Aging Out of Foster Care and Support Services

Youth aging out of the foster care system face many difficulties in transitioning to adulthood. In this exploratory study, the strategies used by foster care social work case managers to help youth successfully age out of foster care were investigated. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory provided the framework through which the research questions were explored. Eight social work case managers experienced with aging-out foster youth participated in qualitative interviews, in which they were asked to define success for youth who age out of foster care and describe the effectiveness of existing strategies for improving the transition into adulthood among youth emancipated from foster care. Thematic analysis of qualitative interview data revealed seven themes: (a) role, career in foster care field, and accomplishment plan; (b) importance of services; (c) early enrollment in emancipation programs; (d) aging out obstacles, successes, and housing concerns; (e) empowerment and self-advocacy skills; (f) independent living program skills, social support, and outside resources; and (g) perception of the foster care system. Findings suggested a need for long-term, tailored, supportive services for youth as they enter adulthood. Recommendations include providing housing resources to prevent homelessness among emancipated youth and providing support to professionals to identify adequate resources for youth aging out of foster care. The implications for positive social change include using the findings to teach foster parents and social work case managers how to prepare and educate youth to successfully transition into adulthood by ensuring availability of critical services and housing resources before emancipation