique circumstances that may have occurred
during interviews (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). This was important because a participant’s
responses naturally covered multiple sections of interview topics without specific prompts. In
addition, responses generated follow up probes to investigate the topic deeper (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016). Interview questions were comprised of a variety of types specifically intended to
best examine KMO influences at NPFCC. For example, knowledge questions regarding factual
and procedural information were key to identifying related opportunities at NPFCC (Clark &
Estes, 2008; Krathwohl, 2002; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016; Patton, 2002). Stakeholder
motivational influences were explored through the thoughtful usage of questions focusing on
their opinions and values (Patton, 2002). Participant feedback in this area was used to better
understand how motivational indicators impact performance and goal achievement at NPFCC
(Clark & Estes, 2008). A mixture of experience, behavioral, knowledge, and feeling questions
were used to obtain visibility of intangible cultural models at NPFCC (Rueda, 2011; Patton,
2002). These questions were vital to understanding Senior staff perceptions of “how things
work” at the organization. Appendix A is the interview protocol that was used.
Interview procedures. After first obtaining USC IRB approval to move forward,
interviews were conducted between July 14, 2019 to August 17, 2019. Although document
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 58

collection occurred during this time as well, interview activity happened prior to document
collection. Organization policies, training procedures, and budget information were analyzed
after having obtained Senior staff’s knowledge and perception of these items during interview
conversations. All 12 members of NFPCC senior staff were invited to participate in interviews,
eight choose to be interviewed one time in-person. Interviews were scheduled for one hour and
conducted at NPFCC within the date interval previously specified in this section. No more than
three interviews were conducted within the same day. Since NPFCC is located over an hour
away from the researcher, these arrangements provided reasonable time for transportation to and
from the organization, preventing possible problems associated with travel (Weiss, 1994). While
all eight interviews could have been completed within three days, additional time was allocated
to accommodate rescheduling needs.
Semi-structured, interviews were conducted in an informal conversational style to ensure
participants experienced consistency, professionalism, comfort, and personable interactions
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016; Patton, 2002). Interview exchanges were recorded using a Sony
digital voice recorder, written permission was obtained from all interviewees. Audio recording
is very commonly relied upon in research to safeguard data for later analysis (Merriam & Tisdell,
2016; Weiss, 1994). This affords the researcher an opportunity to provide full attention to each
participant while taking detailed field notes of various observations or ideas after the
interviewees exit (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007; Weiss, 1994). Audio recordings were transcribed
using rev.com, an online transcription service that has a 99% accuracy rate (Rev, 2019).
Recordings were stored on a Dell Inspiron 15 5000 series laptop computer with multiple layer
authentication security and the latest Microsoft Windows Defender software for virus and
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 59

spyware protection. Recordings will be deleted no more than 60 days following the conclusion
of research and related data analysis.
Document Analysis
Documents and Artifacts. Addressing the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
needs of senior staff to meet their stakeholder goal at NPFCC required the review and analysis of
organizational influences like policies, training artifacts, and budgetary allocation documents
(Clark & Estes, 2008). Policy documents provided insight to organizational influences for
program operations. For example, reviewing Change of Status forms at NPFCC revealed data
currently collected to process the movement of foster children. Analysis of available training
artifacts illuminated what types of aides were in place to support process execution to ensure
consistent application. By reviewing fiscal data, the primary researcher was better equipped to
understand possible financial constraints and related opportunities at NPFCC. This was
particularly important because financial strain may limit the ability of NPFCC to achieve its
performance goal. The consideration of these items in conjunction with information gathered
from interviews provided a clearer understanding of organizational influences and filled in topic
areas that interviews may have missed (Clark & Estes, 2008, Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001;
Maxwell, 2013; McEwan & McEwan, 2003, Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
Credibility and Trustworthiness
Credibility and trustworthiness in research emphasize transparency and consistency in the
way researchers gather, interpret and ultimately present their findings (Merriam & Tisdell,
2016). Multiple individuals, if provided the details within data collected from a study, should be
able to reasonably conclude or understand the primary investigator’s conclusions. Three
strategies were used to enhance the credibility and trustworthiness of this study: 1) expert review
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 60

of interview questions, 2) respondent validation, and 3) the usage of triangulation (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016; Robinson & Firth Leonard, 2019). The first strategy used, expert review, ensured
that interview questions were thoroughly reviewed by fellow USC researchers, at least one
experienced USC professor, and the primary investigator’s USC EdD dissertation committee
prior to usage at NPFCC for this study. This is important because the process required multiple
revised versions of various questions, ensuring the usage of easily understood language to avoid
respondent satisficing among other possible issues (Robinson & Firth Leonard, 2019).
According to Robinson and Firth Leonard (2019) satisficing occurs when interviewees consider
the question as too complex. As a result, interviewees may respond very minimally to quickly
move on from the inquiry instead of providing a meaningful response.
Next, the researcher actively sought out respondent validation throughout data collection
and analysis. Respondent validation was obtained through follow up conversations with
interviewees following their interviewees and via phone or email if additional inquiry was
needed to ensure accuracy in data representation. This practice involved having discussions with
interviewees to ensure accurate representation of their statements and perceptions (Merriam &
Tisdell, 2016). These exchanges were key to eliminating potential issues related to interpretation
as a result of miscommunication. Lastly, the researcher utilized multiple sources of data and
multiple data collection methods to obtain a multi-dimensional understanding of KMO
influences at NPFCC through triangulation analysis. This exercise incorporated additional rigor
to this study by comparing different types of data to identify possible relationships and KMO
influence interaction (Clark & Estes, 2008, Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001; Maxwell, 2013;
McEwan & McEwan, 2003, Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Analysis through triangulation is
important to the calibration of interpretations and ultimately improving the credibility of research
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 61

findings (Clark & Estes, 2008, Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001; Maxwell, 2013; McEwan &
McEwan, 2003, Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
Ethics
Conducting ethical research means it was imperative that all processes were completed in
full transparency with research participants. Ensuring all interviewees understood their
participation was voluntary and would remain confidential was vital. Every individual
interviewed was provided an information sheet for review prior to participation. Information
sheets emphasized the voluntary nature of participation, detailed information about the study,
how collected data would be used, and listed foreseen potential risk of participation.
It was imperative that permission was obtained prior to recording and/or quoting
participants in acknowledgment of their right to privacy (Glesne, 2011; Rubin & Rubin, 2012).
This also demonstrated to participants respect of their thoughts, their feelings, and the
commentary they elected to share in the research environment. In alignment with best practices
for disclosure, consent forms were presented ahead of research activities (Krueger & Casey,
2009). It was expected that participants did not mind signing the consent forms as there was
considerably limited adverse risk to participating in this study. Participants were provided the
ability to withdraw their consent(s) at any time prior to or after interviews were completed.
The primary researcher has never been employed by or volunteered at NPFCC. This fact
is important to highlight because if the investigator was a NPFCC employee, that may have
presented barriers to objectivity and interview participation. For example, participants may have
potentially felt coerced into interviews if the interviewer was their supervisor. The absence of
such circumstances supports the trustworthiness, validity and credibility of this study (Merriam
& Tisdell, 2016). The primary investigator was not in dual roles with the organization. In this
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 62

study, the researcher’s sole responsibility was that of primary investigator.
The primary investigator was not without assumptions and bias. The primary
investigator is a former foster child. Having experienced the impact and long-term effects of
foster placement disruption firsthand, the primary investigator was aware of this problem of
practice personally. While these experiences could serve as pathways to insight and perspective,
they may have led to a narrow-minded approach to this study if not monitored properly (Merriam
& Tisdell, 2016). Rubin and Rubin (2012) underscore the importance of the investigator
remaining neutral by refraining from sharing personal beliefs, experiences, and perspective
during the interview process. The primary investigator did not share related personal
experiences in the United States foster system with interviewees because doing so may have
changed their natural responses and comfort. During this study, the primary investigator
maintained focus on participants and their experiences.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 63

CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS
Chapter four reviews data collected leveraging the Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis
conceptual framework by organizing findings by assumed knowledge, motivation, and
organizational (KMO) influences on performance. KMO assumed influences were validated
using qualitative research involving document collection and one-on-one interviews with the
stakeholder group of focus, senior staff at the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC;
pseudonym). Qualitative research efforts were completed in parallel with documents being
collected prior to and following each one-on-one interview. Interviews were conducted in
adherence to the interview protocol (Appendix A). Documents collected for analysis were
obtained in accordance with the document collection protocol (Appendix B). Overall, data
collection activity occurred over four days onsite at NPFCC’s main office.
Twelve members of NPFCC were invited to participate in this study and ultimately eight
volunteered. In total, eight interviews were conducted, on average, lasting 36 minutes.
Seventeen standard questions were asked during all interviews (Appendix A). All interviews
were recorded with each participants’ written permission. Recordings were transcribed and later
coded for KMO theme analysis. Interview questions were leveraged to inform analysis of the
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences impacting performance at NPFCC.
Participating Stakeholders
The stakeholder of focus for this study was the senior staff of NPFCC. Twelve
leadership roles at NPFCC were designated as senior staff for the purposes of this study: 1) CEO,
2) COO, 3) CFO, 4) five program directors, and 5) four foster care supervisors. The following
eight of 12 individuals identified volunteered to participate in a one-on-one interview as a part of
this study: 1) CEO, 2) COO, 3) three program directors, and 4) three foster care supervisors.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 64

Interviews were conducted within a closed-door conference room or office. All
participants had over 10 years of experience working with at-risk youth and families for related
non-profit organizations or government agencies. Interview responses from senior staff also
revealed that participants had been employed at NPFCC from a range of six months to 30 years
with median experience of four years. None of the eight senior staff interviewed self-identified
as a former foster child.
Overview of Findings
Information presented in this section has been arranged by knowledge, motivation, and
organizational influences. Influence gaps noted in this chapter were considered validated if over
50% of participants’ responses to related interview questions and document analysis confirmed
the assumed influence as a current gap in their knowledge, motivation, or organizational (KMO)
supports. Assumed influences were concluded as no gap validated if over 50% of participants
and document analysis supported that such a gap does not occur. In other words, there is no gap
if senior leaders currently have the needed knowledge, motivation, and organizational support
related to that assumed influence on performance. This study leveraged multiple methods of
data collection seeking to minimize possible biases through the practice of triangulation
(Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016; Robinson & Firth Leonard, 2019). Data collected
confirmed the validation of gaps in assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational
influence areas.
Findings for Knowledge Influences on Performance
This section focuses on the assumed knowledge influences impacting performance at
NPFCC. Table 19 below provides a summary of validated and not validated knowledge gaps
presented in this section.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 65

Table 19.
Summary of Assumed Knowledge Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes

Assumed Knowledge Influence
Validated as a Gap?
Yes, No
(V, N)
Factual-
Senior staff need knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and
causes to provide adequate support to foster children and families.
V
Procedural-
Senior staff must understand how to analyze information for decision making
consideration.
V
Metacognitive-
Senior staff need to understand how his/her planning (strategy and resources),
practicing, modeling, and measuring performance impacts the well-being and
future of each child in their care.
N

