Transition-Age Youth in Out-of-Home Care: Predictors of Readiness Skills for Adulthood

• Main Author: Woltman, Heather Ann
• Other Authors: Hunsley, John
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa 2018
• Subjects: Child welfare; Transition readiness; Risk factors; Protective factors
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10393/37914; http://dx.doi.org/10.20381/ruor-22172

Objectives: Youth who age out of the child welfare system are among the most vulnerable group of young people entering adulthood today. Unlike their generational peers, foster youth lack the familial supports necessary to postpone major life decisions and gradually enter adulthood. Although there are notable differences between Canadian and American child welfare contexts, young people exiting both systems experience a compressed transition and are tasked with quickly managing adult responsibilities. Few studies have examined pre-transition factors that correlate with adolescents’ readiness skills prior to exiting out-of-home care. Methods: This dissertation presents two studies that examine factors associated with transition-age foster youths’ readiness skills for adulthood. In the first study I used cross-sectional data (n = 278) from Illinois, United States to assess the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on youths’ independent living skills and life domain functioning. I hypothesized that exposure to ACEs would predict lower transition readiness, and that trauma-related stress symptoms and strengths would moderate this association. In the second study I used cross-sectional data (n = 1,026) from Ontario, Canada to identify youth-, placement-, and agency-level factors that predicted youths’ self-care and financial literacy skills. I hypothesized that factors most proximal to individuals would impact readiness (e.g., academic performance, self-esteem). Results: Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that ACEs predicted lower transition readiness. Traumatic stress symptoms moderated these relations, and engagement in risky behaviours partially mediated these relations (study 1). Hierarchical linear modelling indicated that agency-level differences did not impact readiness. In contrast, general linear modelling indicated that a subset of individual- and placement-level factors did impact readiness. Specifically, higher academic performance, higher self-esteem, a greater number of developmental assets, older age, an older age of entry into care, a greater number of placement transitions, and kinship care placement predicted higher transition readiness. A greater number of socioemotional difficulties, a greater number of long-term mental and/or physical health conditions, and a lower frequency of problematic parenting practices combined with a higher frequency of effective parenting practices predicted lower transition readiness (study 2). Conclusion: Findings illustrated that although ACEs exposure predicts lower adult readiness among transition-age youth, whether youth engage in risky behaviours and possess developmental strengths may be better predictors of their readiness to age out of care (study 1). Findings also illustrated that a subset of individual- and placement-level factors predict self-sufficiency skills among transition-age youth (study 2).