Cheung, S. (2007).
The impact of foster care
placement on foster youth's involvement with law
enforcement. A research paper submitted in partial
satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Master in Social
Welfare, University of
California, Los
Angeles.
This
study examines how the placements of foster youth in areas with
high risk for criminal activities (as measured by police
incidents of crime, active gang territories, poverty level,
number of immigrant residents and number of transient residents)
are related to foster youth's involvement with juvenile
delinquent activities.
Method:
Data from a questionnaire survey of 71 foster children receiving
services from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and
Family Services and neighborhood demographic characteristics
from the Los Angeles Police Department and the 2000 US Census
were analyzed using logistic regression models.
Results:
The findings demonstrated that males are about 3 times more
likely to be in trouble with law enforcement than females in the
foster care system.
However, the study did not find significant
associations between the types of placement and neighborhood
characteristics with foster youth's involvement with law
enforcements.
Conclusion:
Despite the enormous risks associated with foster youth residing
in high risk environments and delinquent behavior, there is a
lack of research and understanding on this vulnerable
population. To
ensure the safety of foster youth, the child welfare and
juvenile justice systems must place more attention on foster
youth at risk of crossing over to the delinquency
system.