Senior staff need knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and causes to
provide adequate support to foster children and families. Gap validated.
One-on-one interviews with Senior staff members confirmed the absence of transparent
factual knowledge regarding the organization’s foster placement disruption frequency and related
causes of disruption. Participants illuminated several different perceptions in this area ranging
from no awareness to demonstrations of limited understanding. Responses underline the lack of
an efficient systematic process to empower knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency
and causes. Senior staff’s statements also highlight why the organization is currently unable to
successfully monitor this data. Interviews revealed that multiple internal stat forms are
completed by care managers or program supervisors when foster children are moved between
home environments. Foster care program supervisor, Evelyn (pseudonym), referred to two types
of stat forms during her interview response to questions 10 and 13. She stated, “We have a form
that's called on Temporary Change in Stat and a Permanent Change in Stat, and the care manager
or myself would just document when we have a child move from one home to another, to
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 66

another, or when they're going into an adopted home or if they're being discharged from us.”
Both forms mentioned were included within documents collected for additional analysis: 1)
Temporary Change of Status Form and 2) Permanent Change of Status Form. The forms are
used to facilitate the movement of foster children between home environments or other agencies.
Data elements within blank status forms confirmed the presence of components necessary to
monitor foster placement disruptions if the forms were to be completed. The forms have sections
that request information like the child’s demographics, state child welfare agency point of
contact details, NPFCC case manager point of contact details, reason for movement, former
placement location address, new placement location address, date intervals, and an authorization
sign-off at the bottom of each form by a program supervisor.
Once completed, stat forms are forwarded to an administrative assistant and the program
director. Foster program director, James (pseudonym), provided additional insight regarding
current efforts to use data obtained within the stat forms to track foster placement disruptions at
NPFCC. James shared that he receives up to 200 stat forms from supervisors and case managers
monthly. When asked how he uses these forms to track NPFCC placement disruptions, he
responded: “I would literally need to go through, like at the end of every month, I would literally
need to go through every stat form. And there's a stack of them. So, it's just an incredibly
inefficient way to do it and it just prohibits me from doing it consistently or regularly, which is a
problem.” James also expressed frustration that stat forms he receives may be inaccurate or
incomplete, adding an additional layer of difficulty if he tried to compile the information to
regularly monitor placement disruption for the foster program.
Though the program director established that tracking was not currently possible, other
members of senior staff expressed contrary perceptions. Joseph (pseudonym), a foster program
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 67

supervisor, stated the following when asked how frequent placement disruption were tracked:
“Very frequent. Very frequent. Our disruption numbers are low here, for FCC (pseudonym)
though.” While optimistic, no supporting processes are in place at NPFCC to enable reporting
that could possibly substantiate his assertion. James, the foster program director, affirmed
tracking was not feasible.
Mary (pseudonym), also a foster program supervisor, responded to the same question by
sharing: “I think pretty frequently because James, our director, kind of... he's the one who
aggregates our data and he's the one who oversees it. So, it's pretty much on a weekly basis that
we keep up with it.” Her statement highlights an observed pattern of responses during interviews
that indicated most Senior staff believe James is collecting, compiling, and analyzing placement
disruption data independently without assistance. Lastly, even though NPFCC does not currently
track foster placement disruption, Evelyn asserted the simplicity of tracking processes in place.
When asked about difficulty related to monitoring such information, she stated “I don't think it's
difficult. I don't think it's difficult. I think it's pretty easy to be able to monitor that. I don't see
any difficulty in that. Uh-uh (negative).”
Overall, data collection efforts confirmed that NPFCC collects the information necessary
to monitor foster placement disruption frequency and its causes. In conflict with interview
responses of various senior staff members, no retrospective analysis or review activities happen
with the information collected. Assumptions exist within the Senior staff that the program
director is autonomously compiling the information from stat forms. Unfortunately, according to
the program director, this perception is not accurate and regular monitoring of foster placement
disruption frequency is currently unachievable. Therefore, Senior staff do not possess
knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and causes to provide adequate support to
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 68

foster children and families. This gap is attributed to the absence of established processes to
compile the information collected in stat forms, the burdensome volume of completed stat forms,
and wide perceptions that the program director is monitoring this information independently.
Senior staff must understand how to analyze information for decision making
consideration. Gap validated.
Responses to interview questions 8, 9, 11, 13, and the absence of established standard
work and procedural practices amongst Senior staff reveal no present supporting procedures to
perform thorough consistent analysis of information. Senior staff comments also emphasized the
lack of certainty in current procedures in place at NPFCC. These interview questions focused on
practices used to document information, the level of complexity (real or perceived) presently
involved in data collection, what opportunities may be present for improvement, and the level of
confidence senior staff have using data for decision making. Evelyn shared the following in this
area: “Well, I know the director, he does a lot of the data collection, and he presents it to us, and
I think he does a very good job at doing that.” Her comment is aligned with the overwhelming
trend of feedback that supports the belief among NPFCC leadership that James is doing
everything alone. It did not appear that Evelyn was praising James simply because he is her
superior. When asked about her level of confidence using data for planning and analysis, she
openly stated that she was not a “fan” of statistics and would “rather leave that for others and just
listen and try to understand from there.”
Mary warily expressed a commitment to data collection for monitoring foster care
placements, stating: “I mean, I don't think it's easy, but I think we have, and we will continue to
collect to make sure that we're monitoring.” Unfortunately, Mary was not able to highlight any
specific procedures used to facilitate the process.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 69

When Joseph was asked how foster placement disruptions are currently documented he
expressed uncertainty while stating: “We use excel. I think our director uses Microsoft Excel to
keep that information.” Joseph added that NPFCC was seeking other methods of storing the data.
James communicated the most accurate response concerning placement disruption
documentation and related practices. He stated: “I was going to say it's me and Excel, but that's
not totally true. So, it is me and Excel, however, we input our discharge data into DCF's data
collection system called PIE, Provider Information Exchange.” It is important to note that the
state PIE (Provider Information Exchange) system that James mentioned does not support
internal data collection processes, it is mostly used to report data to the state for compliance
purposes.
James stated that most analysis practices focus on foster program discharges not
placement disruption. A program discharge is when a foster child leaves the foster program at
NPFCC. The discharge is an organizational focus because NPFCC stops receiving payment
from the state when a child is discharged from their care. This is not to be confused with foster
placement disruption, which occurs when a foster child moves between foster homes while in the
care of the foster program at NPFCC (or any foster system). NPFCC does not lose any revenue
provided by the state when a child experiences foster placement disruption because the child is
ultimately still within NPFCC oversight. In comparison, monitoring placement disruption is
significant in improving services provided to foster children and potentially improving the
likelihood of positive outcomes in their adulthood. Monitoring program discharges are a priority
for the organization to enable ongoing financial planning and forecasting.
Data collection efforts confirmed that NPFCC Senior staff perceive foster placement
disruption monitoring and analysis to be a complex task and do not have adequate understanding
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 70

of such to support decision making. All staff, except the foster program director, expressed
confidence in current practices in place to analyze information for decision making purposes.
Members of Senior staff working within the foster program rationalize disengagement from data
analysis activities with the belief the foster program director is handling all the program’s
analysis needs. Other Senior staff interviewed who work outside of the foster care program
(CEO, COO, and two other directors) offered limited to no knowledge of processes, practices, or
procedures used to collect and analyze information within the foster care program. This gap is
attributed to the absence of adequate training resources to build Senior staff skills and confidence
related to the analysis of information. There also appears to be no delegation of data analysis
related responsibilities among foster program team members. Lastly, interview responses from
senior staff suggest they are accustomed to not being involved with placement disruption data
analysis.
Senior staff need to understand how his/her planning (strategy and resources),
practicing, modeling, and measuring performance impacts the well-being and future of each
child in their care. No gap validated.
Though data collection validated opportunities at NPFCC in multiple assumed knowledge
influence areas, all Senior staff understand the significance of their contributions toward
improving the lives of the children in their foster program. This was observed consistently in
staff responses throughout the interviews. Where gaps existed, those interviewed who were
aware of such issues acknowledged them and spoke of potentially related adverse outcomes.
When asked about their respective roles’ impact on the children in the program, Joseph and
Anthony (pseudonym) shared responses that reflected the collective awareness noted amongst
the Senior staff team. Joseph articulated his thoughts on how his actions are related to creating a
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 71

better experience for children and families served by the program. Joseph’s response highlights
his understanding of how his planning, modeling, and measuring performance impacts
systematic outcomes. Senior staff are mindful of the impact of their actions (or lack thereof)
toward achieving organizational goals, validating the presence of metacognitive knowledge.
While explaining his duties in the area of placement matching, Joseph explained: “We're not just
placing any kind of child in foster homes, we try to make it a good match because we do want to
lower the risk of disruptions. We do want to be able to provide some kind of stability for our
children that are coming into our program.” Joseph later emphasized the responsibility of
NPFCC to ensure foster parents are properly prepared with training and ongoing support to better
promote placement stability. He stressed that he was accountable for ensuring foster parents had
the knowledge and confidence necessary to navigate inherent challenges the may arise. In his
responses, Joseph demonstrated keen thoughtful awareness of the influence his team’s efforts
have on decreasing placement disruptions for the children in the care of NPFCC.
This type of consciousness could also be witnessed from the organization’s CEO,
Anthony. In his reaction to the same question, he responded: “I try to be mindful and allocate
resources to those departments and those program as needed to resource them. I know that our
treatment foster care program, I made a commitment to really resource those services at the
highest level possible, and I think we have... because I believe that's the way in which a rich
resourced program can prevent some of the issues around disruption.” Anthony went on to
share his willingness to accept the financial impact of the foster program’s services in support of
foster parents. He asserted that organizational bureaucracy should not be a barrier to foster
families obtaining what is needed to be successful, “I can say, ‘No, we're going to get that family
what they need.’"
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 72

Data collection efforts did not validate knowledge gaps related to NPFCC Senior staff’s
understandings of how his/her planning (strategy and resources), practicing, modeling, and
measuring performance impacts the well-being and future of each child in their care. The
interview responses of Joseph and Anthony, among others, confirmed the awareness Senior staff
possess of how their actions impact the effectiveness of the program’s mission to help children.
This observation could also be noted earlier within discussion focusing on factual knowledge
influences, James acknowledged the problem with inefficient data collection and monitoring
practices to support placement disruption monitoring in addition to the associated negative
impact.
In summary, the assessment of assumed knowledge influences impacting performance at
NPFCC validated gaps in multiple areas while highlighting one assumed influence that was not
validated. Senior staff did not possess knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and
causes to provide adequate support to foster children and families. Senior staff perceive foster
placement disruption monitoring and analysis to be a complex task and do not have adequate
understanding of such to support decision making. Lastly, Senior staff demonstrate
understanding of how his/her planning practicing, modeling, and measuring performance impacts
the well-being and future of each child in their care. The next section in this chapter will
evaluate assumed motivation influences.
Findings for Motivation Influences on Performance
This section will focus on the assumed motivation influences impacting performance at
NPFCC. Table 20 below provides a summary of validated and not validated motivation gaps
presented in this section.

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Table 20.
Summary of Assumed Motivation Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes

Assumed Motivation Influence

Validated as a Gap
Yes, No
(V, N)
Attribution Theory-
Senior staff need to understand that foster child placement disruption is
partially due to their own efforts.
N
Utility Value-
Senior staff need to believe in the value of monitoring the frequency of
foster child placement disruptions.
V

Validated Motivation Gaps
Senior staff need to understand that foster child placement disruption is partially due
to their own efforts. No gap validated.
Overall, Senior staff interviewed understand that foster placement disruption is partially
due to their efforts. They all expressed a variety of contributing variables to placement
disruption that included factors within the organization’s control. Nancy (pseudonym), a
separate program director with over 25 years of experience in child welfare shared this when
asked about the most significant cause of placement disruption (question 5): “I think that's, from
my sense that's the biggest problem is the lack of support and support with families to intervene
earlier and provide support so that the placement doesn't disrupt.” In her response, Nancy
focused primarily on the lack of adequate resources available and the absence of prevention
practices to better support foster families. She felt that such tools would empower placement
organizations with the ability to intervene early to prevent potential placement disruption. Her
assertion is the ultimate objective of monitoring foster placement disruption and their causes,
which the organization is currently not able to do. While asserting several variables that may
cause disruptions, Robert (pseudonym), shared this perspective in response to the same question:
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 74

“It's a bad match between the parents and the child who's matched with them. The child has
more behavioral or psychiatric issues than they initially realized, and DCF probably missed the
mark in terms of what the child's needs were.” He also mentioned that often state foster agencies
urgently need to place a child and the placement is not intended to be long-term, but simply to
provide the child shelter due to unique circumstances. In these cases, some foster parents may
agree to keep a child for a day or two, then the child may be relocated to another temporary
environment until the situation is resolved. These types of situations may be unavoidable.
Robert elaborated on several foster agency opportunities that may contribute to
placement disruption. He cited bad matching with foster parents and the lack of appropriate
attention to a child’s needs as a few examples of areas in which are the organization is
accountable for. Abby (pseudonym), a director for a separate program with over 20 years of
related experience, shared this perspective about causes of placement disruption: “At times I
think that families are not available when children need placement, so they're being placed just
wherever is possible to place them.” Abby’s response, like Robert’s feedback, emphasized the
significance of placement matching’s impact on the stability of a placement. Interview question
responses from members of Senior staff were in alignment with contributions shared by Nancy,
Abby, and Robert in this section.
Data collection efforts did not validate the assumed motivation gap related to Senior
staff’s understanding that foster child placement disruption is partially due to their own efforts.
Interview responses from Senior staff confirmed their acknowledgement of individual and
organizational factors that partially contribute to or may prevent foster placement disruption. For
these reasons this assumed influence was not validated as a gap.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 75

