Reunification In Foster Care

Process of Reunification. The process for reunification is complex and time consuming. The first step that occurs in the reunification process after the placement of the child in the foster care system is to develop a permanency plan as mandated by each state. This plan sets forth the process the agency and the families must complete in order to have the child return home. After the child has been in foster care for 15-22 months, the law mandates a request from the courts for parental rights to be terminated. Although the state is mandated to request termination of parental rights, they are also required to work towards bringing parents and children back together. During the 15 month period the child welfare agency will work with the family …show more content…
They suffer from impulsive tendencies, deficits in attention, and hyperactivity. Children in the foster care system also tend to lack successful development of self-esteem which can be linked to the development of certain behavioral problems. The primary behavioral issues observed with foster children following reunification are ones related to internal and external behavior. Based on the type of measurement tool used by one of the relevant studies, the specific areas of behavior that were assessed in the child include, but are not limited to, the levels of anxiousness, depression, aggression, hyper activeness, noncompliance, attention problems, social withdrawal, destructive behavior, and social problems (Bellamy, …show more content…
The main result of the research conducted lead to the discovery that although children placed in foster care tend to develop more behavioral issues overall when compared to the general population of children, the majority of children placed in foster care that were eventually reunified with their families ended up having significantly lower rates of behavioral issues as compared to children that entered the foster care system and never became reunified. This was discovered after further more in-depth research was conducted that was done so through building on and expanding previously conducted studies (Bellamy, 2008).
There was evidence in the beginning research that showed a link between reunified foster care children and high rates of behavioral issues. Once further research was conducted this was shown not to be true overall. In contrast, children reunified with their families ended up having less behavioral issues if most problems in place prior to reunification were resolved (Bellamy,