Senior staff need to believe in the value of monitoring the frequency of foster child
placement disruptions. Gap validated.
Interviews and document analysis suggest that senior staff actions, interests, and low
awareness reflect a gap in the perceived value of monitoring the frequency of foster child
placement disruptions. Nearly everyone interviewed exhibited limited to incorrect knowledge
pertaining to how placement disruptions were monitored. All except for one participant (the
foster program director) were unaware to the fact that the organization is not currently equipped
with the procedures or practices necessary to regularly monitor placement disruptions. This is
unfortunate because the foster program does currently collect the information needed to gain
additional insights in foster placement disruption frequencies and related causes. The foster care
program director was mentioned nearly 20 times during interviews in response to questions
about foster placement data collection, analysis, and documentation. In contrast, none of the
participants were able to instead articulate a procedure or practice for monitoring the
information. Furthermore, with exception to the program director, rarely did participants express
concern or interest regarding methods being used to collect and monitor foster placement
disruptions.
This sentiment is observed in Evelyn’s assertion that current processes were satisfactory
when asked to consider potential improvements: “It's good where it is. Mm-hmm (affirmative).”
Her response is difficult to understand as NPFCC is currently not able to monitor foster
placement disruptions children experience while in their care. In addition, when asked about her
level of confidence using data for planning and analysis, she openly stated that she was not a
“fan” of statistics and would “rather leave that for others and just listen and try to understand
from there.” Contrary to Evelyn’s perception that current methods were acceptable, Joseph
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 76

acknowledged software improvements were necessary to simplify data collection and expressed
some detachment in response to the same question: “I don't think I can answer that 'cause I stay
away from that stuff.” While Joseph demonstrates awareness of organizational opportunities for
improvement, he also reveals that even as a program supervisor, he deliberately distances
himself from such activities. In Mary’s responses to interview questions, although she is a
program supervisor as well, she was unaware of the frequency of placement disruption
monitoring and was unsure regarding methods the organization uses to document such events.
The overwhelming trend in participant responses was that foster placement disruption data
collection and analysis was the responsibility of the foster care program director alone. This
pattern would not be present amongst individuals having shared interest in placement disruption
data monitoring and related organizational outcomes if they believed the information to be a
valuable.
Expectancy value focuses on an individual’s perception of value in a task. Wigfield and
Eccles (2000) assert that the presence of perceived value motivates individuals to accomplish
tasks. The foster care program director is aware of the program’s ongoing inability to monitor
placement disruptions and has not communicated this opportunity to his team or to other
stakeholders for solution-oriented consideration. After data collection and analysis, this assumed
influence is validated as a gap.
In summary, the assessment of assumed motivation influences impacting performance at
NPFCC validated one related gap while noting one assumed motivation influence that was not
validated. Senior staff practices do not demonstrate a belief in the value of monitoring the
frequency of foster child placement disruptions. Data collection efforts concluded that Senior
staff understand that foster child placement disruption is partially due to their own efforts and not
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 77

the foster children’s volatility. The next section in this chapter will evaluate assumed
organizational influences.
Findings for Organizational Influences on Performance
This section will focus on the assumed organizational influences impacting performance
at NPFCC. Table 21 below provides a summary of validated and not validated organizational
gaps presented in this section.
Table 21.
Summary of Assumed Organization Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes

Assumed Organization Influence

Validated as a Gap?
Yes, No
(V, N)
Cultural Setting-
The organization needs to provide adequate resources to support data collection
and analysis.
V
Cultural Model-
The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates data collection
processes and methods of analysis.
V

The organization needs to provide adequate resources to support data collection and
analysis. Gap validated.
Members of senior staff provided statements supporting NPFCC’s ongoing efforts to
provide resources that enhance services offered by the programs, however, various interview
responses illuminate the lack of adequate resources to support data collection and analysis
(question 14). Nancy shared the following in respect to resources provided by NPFCC in
support of data collection and analysis: “Very little at this point.” She added: “…it really falls on
the managers and the supervisors to collect the... to train staff about how to collect the data and
input it to then pull the regular reports to do the analysis.” Nancy indicated the bulk of the
responsibility rests with the program managers to train their staff on how to collect and
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 78

document data. She also mentioned ambitions of obtaining a new record keeping system and
that the organization provided staff related training. However, Nancy asserted that more needed
to be done to support the collection and analysis of data.
Robert mentioned the record keeping system also and shared his perspective of staff
aptitude: “The data analytic skills of the staff are narrow, and we don't have an internal
database.” Robert’s statements emphasize the level of awareness amongst executive leadership
of related resource and skill gaps in the organization. James acknowledged organizational strides
to improve the usage of data while highlighting the advantages and objectives of the upcoming
results-based accountability (RBA) software. James went on to explain the disadvantages of
RBA, surgically describing why incoming software would not be helpful in his efforts to collect,
monitor, and analysis foster placement disruption data: “So, that's [RBA] helpful. It is, it's
helpful. But it helps sort of on the reporting out end of data collection. I still have to collect and
manipulate all the data myself. And then I just put those numbers into RBA. So, it's not like I
can input the information from the stat (form) into RBA, and it will aggregate everything for
me.”
James expressed that resources provided by the organization do not provide the necessary
tools to monitor placement disruptions. This means that even after implementation of RBA
software, the foster program will still have hundreds of stat forms that require manual review and
consolidation for analysis consideration. This is important because most of the Senior staff
touted that the incoming RBA software would solve organizational issues related to data
collection, management, analysis, and reporting.
When asking Evelyn about resources available to collect and analyze data, she mentioned
the foster program director presenting data in a seminar held in California but added: “It's a
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 79

learning process for me. I mean, like I said, I'm not a big data collection person, to be honest
with you.” Evelyn’s candor highlights skills gaps among staff in which Robert mentioned.
Anthony, NPFCC CEO, acknowledged related organizational opportunities and asserted the
organization’s commitment to improvement: “We know that the future must be data-driven, and
we know that we have to even continue to get better.” He also mentioned that NPFCC had
secured a six-figure grant to invest in a new record keeping system. Anthony and other members
of Senior staff shared that NPFCC pursued other similar investments through grant funding.
NPFCC fiscal budget information was included within documents obtained during data
collection. Grants or other external funding options would be needed to accommodate such large
expenditures.
Overall, data collected validated an organizational gap in the availability of adequate
resources to support data collection and analysis at NPFCC. Managers are challenged to find
approaches to overcome skill gaps existing within their team while accomplishing data collection
and analysis manually. This could be interpreted as empowerment and flexibility to do what
works for each manager, however interview responses revealed that even members of senior staff
are not comfortable working with data. After analysis, data collected confirmed a gap in the
availability of adequate resources to support data collection and analysis at the organization.
The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates data collection processes
and methods of analysis. Gap validated.
Statements from Senior staff participants illustrated a developing culture that had not
reached the point required to accomplish the organizational goals of NPFCC. Morrison and
Milliken (2000) describe situations when individuals withhold information about organizational
problems as a negative reflection of the culture in that environment. These omissions create
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 80

organizational barriers to overcoming opportunities and achieving results. James, the foster
program director, confirmed that foster placement disruption data is collected. However, no
analysis for reporting or prevention planning consideration is possible due to several
opportunities reviewed earlier in his related interview responses. Below, the response of
Anthony to question 10 (how frequently is foster placement disruption data monitored?)
underscores the organization’s lack of awareness or confusion regarding this reality: “Weekly. I
mean, every time there is a disruption, I mean, and then reported on in our monthly meeting.”
All Senior staff interviewed except for James, the foster program director, shared the
understanding that foster placement disruption data was being collected, analyzed, and reported
frequently. During interviews exceptional care was taken to ensure no confusion existed with
the distinction between program discharges and placement disruptions. However, through the
review of data collected, related organizational activities at NPFCC focus primarily on one type
of placement disruption. Program discharges are the focus of those mentioned discussions and
reports. As explained earlier, the organization is highly aware of program discharges due to
negative financial implications associated with such events. This finance-focused approach is
partially misaligned with the organization mission of improving the lives of children as it does
not include consideration of the up to 200 stat forms monthly that signal a placement disruption
has occurred.
Data collection efforts validated gaps in both assumed organizational influences that
impact performance at NPFCC. Analysis of interview responses validated an organizational gap
in the availability of adequate resources to support data collection and analysis at NPFCC.
Senior staffs’ statements cumulatively illustrated a developing culture that did not foster a
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 81

culture that appreciates data collection processes and methods of analysis. In the final section, a
summary and review assumed influences evaluated in this chapter will be presented.
Summary
Chapter four examined data collected and used the Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis
conceptual framework to organize the study’s findings by assumed KMO influence. Assumed
KMO influences impacting performance at NPFCC were designated as validated or not
validated. Table 22 below provides a summary of validated and not validated KMO gaps
presented in this chapter.
Table 22.
Summary of Assumed KMO Influences and Gap Analysis Outcomes

All Assumed KMO Influence

Validated as a Gap
Yes, No
(V, N)
K- Factual:
Senior staff need knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and
causes to provide adequate support to foster children and families.
V
K- Procedural:
Senior staff must understand how to analyze information for decision making
consideration.
V
K- Metacognitive:
Senior staff need to understand how his/her planning (strategy and resources),
practicing, modeling, and measuring performance impacts the well-being and
future of each child in their care.
N
M- Attribution Theory:
Senior staff need to understand that foster child placement disruption is partially
due to their own efforts.
N
M- Utility Value:
Senior staff need to believe in the value of monitoring the frequency of foster
child placement disruptions.
V
O- Cultural Setting:
The organization needs to provide adequate resources to support data collection
and analysis.
V
O- Cultural Model:
The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates data collection
processes and methods of analysis.
V

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This study’s findings validated knowledge, motivation, and organizational gaps present at
NPFCC. Data collected also identified knowledge and motivation influence areas where no gaps
were observed after analysis. Considering knowledge opportunities, the organization’s senior
staff was aware of the impact of their actions on the organization’s overall ability to accomplish
goals. However, there were no established systematic procedures or practices to compile and
analyze foster placement disruption data collected using stat forms. Furthermore, the
organization did not possess knowledge or awareness of organizational foster placement
disruption frequency trends or causes. Data collected revealed that analysis of foster placement
disruption data collected is not currently feasible due to the lack of processes to compile the
information collected in stat forms, the burdensome volume of completed stat forms, and no
delegation of data analysis related responsibilities among foster program team members.
From a motivation perspective, NPFCC’s Senior staff understood their potential to cause
or prevent foster placement disruptions. Professionals interviewed exhibited a strong sense of
passion, dedication, and obligation to delivering quality services to children and families in need
of help. As participants shared how their roles impacted the lives of children in their care, each
one spoke with a tone that indicated they were unequivocally proud of the work they do on
behalf of the children in care at NPFCC. These individuals are tasked with achieving this
mission within a considerably difficult environment with limited resources and support.
However, Senior staff practices did not demonstrate a belief in the value of monitoring the
frequency of foster child placement disruptions. This is an important gap to resolve because
researchers have emphasized the relationship between an individual’s perception of a task’s
value and continued engagement with a task (Grossman & Salas, 2011; Eccles, 2006; Rueda,
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 83

2011). The more valuable a task is thought to be, the more effort individuals are willing to
devote toward completing the task.
Focusing on organizational gaps, NPFCC was in the process of providing software
solutions that did not meet the critical needs of the foster program director to analyze data related
to placement disruption. In addition, the organization does not provide staff with critical data
analysis related trainings to close skills gaps and increase confidence in this area. Lastly, the
cultural model at NPFCC focuses primarily on program discharges because of their negative
impact on the organization’s finances. This espouses the belief that placement disruptions are
not as important to monitor because of a perception that disruptions do not carry direct financial
implications.
Chapter Five will present recommendations to address the observed gaps in knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences detailed in this chapter to enable the NPFCC to reach
its goal of implementing a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child placement
disruption by January 2021.
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CHAPTER FIVE: RECOMMENDATIONS
Chapter Four presented knowledge, motivation, and organizational (KMO) influence
findings pertaining to the study’s first three research questions:
1. What knowledge influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s understanding of the impact of
data collection and its usage in decision making to reduce foster child placement
disruption?
2. What motivation influences affect NPFCC Senior staff’s interest, or lack thereof, in
monitoring foster child placement disruption outcomes?
3. What organizational influences, real, or perceived by NPFCC Senior staff, affect the
implementation of quarterly review of foster child placement disruption outcomes?
Based on those findings, Chapter Five seeks to answer the fourth research question
guiding this study:
4. What are knowledge, motivation, and organizational solutions to these influences on
performance?
Perceptions obtained during interviews and the analysis of organizational documents
validated the following assumed KMO influences on performance and constraints to
achievement of the organization’s goal to implement a data collection system to capture 100% of
foster child placement disruption by January 2021.
Table 23.
Validated KMO Influence Gaps on Performance

Validated KMO Influence Gaps on Performance

K- Factual:
Senior staff need knowledge of foster placement disruption frequency and causes to provide
adequate support to foster children and families.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 85

K- Procedural:
Senior staff must understand how to analyze information for decision making consideration.
M- Utility Value:
Senior staff need to believe in the value of monitoring the frequency of foster child placement
disruptions.
O- Cultural Setting:
The organization needs to provide adequate resources to support data collection and analysis.
O- Cultural Model:
The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates data collection processes and methods of
analysis.

Chapter 5 will deliver concrete recommendations for each of these based on research-
based principles as well as present an evaluation and implementation plan for those
recommendations. The chapter ends with a summary of the proposed implementation plan
presented in this section for recommended actions and key take-aways from this research.
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences
Stakeholder Validated Knowledge Influences and Related Recommendations
This examination of research focuses on recommendations for Non-Profit for Community
Care (NPFCC) to reach their organizational performance goal of implementing a data collection
system to capture 100% of foster child placement disruption by January 2021. Senior staff, the
stakeholder group of this study, has the performance goal of quarterly reviewing placement
disruption data produced by the foster care program to establish a foster placement disruption
reduction plan to inform organizational decisions and better promote placement stability by April
2021.
NPFCC must resolve knowledge opportunities internally to better promote the
accomplishment of their goal to eliminate disruptions in care for foster youth. Krathwohl (2002)
states four types of knowledge are vital to attaining organizational achievement goals: factual,
conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. NPFCC needs to incorporate a foster child
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 86

placement disruption data collection tool and stakeholders need knowledge to be able to
effectively use such a tool.
Table 24 presents the validated knowledge influences and recommendations that need to
be addressed for NPFCC to reach their performance goal.
Table 24.
Summary of Validated Knowledge Influences and Recommendations

Validated Knowledge
Influence Gaps
Principle and Citation
Context-Specific
Recommendation
Factual:

Senior staff need knowledge
of foster placement
disruption frequency and
causes to provide adequate
support to foster children
and families.
Multiple studies have illuminated ranges of
factors that influence placement disruption
after a child is assigned a foster parent
(Crum, 2010; Maeyer, Robberechts,
Vanschoonlandt, & Van Holen, 2015).

Possessing information diminishes
ambiguity related to achieving goals (Clark
& Estes, 2008).
Leverage a child
placement management
software to empower
information generation
through automated
monitoring and
quantification of foster
placement disruptions
with identified causes
of disruption for review
consideration.
Procedural:

Senior staff must understand
how to analyze information
for decision making
consideration.
Data collection and analysis of information
builds collective efficacy by equipping
leaders with the best information available to
make informed decisions that positively
drive organizational performance (Bandura,
2000; Campbell, 2002; Heinrich, 2002;
Melendéz, 2001).

Behavior that is reinforced is strengthened.
(Daly, 2009)
Provide relative
training, shadowing,
and job aides to ensure
consistent analysis of
foster placement
disruption data.

Knowledge Recommendation #1: Leverage a child placement management software
to empower information generation through automated monitoring and quantification of
foster placement disruptions with identified causes. Senior staff interviews revealed limited
to unknown knowledge of organizational placement disruption frequency and its respective
causes. This is important because possessing facts about NPFCC foster placement disruption
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 87

decreases ambiguity regarding needs required to reduce placement disruptions at NPFCC (Clark
& Estes, 2008). Multiple studies have illuminated ranges of factors that influence placement
disruption after a child is assigned a foster parent (Crum, 2010; Maeyer et al, 2015).
Examination of documents collected at NPFCC verified that placement disruption data is
collected in various forms, however, NPFCC does not compile this information for analysis due
primarily to the manual labor associated with the task.
By implementing a child-welfare focused software, NPFCC will have access to
information about foster placement disruption frequency and causes to provide enhanced support
to foster children and families. One example of child-welfare software with complementary
functionality is Binti. Founded in 2016, Binti is a company that offers placement monitoring
software that possesses features necessary to track foster placement disruptions and their
respective causes through automation. Though relatively new, Binti is currently used to facilitate
placement services to over 50,000 children by over 75 agencies across 12 states. This solution
supports the completion and signature of forms through the software. Among other capabilities,
the software digitizes foster placement agency internal forms, like NPFCC’s status change forms,
to empower robust analysis and reporting of related data elements by simply clicking a button.
Kloppenborg and Laning (2014) showcase several low-cost data collection and analysis
methods with specific consideration of nonprofit organizations. One practical no-cost option at
NPFCC is to manage placement disruptions using Microsoft Office programs currently available
to all staff members. While Microsoft Excel is a low-cost option and widely used by foster
placement agencies like NPFCC, it requires a significant amount of manual input. NPFCC has
demonstrated that such a solution is not practical for their organization. The volume of status
change forms produced at NPFCC is too high for the program director to manually input form
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 88

data elements retrospectively through Excel for analysis consideration. Possessing general
knowledge of the characteristics associated with placement disruption can minimize unrealistic
expectations, enable contingency planning, and enhance disruption management. Implementing
a software to monitor foster placement disruptions and identify causes of disruption would
provide senior staff with vital information regularly. This would also permit placement
disruption management by ensuring senior staff are aware of the present status of NPFCC foster
placement disruption statistics. The adoption of Binti, or a similar software solution, will
provide NPFCC the tools necessary to eliminate barriers to obtaining organizational information.
Interviews responses also revealed that NPFCC had recently secured a six-figure grant to
implement a new record keeping system not appropriate for foster placement monitoring and
management. According to Binti, the annual licensing fee for their placement monitoring
software is $9,000 for an agency the size of NPFCC. This charge includes all software
customization needs, importation of archived tangible completed placement forms, digitization
of all internal/external forms, unlimited software users, job aides, and various ongoing training
support resources.
Budget information collected from NPFCC did not include detailed staff salary data.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2018), Child, Family, and School Social
Workers had a mean hourly wage of $23.92 and mean annual salary of $49,760 annually. This
profession includes those responsible for providing placement services to foster children and
families. Table 25 below provides employment and wage data within this occupation for the
United States and New England area.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 89

Table 25.
Child, Family, and School Social Workers Mean and Median Wage Data for United
States and New England area (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018)

Hourly Mean Annual Mean Hourly Median Annual Median
Connecticut $33.42 $69,520 $33.76 $70,230
Maine $25.06 $52,130 $23.46 $48,800
Massachusetts $23.40 $48,670 $21.14 $43,980
New Hampshire $25.44 $52,920 $23.82 $49,540
Rhode Island $29.54 $61,440 $28.64 $59,570
Vermont $24.17 $50,270 $23.90 $49,720
New England $26.84 $55,825 $25.79 $53,640
National (U.S.A.) $23.92 $49,760 $22.24 $46,270

Table 26 below uses the median wage data provided in Table 25 to compare the potential
cost of placement management software and the cost associated with foster care program staff
manually processing tangible status change forms. Interviews revealed that placement
disruptions at NPFCC can produce 200 status change forms monthly. This evaluation uses
$9,000 as the annual cost of placement software, ten minutes as the estimated time for quality
review and manual input of disruption data from each form (200 forms) into Microsoft Excel,
and 2 hours as the estimated time to analyze and interpret compiled form data monthly. Using
these variables, manual efforts result in over thirty-five hours a month potentially used to process
placement disruption data within forms. That is nearly 90% of a 40-hour work week.
Table 26.
Cost Comparison: Placement Management Software and Cost associated with Manual
Input and Analysis of Placement Disruption Data
Monthly Cost
Annual Cost

Manual Input
and Analysis
Placement
Management
Software
Manual Input
and Analysis
Placement
Management
Software
Connecticut $1,193 $750 (-$443) $14,316 $9,000 (- $5,316)
New England Area $912 $750 (-$162) $10,944 $9,000 (- $1,944)
National (U.S.A.) $785 $750 (- $35) $9,420 $9,000 (- $420)

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 90

Table 26 highlights the potential cost savings associated with the usage of a placement
management software instead of manual processes to monitor placement disruption data. The
cost of manually processing status change forms is higher on a state, regional, and national level.
The analysis in Table 26 did not include the cost associated with program staff completing the
status change form. This is important to note because the action and additional cost associated
with inputting and compiling tangible status change form data is redundant. Placement
management software digitizes status changes forms, empowering automated completion,
compilation, and analysis of placement disruption data at any time with a click of a button. This
eliminates the significant cost of manual review, input, compilation, and analysis of data from
tangible forms.
Time previously used by the program director to manually process status change
information could be leveraged to provide additional support to foster families, develop staff
training opportunities, or secure grants to bring more funding to the organization. Placement
management software could provide senior staff with factual knowledge regarding placement
disruption at NPFCC while potentially saving thousands of dollars in cost and hundreds of
productivity hours annually.
Knowledge Recommendation #2: Provide relative training, shadowing, and job
aides to ensure consistent analysis of foster placement disruption data. Findings from this
study suggest that Senior staff do not to understand how to analyze information for decision
making consideration. The current practice of relying solely upon the program director to
compile and analyze organizational placement information is evidence of this gap amongst
senior staff. Senior staff often asserted discomfort analyzing data during interviews at NPFCC.
As a new child-welfare focused software implementation has been recommended, NPFCC must
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 91

provide training and developmental opportunities to ensure this tool is valued and utilized
correctly. Senior staff should receive formal team trainings that communicate clear procedures
regarding how to enter information into the software and utilize the software’s functions to gain
analytical insight. Team practices have been proven to positively drive organizational
performance and collective efficacy (Bandura, 2000; Campbell, 2002; Daly, 2009; Heinrich,
2002; Melendéz, 2001). Clark and Estes (2008) emphasize that absent or poor procedures may
create barriers to an organization achieving performance goals. Senior staff need procedural
trainings to support data analysis processes, direct their work efforts, and mitigate potential
software challenges. Procedures implementation also equips the organization with a path to
obtaining the best information available to make informed decisions.
Trainings should be led by trainers from the software company NFPCC obtains the
software from. For example, if NPFCC elected to adopt Binti as a software solution, Binti would
provide as many training sessions as NPFCC requested at no additional cost. Trainings should
be reinforced by leveraging job aides and ongoing opportunities to shadow more skilled
colleagues to improve data analysis skills. Job aides have been found to support the consistent
application of work processes when individuals work independently (Clark & Estes, 2008). This
is important because Senior staff should be confident in their ability to autonomously make
decisions using data.
Stakeholder Validated Motivation Influences and Related Recommendations
This section proposes a resolution to validated motivational influence findings in Chapter
Four. NPFCC must resolve motivation opportunities to reach the realization of their
performance goal. Table 27 presents a validated motivation influence and the associated
recommendation that needs to be addressed.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 92

Table 27.
Summary of Validated Motivation Influence Gaps and Recommendations

Validated
Motivation
Influences Gaps

Principle and Citation Context-Specific Recommendation
Utility Value Individuals are more likely to
engage and continue activities in
which they see value (Rueda,
2011).

Learning and motivation are
enhanced if the learner values the
task (Eccles, 2006).

Materials and activities should be
relevant and useful to the learners,
connected to their interests, and
based on real world tasks (Pintrich,
2003).
Senior staff participate regularly in
relevant best practice sessions that
showcase team members’ successful
analysis of data to monitor and manage
controllable factors of placement
disruption.

Motivation Recommendation: Senior staff participate regularly in relevant
workshop sessions that showcase team members’ successful analysis of data to monitor and
manage controllable factors of placement disruption. Senior staff must see the utility value
associated with the analysis of foster placement disruption data. Overall, this motivation theory
and associated influences are important because of their significant impact on mental effort and
persistence toward achieving the performance goal. Chapter Four’s findings concluded that
Senior staff understood that foster placement disruption events could be minimized, in part, by
NPFCC’s ability to better monitor and manage controllable factors that cause disruptions. Senior
staff acknowledged their actions, or lack thereof, may also contribute to foster placement
disruption at NPFCC. Some examples of organizational activity that may contribute to increased
placement disruption include incompatible placement matches between foster parents and foster
children, inadequate foster parent support services, and failing to care for a foster child’s
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 93

psychological needs. This understanding is important because these findings support the notion
that best practice sessions are a useful, interest-focused, and reality-based method of affirming
utility value amongst senior staff.
Interviews found that while NPFCC invested in Research Based Accountability software
to promote more data-driven decision making, that software does not meet the unique needs of
the foster placement program. Therefore, there may be reasonable skepticism in the
functionality new processes and/or future software initiatives at NPFCC. Best practice sessions
should be led by the program director, as he is widely trusted by the organization for all related
data analysis. This would serve as an opportunity for case managers or program supervisors to
share successful examples of how, through data analysis, they were able to manage controllable
variables that contribute to foster placement disruption. Such testimonials are important to
communicate utility value and reinforce the attribution of success or failure with an individual’s
efforts toward the performance goal.
Stakeholder Validated Organizational Influences and Related Recommendations
Organizational characteristics (policies, practices, structure, etc.) may determine if
individual and team expectations are achieved (Rueda, 2011). Data collected validated assumed
organizational influence gaps that potentially prevent the achievement of the organization’s
performance goal. NPFCC must establish an environment that provides resources,
accountability, and supportive processes necessary to promote the consistent collection of foster
placement disruption data. Table 28 below details the validated organizational influences and
recommendations based on theoretical principles.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 94

Table 28.
Summary of Validated Organizational Influence Gaps and Recommendations

Validated Organization
Influence Gaps

Principle and Citation

Context-Specific
Recommendation
Cultural Setting:

The organization needs to
provide adequate
resources to support data
collection and analysis.

Clark and Estes (2008) assert that
poor procedures or absent resources
can prevent even the most
competent and motivated worker
from achieving performance goals.

Organizational policies may
determine if individual and team
expectations are achieved.
(Rueda, 2011)

Establish organizational policies
and practices that promote
accountability, support data
collection and analysis, assign
team member expectations, and
monitor team productivity.
Cultural Model:

The organization needs to
foster a culture that
appreciates data
collection processes and
methods of analysis.
Championed principles and values
must be aligned with messaging and
established practices (Clark &
Estes, 2008).
NPFCC senior leadership must
candidly communicate the
significant role of data-informed
decision making in achieving the
organizational mission frequently.

Organizational Recommendation #1: Establish organizational policies and practices
that promote accountability, support data collection and analysis, assign team member
expectations, and monitor team productivity. Most interview participants stated current data
analysis software is inadequate. Clark and Estes (2008) assert that poor procedures or absent
resources can prevent even the most competent and motivated worker from achieving
performance goals. Senior staff are not able to monitor foster placement disruptions due to the
lack of data collection processes and systems to support this activity. This organizational gap
prevents accurate measurement of the organization’s performance against any related goals.
Knowledge recommendation #1 focused on the implementation of a placement management
software to enable effective monitoring and analysis of foster placement disruption data. Such a
system requires supportive processes to ensure consistent usage of the software across the
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 95

organization. The alignment of individual procedures in support of work processes to achieve
team performance goals is significant to organizational efficiency (Clark and Estes, 2008).
Data collection highlighted the absence of supervisor expectations, job tasks, and
accountability protocols in alignment with the program’s data collection goals. Interviews
revealed that no systematic work processes or policies have been established to provide the
program director tools to regularly monitor, compile, analyze, and report the movement of foster
children assigned to each supervisor. Foster program managers and supervisors should be
provided clear instruction on how to use the placement management software to complete
electronic status change forms, perform data analysis, generate reports, and ultimately leverage
the information to mitigate placement disruption amongst the foster children they are responsible
for. The program director would no longer need to compile this information afterwards because
the software automates this function, enabling flexibility to provide strategic focus on the
assessment of program effectiveness for continuous improvement consideration. This includes
experimenting with incentive programs to drive performance, establishing staff feedback
channels to better understand opportunities, and investing in staff development opportunities to
close related skills gaps where required to be successful.
Successful organizations are supported by policies and satisfactory resources required to
get the job done. Organizational policies may determine if individual and team expectations are
achieved (Rueda, 2011). The recommendation is that NPFCC establish organizational policies
and practices that promote accountability and support data collection and analysis, assign team
member expectations, and monitor team productivity.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 96

Organizational Influence #2: NPFCC senior leadership must candidly communicate
the significant role of data-informed decision making in achieving the organizational
mission frequently. Participants shared their perception that NPFCC appreciates data, however,
leaders do not collect and analyze data. All foster program supervisors interviewed affirmed the
organization provided them some form of data analysis training, but they also asserted that they
were not responsible for data collection or analysis. Instead, supervisors expressed this
responsibility fell solely on the program director. Supervisors frequently asserted the director
could obtain disruption information from in-house forms they generally complete whenever a
child is relocated. Dependent upon foster child movement activity, supervisors can potentially
complete over a hundred of these in-house forms within a month. Unfortunately, the time
associated with the tracking, review, and compilation of each individual form is not feasible at
the program director’s level. However, within the present cultural model at NPFCC, each
program supervisor confidently proclaimed the program director achieved the collection and
analysis of placement disruption data found in various forms independently without any
additional support from the larger team. This does not reflect an organization that possesses a
culture of appreciation for data collection processes and methods of analysis.
Championed principles and values must be aligned with messaging and established
practices (Clark & Estes, 2008). The frequent communication of the organization’s vision and
explanation of how data collection and analysis drives performance toward that outcome is vital
to establishing a culture that appreciates using data. Foster program staff must understand that
when they conduct data analysis, they are working fulfilling the organization’s mission of
helping children in need. This task is separated from the rapid and unpredictable scenarios of
foster placement activity, home visits with children and families, and other responsibilities of
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 97

foster care staff. Therefore, it may feel like a non-value adding process in the short-term with so
many other happenings to tend to.
At every level of the NPFCC, leadership must develop and deliver ongoing messaging to
foster program staff on the positive impact of data collection and analysis. This requires that
every member leadership set the example in this respect, sharing their usage of data to make
decisions that impact programs and the larger organization. Data should be the foundations of
any description of performance outcomes or expectations. Formal and informal conversation
about organizational decisions should also include discussion about data and its influence on
such decisions. Email or tangible communications about organizational updates should
incorporate data to illustrate to all staff the organization’s belief in the value of information.
Such an environment is necessary to change existing attitudes, perceptions, and beliefs about the
importance of data analysis. The recommendation is that NPFCC senior leadership must
candidly communicate the significant role of data-informed decision making in achieving the
organizational mission frequently.
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan
Implementation and Evaluation Framework. This section will leverage the New
World Kirkpatrick Model to present an implementation and evaluation plan. The New World
Kirkpatrick Model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016) is made up of four levels of training
evaluation: 1) Reaction, 2) Learning, 3) Behavior, and 4) Results. The levels are used in reverse
order, beginning with consideration of desired Results first. This is aligned with the Kirkpatrick
foundational principle of starting training blueprints from the desired outcome to better
understand the underlying needs to achievement. Although levels appear identical to
Kirkpatrick’s original four level model for evaluation (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016), each
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 98

has been expanded upon in the new model for clarification. For example, the New World Model
introduces the significance of using required drivers (Level Three) and leading indicators (Level
Four). This plan will utilize these newly introduced tools to outline opportunities to promote,
monitor, and recognize positive behaviors that lead organizational achievement of positive
performance results (Level Four). See Table 29 below for descriptions of each level.
Table 29.
Taken from Kirkpatrick’s four levels of training evaluation (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016)

Level Description
1- Reaction degree to which employees find training favorable, engaging, and relevant to their
professional responsibilities
2- Learning degree to which employees acquire the intended knowledge, skills, attitude,
confidence and commitment based on their participation in the training
3- Behavior degree to which employees apply what they learned during training when they are
back on the job
4- Results degree to which targeted outcomes occur as a result of the training and the support
and accountability package

Organizational Purpose, Need, and Expectations. The organizational mission of
NPFCC is to improve the lives of children in need. In support of this mission, NPFCC Foster
Care (FC) program will implement a data collection system to capture 100% of foster child
placement disruption by January 2021. NPFCC senior staff will promote the minimization of
foster child placement disruption through data-driven decision making. The collection of
information related to placement disruption is vital for the twelve senior staff to accomplish their
stakeholder goal of quarterly reviewing foster placement disruption data to establish a reduction
plan and set goals that promote foster child placement stability by April 2021.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 99

Level Four: Results and Leading Indicators
Clark and Estes (2008) emphasize the importance of measuring results toward the
achievement of performance goals. Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) highlight the usage of
leading indicators to align individual and team goals with desired organizational outcomes. The
accomplishment of these milestones signal progress toward the achievement of the overall
performance goal. Desired outcomes are organized in two groups: internal and external. Internal
outcomes are produced by the NPFCC staff. External outcomes are produced by agency
customers. For NPFCC, their customers of focus here are foster children and foster parents.
External outcomes. NPFCC should have knowledge of the foster placement disruption
rates of foster children in its care. This information is key to understanding improvement
opportunities related to placement processes and gaining insight regarding a foster child’s
experience in care. NPFCC’s awareness of frequent causes of placement disruption is vital to
create strengthen preventative measures where possible to promote placement stability. In
addition to the general monitoring of placement disruption causes, distinct attention should be
focused on placement disruptions caused by variables within NPFCC’s control. These are
significant as they are considered as avoidable disruptions. These outcomes may be examined
using data inputs from status forms that are completed each time a child is moved. Using a child
placement management software, these forms would be digital. Digital forms empower the fast
generation of reports that leverage data elements included in each form.
Internal Outcomes. NPFCC must publish organizational policies in support of the
performance goal of capturing 100% of foster child placement disruption. By doing this,
NPFCC establishes foster placement disruption monitoring as an organizational priority to
internal stakeholders. NPFCC must offer development opportunities supervisors to close skill
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 100

gaps and provide them a venue to share best practices regularly. While skill development is
important to ensure individuals have the knowledge to perform procedures and required tasks
correctly, best practice sharing maintains the organizational consciousness regarding the value
associated with these tasks. In addition to sharing best practices, incentives should be used to
recognize outstanding individuals and teams.
Each of these outcomes may be monitored using various feasible methods to track their
respective metrics. Table 30 below details targeted outcomes, metrics of observation, and
method of data collection.
Table 30.
Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes

Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
External Outcomes
Knowledge of child
placement disruption rates of
foster child placements
Number of foster child placement
disruptions
Aggregate child placement change
data collected in related forms
Increased awareness of
circumstances causing
frequent foster child
placement disruption
Types of situations that result in
foster child placement disruptions
Aggregate foster parent or foster
child placement change request data
collected in related forms
Knowledge of avoidable
organizational disruption rates
of foster child placements
Number of foster child placement
disruptions caused primarily by
controllable variables
Aggregate foster parent or foster
child placement change request data
collected in related forms
Internal Outcomes
Policy about foster child
placement disruption
monitoring and reporting
Published policies Benchmark information and related
data from peer organizations
Supervisor opportunities to
practice data collection and
analysis skills
Number of skills related
development workshops provided
to staff
Interview data concerning data
collection and analysis development
opportunities available
Supervisors share successful
strategies to manage
controllable variables
Number of best practice sessions
dedicated to sharing strategic
management practices for staff
Interview data concerning strategic
management practice sharing
opportunities available
Supervisors are recognized for
using data collection and
analysis skills
Number of staff incentives/awards
to promote data collection and
analysis
Interview data concerning types of
staff recognition and incentives
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 101

All supervisors are
responsible for placement
disruption data collection and
analysis
Published procedures and
expectations
Outcomes reviewed regularly for
recognition and accountability
consideration

Level Three: Behavior
Level three focuses on individual behaviors that are vital to the success of organizational
learning opportunities. Skills development may be confirmed through the observation of
learnings applied on the job. Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) regard this level as the most
important of the four because training sessions and development opportunities alone will not fill
organizational gaps. Employee behaviors must demonstrate positive changes that compliment
trainings provided, this is how organizational performance goals are ultimately achieved. The
regular monitoring of NPFCC foster program staff behavior is crucial to ensuring data collection
and analysis goals are accomplished. Table 31 below reviews each critical behavior and its
respective metric, method, and timing.
Table 31.
Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation

Critical Behavior Metric(s) Method(s) Timing
1. NFPCC will adopt the
usage of a child
placement
management software
to record, monitor, and
manage child
placement
information.
Number of internal forms
digitized for
compatibility with child
placement management
software.

Number of staff assigned
user profiles to use the
child placement
management software.
Foster care program
director will meet with
software provider to
collaborate in the
facilitation of forms
transformation from
tangible to electronic and
complete staff user
registration needs.
60 days
2. Program supervisors
will learn to record all
foster placement data
and perform data
analysis using child
placement
management software.
Number of
training/development
sessions held for
supervisors to practice
child placement
recording, monitoring,
analysis, and/or
Foster care program
director will leverage
agency training support
resources provided by the
child placement
management software
company.
As needed for
supervisors or
those needing
additional
support.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 102

management using child
placement management
software.
3. Program supervisors
will record all foster
placement data and
perform data analysis
using child placement
management software.
Volume of child
placement information
recorded using the
placement management
software.

Supervisor work
procedures and
expectations will be
updated to reflect the
expectation that all foster
placement data recording
and analysis be done via
the child placement
management software.
Daily or
Weekly
4. Program supervisors
will use data reporting
tools within the child
placement
management software
to develop foster
placement disruption
avoidance action plans
with milestones to
monitor and manage
variables impacting
placement stability
within their control.
Number of placement
disruption avoidance
action plans provided to
program director.
Supervisor work
procedures and
expectations will be
updated to include
development of action
plan using foster
placement disruption data
generated from reporting
tools within the child
placement management
software.
Ongoing
5. Program director will
use child placement
management software
to generate
organizational reports
regarding all foster
placement activity
including avoidable
disruptions data
Program level foster
placement activity and
avoidable disruption
information reported to
program staff at a regular
cadence.

Program director work
procedures and
expectations will be
updated to include
reporting of program level
foster placement activity
and avoidable disruption
data.
Monthly
Quarterly
Annually
6. Program director will
use child placement
management software
to develop an annual
program level foster
placement disruption
avoidance action plan
with milestones to
better monitor and
manage controllable
variables impacting
placement stability.
Establishment of program
placement disruption
avoidance action plan
provided to executive
leadership.
Program director work
procedures and
expectations will be
updated to include
development of program
level action plan using
child placement
management software
reporting tools.
Annual
7. Program will establish
community for
supervisors to discuss
placement disruption
Number of meetings held
related to placement
disruption prevention.
Supervisors will report
foster placement
disruption data.

Monthly
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 103

trends, causes,
prevention strategies,
resources available,
benchmarking, and
highlight success
stories.
Supervisors will share
success stories and
strategies related to foster
placement disruption
avoidance.
8. Program will establish
reporting of foster
placement disruption
data.
Organizational foster
placement disruption
statistical data published
internally at regular
cadence.
Program will schedule
time to provide and review
foster placement
disruption report with
executive leadership at
regular cadence.
By month
By quarter
By year

Required drivers. Critical behaviors require drivers to promote their regular and
ongoing practice. According to Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016), required drivers fall into
two categories: 1) supporting and 2) accountability. Drivers act as the underlying infrastructure
used to recognize positive behaviors and ensure timely attention to the correction of adverse
activity. Supporting drivers are those intended to: a) reinforce, b) encourage, and/or c) reward
the execution of critical behaviors (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick; 2016). Reinforcement focused
drivers are used to facilitate the application of new skills to everyday deliverables on the job.
For example, job aids are considered to be a useful tool to reinforce training sessions. Job aids
provide individuals readily accessible information that instructs them how to complete a job task
correctly and consistently (Clark & Estes, 2008; Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick; 2016). Setting up
coaching and mentoring arrangements may be established to create the supportive environment
necessary to encourage individuals to continue the practice of favorable behaviors (Kirkpatrick
& Kirkpatrick; 2016). Lastly, providing individuals with a form of recognition as an incentive to
practice critical behaviors is the final type of supporting driver (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick;
2016).
Accountability drivers are those focused primarily on the measurement and monitoring of
success toward the organizational performance goal. Among other methods, Kirkpatrick and
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 104

Kirkpatrick (2016) list the establishment of key performance indicators (KPIs) and touch base
meetings as a means to promote critical behavior accountability and monitor success.
Accountability drivers are important because they track critical behavior compliance and overall
achievement status against the performance goal. Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016)
recommend that implementation support plans include at least one of each type of supporting
drivers in addition to accountability protocols. Table 32 below reviews the required drivers to
support the critical behaviors listed previously.
Table 32.
Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors

Method(s) Timing
Critical Behaviors
Supported
1, 2, 3 Etc.
Reinforcing
Job aids that provide detailed step by step instructions to
complete placement data recording, monitoring, and
analysis using child placement management software
30 days 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Coaching sessions to support placement data recording,
monitoring, and analysis using child placement
management software
Ongoing or as-needed
basis
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Encouraging
Peer coaching sessions focused in support of placement
data recording, monitoring, and analysis using child
placement management software
Ongoing or as-needed
basis
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Meetings held focusing on internal placement disruption
trends and successful avoidance practices.
Monthly 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Supervisor presentations focusing on placement disruption
trends and avoidance opportunities highlighting in data
collected.
Monthly 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Rewarding
Written recognition from program director when
supervisor successfully submits four consecutive weeks of
foster placement data timely.
Monthly 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Written recognition and public announcement during
quarterly review meeting from program director and COO
when supervisor successfully submits three consecutive
months of foster placement data timely.
Quarterly 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 105

Written recognition and public announcement during
annual review meeting from program director and CEO
when supervisor successfully submits 12 consecutive
months of foster placement data timely.
Annual 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Written recognition via email and public announcement at
nearest scheduled related meeting from program director
when supervisor uses data collected to develop a
placement disruption avoidance action plan with
milestones to monitor and manage controllable variables
impacting foster placement.
Ongoing 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Program supervisor performance appraisal to include
consideration of supervisor’s compliance with foster
placement disruption data collection related job tasks and
supervisor development of disruption avoidance action
plan with milestones to monitor and manage controllable
variables impacting foster placement.

During performance
review
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Program director performance appraisal to include
consideration of program’s compliance with
organizational performance goals regarding foster
placement disruption data collection and the development
of a program level placement disruption avoidance action
plan with milestones to monitor and manage controllable
variables impacting foster placement.
During performance
review
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Monitoring
Program will report placement disruption data and data-
informed avoidance efforts regularly to executive
leadership.
Monthly
Quarterly
Annually
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Program will meet regularly to review internal placement
disruption trends, causes, benchmarking, and share
successful placement disruption avoidance stories.
Monthly
Quarterly
Annually
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Program director will review placement disruption data
collection practices and discuss avoidance action plan
with milestones development with each supervisor.
Monthly
Quarterly
Annually

2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Program supervisor performance appraisal to include
consideration of supervisor’s compliance with foster
placement disruption data collection related job tasks and
supervisor development of disruption avoidance action
plan with milestones to monitor and manage controllable
variables impacting foster placement.
During performance
review
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 106

Program director performance appraisal to include
consideration of program’s compliance with
organizational performance goals regarding foster
placement disruption data collection and the development
of a program level placement disruption avoidance action
plan with milestones to monitor and manage controllable
variables impacting foster placement.
During performance
review
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Organizational support. In the review of organizational influences, the following items
were listed earlier as validated gaps that may hinder the achievement of NPFCC’s performance
goal:
1) The organization needs to provide adequate resources to support data collection
and analysis.
2) The organization needs to foster a culture that appreciates data collection
processes and methods of analysis.
By implementing the drivers detailed above, the organization will successfully foster a
culture that promotes consistent data recording, monitoring, and analysis for decision making.
Using the support and accountability drivers provided will enable the organization to ensure staff
have the skills, software, instruction resources, and supportive atmosphere needed to get the job
done.
Level Two: Learning
Learning goals. Following the execution of recommended solutions provided above to
implement a systematic process for the regular monitoring of foster placement disruption data,
NPFCC senior staff will be able to:
1) Leverage novel organizational resources to collect data. (Cultural Settings/Procedural)
2) Regularly record, monitor, and analyze foster placement data electronically using a child
placement management software. (Procedural)
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 107

3) Accurately report foster placement disruption data trends. (Factual)
4) Use data to confidently create foster placement disruption avoidance plan. (Procedural)
5) Collect and analyze information for decision making consideration. (Procedural)
6) Reflect on how individual performance may impact the placement stability of each child.
(Metacognition/Attribution)
7) Value the importance of foster placement disruption data collection and analysis. (Value)
8) Meaningfully contribute to organizational foster placement disruption avoidance efforts
(Cultural Model)
9) Collaborate as a team to support achievement of organizational goals. (Cultural
Model/Collective Efficacy)
10) Monitor foster placement disruption data collection efforts and implement corrections
where needed to promote individual and organizational progress. (Efficacy/Collective
Efficacy/Procedural/Cultural Model)
Program. The systematic collection and monitoring of foster placement disruption data
using a child placement management software is a practical, affordable, confidential, and
effective method to promote placement disruption avoidance. Feedback collected during
interviews highlighted the need for an automated process to enable that compilation of the high
volume of status forms completed at NPFCC. As this is a new software implementation, training
gaps will need to be resolved by leveraging the training support resources provided by the child
placement management software company individually or collectively as a team. Software
providers provide a wide range of ongoing trainings to ensure agencies can utilize the placement
management system and all its related functionalities. With a click of a button NPFCC
supervisors can create vivid visual representations of foster placement data recorded. Graphs
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 108

and tables enable viewers to quickly observe trends and patterns in data to inform decisions.
These features are vital to ensure reporting of data collected is clear, concise, and easy to
understand to all stakeholders. Upon observation of skill gaps, the program director may coach
supervisors directly in addition to directing them to tutorial resources with the software
company.
Components of learning. As program staff receive training to leverage the child
placement management software to record foster placement disruption data, they need to obtain
procedural knowledge. Therefore, it is vital to evaluate the degree to which program staff have
learned procedural knowledge. Table 33 below detail the methods for evaluation of learning
components and their respective timing.
Table 33.
Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program

Method or Activity Timing
Declarative Knowledge “I know it.”
Knowledge check though team discussions. Immediately following team skill development
session using online tutorial video job aids and
step by step resources.
Knowledge check though individual discussions and
demonstration of competence with program director.
Periodically throughout the year as needed.
Procedural Skills “I can do it right now.”
Demonstration of individual ability to use child placement
management software
Immediately following team skill development
session using online tutorial resources and step
by step job aides.
Demonstration of individual ability to use child placement
management software to generate graphs and tables using
data inputs.
Immediately following team skill development
session using online tutorial resources and step
by step job aides.
Demonstration of individual ability to interpret data trends
and patterns using child placement management software
to generate reports, graphs and tables
Immediately following team skill development
session using online tutorial resources and step
by step job aides.
Demonstration of program supervisors using online
tutorial resources outside of training sessions for
independent practice and on-the-job application.
Through program director observation notes and
conversations with supervisors.
Attitude “I believe this is worthwhile.”
Regular team discussions focusing on the value of foster
placement disruption data collection and analysis.
During training sessions, coaching opportunities,
related program meetings, and team performance
discussions.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 109

Regular individual discussions focusing on the value of
foster placement disruption data collection and analysis.
During individual performance conversations and
coaching sessions.
Confidence “I think I can do it on the job.”
Discussions following team training sessions.

Immediately following team skill development
session using online tutorial resources and step
by step job aides.

During training sessions, coaching opportunities,
related program meetings, and team performance
discussions.
Individual discussions. During individual performance conversations and
coaching sessions.

Through program director observation notes.
Commitment “I will do it on the job.”
Creation of data-informed supervisor placement
disruption avoidance action plan with milestones.

During individual performance conversations and
coaching sessions.

Through program director observation notes.

Level One: Reaction
Table 34 below lists the methods to be used to measure program staff engagement,
satisfaction, and perception of foster placement disruption data collection process relevance to
their professional responsibilities.
Table 34.
Components to Measure Reactions to the Program

Method(s) or Tool(s) Timing
Engagement
Attendance During related meetings and training sessions.
Observation During related team or individual meetings and
training sessions.
Completion of foster placement disruption data
reporting timely
Ongoing
Completion of foster placement disruption
avoidance plan with milestones
Annually
Relevance
Regular check-ins with supervisors via team
discussions
During related team meetings and training sessions.
Regular check-ins with program supervisors via
individual discussions
During related individual meetings, training
sessions, and performance appraisal conversations.
Satisfaction
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 110

Regular check-ins with program supervisors via
team discussions
During related team meetings and training sessions.
Regular check-ins with program supervisors via
individual discussions
During related individual meetings, training
sessions, and performance appraisal conversations.

Evaluation Tools
Immediately following the program implementation. Program supervisors will attend
ongoing practice sessions related to data recording, monitoring, and analysis using the child
placement management software. These sessions will also provide ongoing skill development
opportunities to ensure proficiency using the child placement management software to generate
reports, graphs, and tables using data inputs as well. Program supervisors will participate in
regular individual and team discussions related to value of data collection and analysis. Program
supervisors will be expected to demonstrate competence in the independent usage of the child
placement management software to regularly record and report foster placement disruption data
using job aids. The program director will be responsible for ongoing monitoring and quality
coaching associated with reports submitted by supervisors having participated in data collection
development sessions.
Delayed for a period after the program implementation. Program supervisors will be
expected to leverage foster placement disruption information to create a foster placement
disruption avoidance action plan with milestones after 90 days following completion of initial
development sessions. This action plan will use foster placement disruption data collected to
highlight primary causes or types of foster placement disruption observed. The supervisor action
plan will also detail frequency rates of placement disruption experienced by foster children
within their responsibility. Supervisors will identify and manage controllable variables that
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 111

negatively impact foster placement. Afterwards, the supervisor will review their action plan with
the program director to communicate resources and tools required to be successful.
Data Analysis and Reporting. The program director will be responsible for the analysis
and reporting of training session outcomes. This will be accomplished by providing stakeholders
updates in the form of a chart or dashboard. This dashboard may be a report generated by the child
placement management software or developed using other methods. Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick
(2016) highlight the usage of dashboards as an effective was to showcase success toward goals
and bring attention to areas of opportunity. The dashboard should consist of at least one critical
behavior, one key performance driver, and a learning indicator. Each area of focus’s target will
be listed with its current status toward the target. The focus area’s actual performance will be rated
with color-coding to clearly communicate the team’s success or opportunity at a glance. Table 35
below is a demonstration of a dashboard that could be published monthly and used during related
meeting discussions to promote progress.
Table 35.
Example of reporting dashboard adapted from Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016)

FOSTER PLACEMENT DISRUPTION
DATA COLLECTION DASHBOARD
AREA OF FOCUS
MONTH’S
TARGET
MONTH’S
ACTUAL
PREVIOUS
MONTH
RATING
Foster placement activity recorded
using child placement
management software
100% 75% 50% C
Number of program supervisors
successfully trained to record,
monitor, and analyze placement
activity using child placement
management software
10 7 5 C
Number of placement disruption
avoidance action plans
10 4 3 F

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 112

Summary. This plan was designed to implement and evaluate the collection of foster
placement disruption using the New World Kilpatrick Model. This model enables NPFCC to
address performance gaps involving knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences
validated in this study. The New World Model introduces the significance of using required
drivers (Level Three) and leading indicators (Level Four). The plan detailed usage of these
recently introduced tools to outline opportunities to support, monitor, and recognize positive
behaviors that lead organizational data collection, analysis, and reporting (Level Four).
Future Research
For NPFCC, child placement management is a significantly burdensome area to monitor.
A large amount of research has been done to bring attention to the adverse impact that foster
placement disruption has on impacted youth. However, more exploration should be dedicated to
the investigation of successful practices and tools used by placement agencies that provide foster
youth more stability.
It is recommended that future research be conducted at foster placement agencies that
have successfully reduced foster care placement disruptions and the tools that they have used to
do so. This would include research on the adopted usage of a child placement management
software, like Binti or others. These proposed studies would examine the impact of child
placement management software on foster placement disruption rates compared to the usage of
tracking systems based on other methods, like Microsoft Office. Organizations demonstrating
success in the minimization of placement disruption would be leveraged for benchmarking
consideration. The purpose of this future research would be intended to improve services
provided to foster youth.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 113

Conclusion
The purpose of this innovation study was to conduct a gap analysis in the areas of
knowledge, motivation, and organization (KMO) resources necessary to reach the stakeholder
goal using the Clark and Estes (2008) methodological framework. NPFCC was selected as the
organization of focus for this study because it is a state licensed foster placement agency.
NPFCC has the organizational goal of monitoring 100% of foster placement disruption by
January 2021. This goal was developed to promote the minimization of the agency’s foster
placement disruption rates, which were unknown at the time of the study. The analysis of
information collected at NPFCC validated assumed knowledge, motivation, and organizational
barriers preventing the consistent monitoring of foster placement activity. The Kirkpatrick and
Kirkpatrick (2016) New World Model was leveraged to present recommendations based on
empirical findings and a plan for implementation with ongoing evaluation methods. The
procurement of a child placement management system was proposed to establish a cost-efficient
automated method to record, report, and analyze foster placement activity information on a
regular basis.
671,000. The public foster care system served a total of 671,000 youth in 2015
(USDHHS, 2016). 220,000. Over 220,000 foster youth across the United States experienced
placement instability in 2016 (Children’s Bureau, 2019; USDHHS, 2016). Combined, these
figures total over 890,000 justifications why foster placement agencies across the nation must
continue to enhance the quality of services provided to foster children and families. The
altruistic work and relentless passion of social workers may never erase the backgrounds of at-
risk youth they serve; however this innovation study is confirmation that foster care agencies do
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 114

possess the ability to leverage data collection and analysis to minimize performance gaps that
may potentially contribute to negative adulthood outcomes for former foster youth.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 115

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Side by side, Retrieved from
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/CT,US/RHI425217#RHI425217
U.S. Census Estimates Data (2016), State of Connecticut ACS Demographic and Housing,
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kmk
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families,
&, Children’s Bureau (2005). Child Welfare Outcomes 2002-2005: Report to Congress.
Retrieved from https://www.acf.hhs.giv/programs/cb/pubs/cwo05/index.htm
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families,
Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau (2016). Adoption
Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS), FY 2006 – 2016.
U.S. Federal Register, Vol. 75, No. 148, August 3, 2010, pp. 45628–45629.
Weiner, B. (1985). An attribution theory of achievement motivation and emotion.
Psychological Review, 92, 548–73.

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Weiss, R.S. (1994) Learning from Strangers: The Art and Methods of Qualitative Interview
Studies. The Free Press, New York.
Wigfield, A. & Eccles, J.S. (2000). Expectancy-value theory of achievement motivation.
Contemporary Educational Psychology 25: 68-81. doi:10.1006/ceps.1999.1015
Zlotnick, C., Tam, T. W., & Soman, L. A. (2012). Life course outcomes on mental and physical
health: The impact of foster care on adulthood. American Journal of Public Health,

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 124

APPENDIX A
Interview Protocol
Overview and Introduction
Thank you for your willingness to be interviewed as a part of this innovation study at
NPFCC. I wanted to begin by restating the purpose of this study and acknowledging your
autonomy during this activity. I am a doctoral student studying at the University of Southern
California Rossier School of Education. I’m conducting an innovation study on foster placement
disruption monitoring here at NPFCC. This research will evaluate the knowledge, motivation,
and organization needs required to develop and implement a tool to effectively monitor foster
placement disruption and its related causes. Information collected during my research is
confidential and will contribute to the assessment of ways to reduce foster placement disruption
in a non-profit setting.
You have been provided a written overview of this study, an informed consent paper, and
a permission to record document to ensure your transparency and understanding prior to
participation in this study. Have you read the overview of this study? Do you have any
questions for me? Have you signed the informed consent and permission to record documents?
By signing the informed consent document, you are allowing the usage of data collected during
this interview. Signing the permission to record document provides your specific consent to my
recording of our conversation today. Recording is important to ensure I capture your statements
accurately through audio transcription later. Do I have your permission to record this interview?
I will use a Sony digital recorder for this purpose. Recordings will be stored on a Dell Inspiron
15 5000 series laptop computer with multiple layer authentication security and the latest
Microsoft Windows Defender software for virus and spyware protection.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 125

Specific quotes from this interview, with your permission, may be highlighted within the
final report. Your identity will be confidential, as all data collected will be aggregated for
additional analysis. Please consider I may be obligated to report statements involving unlawful
activity or other unethical behavior to the appropriate authority having jurisdiction over the
matter. You may withdraw you consents provided and discontinue participation at any point
during our time together. Your participation is 100% voluntary. Inconsideration of your time,
my goal is to keep our session under 1 hour.
Do you have any questions for me before we transition to interview questions?

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 126

Interview
There are a set of fourteen questions prepared. However, your responses may prompt
additional inquiries as follow-up.
Let’s kick off our discussion.
1. Tell me a little bit about yourself,
2. How long have you worked for NPCC?
3. Are you a former foster child?
4. What are the reasons you decided to work here?
5. What do you see as the most significant causes of foster placement disruption?
6. Tell me about your role here and how it impacts the well-being and future of the children
in your care.
7. What kind of data do you have to help inform you about the frequency and causes of
foster placement disruption?
a. Probe: What do you see as the value in using this data to monitor the
frequency of foster child placement disruptions?
8. Walk me through how foster placement data is collected.
9. What data elements are collected?
10. How frequently is foster placement disruption data monitored?
11. How is foster placement disruption data currently documented?
12. How is foster placement information currently stored?
13. How easy or hard is it to use the data you currently have to be able to monitor foster care
displacement? Probe: What would make it easier?
a. Probe: What other kind of data would you need to be able to monitor foster care
displacement better?
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 127

b. Probe: How confident do you feel in using data for planning and analysis?
14. What kind of resources does the organization provide to support data collection and
analysis?
a. Probe: Are they adequate or are other resources needed?
15. How does NPFCC support you in your efforts to collect and analyze information about
foster placements and disruption?
a. Probe: What additional supports would you like to have?
16. What kinds of professional opportunities are provided by NPFCC to develop staff when
new processes are introduced?
17. What is the ultimate objective of the foster placement program?
Gratitude and Conclusion
Thank you very much for your time and participation today. Feel free to reach out to me
in the near future with any questions or concerns you may not have thought of during our session
today. Included at the bottom of the study overview is my cell number and email address. I will
respond to any email or missed call within 48 hours.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 128

APPENDIX B
ARTIFACTS AND DOCUMENTS
NPFCC senior staff will be asked to provide the following documents related to NPFCC
foster placement for analysis:
1) policies,
2) procedures,
3) training, and
4) budget documents

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 129

APPENDIX C
INFORMED CONSENT FOR NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA 90089

INFORMATION/FACTS SHEET FOR EXEMPT NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION MONITORING & REDUCTION: AN
INNOVATION STUDY

You are invited to participate in a research study. Research studies include only people who
voluntarily choose to take part. This document explains information about this study. You
should ask questions about anything that is unclear to you.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
This qualitative research study will focus on knowledge, motivation, and organizational needs to
promote the reduction of foster child placement disruption in a nonprofit setting. Information
collected will be anonymized and aggregated to develop evidence-driven solutions. The
population of focus for this study are the staff of the Non-Profit for Community Care (NPFCC),
a group of less than 15 adults.

PARTICIPANT INVOLVEMENT
If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to participate in an in-person 60-minute
audio-taped interview between July 22
nd
and August 17, 2019. You do not have to answer any
questions you don’t want to; if you don’t want to be taped, handwritten notes will be taken.

PAYMENT/COMPENSATION FOR PARTICIPATION
You will not receive any form of compensation for participation.

CONFIDENTIALITY
There will be no identifiable information obtained in connection with this study. Your name,
address or other identifiable information will not be collected. Data will not be labeled with any
personal identifying information, nor with a code that the research team can link to personal
identifying information (Anonymous). The anonymous data will be stored on a password
protected laptop to be retained at the discretion of the investigator.

The members of the research team and the University of Southern California’s Human Subjects
Protection Program (HSPP) may access the data. The HSPP reviews and monitors research
studies to protect the rights and welfare of research subjects.

INVESTIGATOR CONTACT INFORMATION
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 130

Principal Investigator William Hawks via email at WHawks@usc.edu or phone at (XXX)
XXX-XXXX or Faculty Advisor Cathy Krop at Krop@usc.edu.

IRB CONTACT INFORMATION
University of Southern California Institutional Review Board, 1640 Marengo Street, Suite 700,
Los Angeles, CA 90033-9269. Phone (323) 442-0114 or email irb@usc.edu.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 131

APPENDIX D
INFORMED CONSENT FOR NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH KEY INFORMATION
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA 90089

Informed Consent to take part
in a Human Research Study

KEY INFORMATION
A person who takes part in a research study is called a “research subject.” The use of “you” in
this consent form refers to you as the research subject. The study Investigator will be called
the “investigator” throughout this consent form.

The following is a short summary of this study to help you decide whether or not you should
participate. More detailed information is listed later on in this form.

Why am I being invited to take part in a research study?
We have invited you to take part in a research study because of your role/position at the Non-
Profit for Community Care (NPFCC).
What should I know about being in a research study?
• Someone will explain this research study to you.
• Whether or not you take part is up to you.
• You can choose not to take part.
• You can agree to take part and later change your mind.
• Your decision will not be held against you.
• You may discuss whether to participate with family, friends and/or your doctor.
• You can ask any questions before making a decision.

Why is this research being done?
This research study will focus on knowledge, motivation, and organizational (KMO) needs to
promote foster child placement disruption data monitoring and the usage of this data to inform
placement disruption reduction planning in a nonprofit setting.

How long will I take part in this research?
If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to participate in an in-person 60-minute
audio-taped interview between July 22
nd
and August 17
th
, 2019. You do not have to answer any
questions you don’t want to; if you don’t want to be taped, handwritten notes will be taken.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 132

Is there any way being in this study could be bad for me?
There are limited foreseen risk associated with participation in this study.

Will being in this study help me in any way?
There are no direct benefits to you from taking part in this research. We cannot promise any
benefits to others from your participation in this research.
What happens if I do not want to be in this research?
The purpose of a research study is to gather information. Participation in research is completely
voluntary. You can decide to participate or not to participate.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 133

University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA 90089

Informed Consent to take part
in a Human Research Study

KEY INFORMATION

DETAILED INFORMATION
To follow, please find more detailed information about this study than already provided above.

About this consent form
Please read this form carefully. It provides important information about participating in
research. You have the right to take time in making decisions about participating in this research.
If you have any questions about the research or any portion of this form, you can ask us at any
time. If you agree to participate in this research you will be asked to sign this form. A copy of
the signed form will be provided to you for your records.

Who can I talk to?
If you have questions, concerns, or complaints, or think the research has hurt you, talk to the
research team: Principal Investigator William Hawks via email at WHawks@usc.edu or phone
at (XXX) XXX-XXXX or Faculty Advisor Cathy Krop at Krop@usc.edu.

This research has been reviewed by the USC Institutional Review Board (IRB). If you wish
to speak with someone from the IRB, you may contact the IRB at (323) 442-0114, by email at
irb@usc.edu, or by mail at the following address:
USC Institutional Review Board (IRB)
1640 Marengo St., Suite 700
Los Angeles, CA 90033

The IRB is available between the hours of 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM, Monday to Friday. Contact
the IRB for any of the following:
• If your questions, concerns, or complaints are not being answered by the research
team,
• If you cannot reach the research team,
• If you want to talk to someone besides the research team,
• If you have questions about your rights as a research participant, or
• If you want to get information or provide input about this research.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 134

Participation is voluntary
We have invited you to take part in a research study because of your role/position at the Non-
Profit for Community Care (NPFCC). It is your choice whether or not to participate. If you
chose to participate, you may change your mind and leave the study at any time. Refusal to
participate or stopping your participation will involve no penalty or loss of benefits to which you
are otherwise entitled.

How many people will take part in this research?
About 15 people or less will take part in this research.

What can I expect if I take part in this research?
If you agree to take part in this study, you will be asked to participate in an in-person 60-minute
audio-taped interview between July 22
nd
and August 17
th
, 2019. You do not have to answer any
questions you don’t want to; if you don’t want to be taped, handwritten notes will be taken. Data
will not be labeled with any personal identifying information, nor with a code that the research
team can link to personal identifying information (anonymous). The anonymous data will be
stored on a password protected laptop to be retained at the discretion of the investigator.

What are the risks and possible discomforts?
There are limited foreseen risk associated with participation in this study.

Are there any benefits from being in this research study?
There are no direct benefits to you from taking part in this research. We cannot promise any
benefits to others from your participation in this research.

What happens if I say yes, but I change my mind later?
You can leave the research at any time. Your decisions will not be held against you.

If you withdraw from the study, you will no longer be able to participate in the study. No new
information will be collected from you by the study team. Your withdrawal has no effect on the
lawfulness of the data processing that occurred prior to your withdrawal.

Will I be compensated for participating in this research?
You will not be compensated for your participation in this research.

What will I have to pay for if I participate in this research?
No.

If I take part in this research, how will my privacy be protected? What
happens to the information you collect?
Information collected will be anonymized and aggregated. There will be no identifiable
information obtained in connection with this study. Your name, address or other identifiable
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 135

information will not be collected. Data will not be labeled with any personal identifying
information, nor with a code that the research team can link to personal identifying information
(anonymous). The anonymous data will be stored on a password protected laptop to be retained
at the discretion of the investigator.

Efforts will be made to limit the use and disclosure of your Personal Information, including
research study records, to people who are required to review this information. We cannot
promise complete confidentiality.

The members of the research team and the University of Southern California’s Human Subjects
Protection Program (HSPP) may access the data. The HSPP reviews and monitors research
studies to protect the rights and welfare of research subjects.

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 136

University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA 90089

Informed Consent to take part
in a Human Research Study

KEY INFORMATION

STATEMENT OF CONSENT

I have read (or someone has read to me) the information provided above. I have been given a
chance to ask questions. All my questions have been answered. By signing this form, I am
agreeing to take part in this study.

Name of Research Participant Signature Date Signed

Legally Authorized Representative

Name of Legally Authorized
Representative
Signature Date Signed

Person Obtaining Consent
I have personally explained the research to the participant and/or the participant’s legally
authorized representative using non-technical language. I have answered all the participant’s
questions. I believe that he/she understands the information described in this informed consent
and freely consents to participate.

Name of Person Obtaining Informed
Consent
Signature Date Signed

A Witness is Required When:
(1) the participant cannot see, read, write, or physically sign the consent form, or
(2) the Short Form method is used to obtain consent.
In these situations, the witness must sign and date the consent form.
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 137

If no witness is needed, leave this signature line blank.

Name of Witness Signature Date Signed

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 138

APPENDIX E
INFORMED CONSENT FOR NON-MEDICAL RESEARCH CONSENT TO INTERVIEW
AUDIO RECORDING
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
3470 Trousdale Pkwy, Los Angeles, CA 90089

Informed Consent to take part
in a Human Research Study

CONSENT TO INTERVIEW AUDIO RECORDING

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION MONITORING & REDUCTION: AN
INNOVATION STUDY

I understand that I will be audio recorded by the researcher to assist with the accuracy of
responses. I understand I have the right to refuse audio recording. I understand that members of
the research team and the University of Southern California’s Human Subjects Protection
Program (HSPP) may access the recording. The HSPP reviews and monitors research studies to
protect the rights and welfare of research subjects. This recording will be stored on a password
protected laptop to be retained at the discretion of the investigator

Please select one of the following options:

I consent to audio recording: Yes _______ No_______

Print Name: ___________________________________________

Sign Name: ____________________________________________

Date Signed: ___________________

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 139

APPENDIX F
RECRUITMENT EMAIL LETTER
Hello,

I'm Will Hawks, a Doctoral Candidate from the University of
Southern California. I am conducting a research study on Foster
Care Placement Disruption Monitoring & Reduction. You are
eligible to participate in this study. Participation is
voluntary. This qualitative research focuses on knowledge,
motivation, and organizational needs to promote the reduction
of foster child placement disruption in a nonprofit setting. If
you agree, you will be asked to participate in a one (1) hour
face to face interview with me.

Interviews will be completed August 7-9, 2019 at XXXX XXXXX
XXXX XXXX XXX (NPFCC Office). If you would like to participate,
please use this doodle tool to select your preferred interview
date & time out of slots available. Please contact me using the
information provided below with any inquiries or concerns you
may have.

Thank you,

William C. Hawks,
Doctoral Candidate
Email: Whawks@usc.edu
Doctor of Education | Organizational Change & Leadership
Rossier School of Education | University of Southern California

FOSTER CARE PLACEMENT DISRUPTION 140

APPENDIX G
RECRUITMENT EMAIL LETTER (REMINDER)

Good Morning,

This is a friendly reminder about the USC Study (Foster Care
Placement Disruption Monitoring and Reduction focus) interviews at
NPFCC this week (Aug 7-9). Your feedback is critical to capturing
the expertise and knowledge at NPFCC.

Using this doodle tool select an interview time/date option to
participate this week if you plan contribute to this study. Please
contact me with any questions/concerns you may have.

Thank you,

William C. Hawks,
Doctoral Candidate
Phone: XXX.XXX.XXXX
Email: Whawks@usc.edu
Doctor of Education | Organizational Change & Leadership
Rossier School of Education | University of Southern California

Abstract (if available)

Abstract Foster placement disruption occurs when a foster child is relocated for any reason after their initial placement. The public foster care system served a total of 671,000 youth in 2015 (USDHHS, 2016). In 2016, over 220,000 foster youth in the United States experienced placement disruption three or more times while in the foster system (USDHHS, 2016). Foster placement disruption contributes to adverse short-term and long-term outcomes for foster youth. This qualitative study used the Clark and Estes (2008) gap analysis framework to investigate senior staff knowledge, motivation, and organizational (KMO) influences to promote the monitoring and reduction of foster placement disruptions at a state licensed foster placement agency. The assessment of interview responses and documents collected validated assumed KMO barriers preventing the regular monitoring of foster placement disruption activity. The Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) New World Model was leveraged to present recommendations based on empirical findings and a plan for implementation with ongoing evaluation methods. The procurement of a child placement management system was proposed to establish a consistent cost-efficient method to record, report, and analyze foster placement activity information on a continuous basis.

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University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

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Asset Metadata

Creator Hawks, William C. (author)

Core Title Foster care placement disruption monitoring and reduction: an innovation study

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line)

Publication Date 04/21/2020

Defense Date 03/09/2020

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

Tag Adoption,at risk youth,Binti,Child abuse,child neglect,child placement management,child protection services,child safety,children and families,Community,crime prevention,endangered children,equal opportunity,Foster,foster care,foster care analysis,foster care analytics,foster care best practices,foster care enhancement,foster care evaluation,foster care experience,foster care gap analysis,foster care improvement,foster care innovation,foster care intelligence,foster care knowledge,foster care literature,foster care monitoring,foster care motivation,foster care organization,foster care placement evaluation,foster care policy,foster care practices,foster care software,foster care strategy,foster care system,foster care system empowerment,foster care system policy,foster care tools,foster care training,foster child,foster child academic success,foster child adulthood,foster child adversity,foster child barriers,foster child development,foster child empowerment,foster child equity,foster child experience,foster child homelessness,foster child inclusion,foster child placement data analysis,foster child placement reporting,foster child success,foster child trust,foster children,foster home,foster kid,foster outcomes,foster parent development,foster placement,foster placement beat practices,foster placement disruption,foster placement disruption reduction,foster placement instability,foster placement monitoring,foster placement stability,foster program learning,foster program staff,foster program success,foster system,foster system academic success,foster system analysis,foster system analytics,foster system best practices,foster system diversity,foster system experience,foster system gap analysis,foster system in the USA,foster system innovation,foster system intelligence,foster system leadership,foster system opportunities,foster system strategy,foster system technology,foster youth,foster youth adulthood,foster youth mentorship,foster youth outcomes,foster youth success,group home,Homeless children,Homelessness,homelessness prevention,kinship care,non profit,non profit empowerment,non profit foster care agency,non profit leadership,non profit skills gaps,OAI-PMH Harvest,orphan,performance analytics,performance improvement,performance innovation,performance strategy,placement disruption,placement disruption minimization,placement disruption rates,placement disruption reduction,qualitative research,reducing placement disruption rates,social work learning,social worker empowerment,social worker interviews,social worker skills,social worker skills gaps,social worker training,state child care,state foster system,US foster system

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Krop, Cathy (committee chair), Malloy, Courtney (committee member), Rhue, Lauren (committee member)

Creator Email whawks@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-286613

Unique identifier UC11673716

Identifier etd-HawksWilli-8293.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-286613 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-HawksWilli-8293.pdf

Dmrecord 286613

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Hawks, William C.

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 a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA