A RETROSPECTIVE QUALITATIVE STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF BIOLOGICAL CHILDREN’S PARTICIPATION IN FOSTER FAMILIES

Abstract

With Singapore’s government continuing to advocate for family-based fostering for children in care, the number of registered foster families are at a record high. This trend is notable as fostering does not merely affect the foster child in question, but also all members in the family. However, research and foster care services tend to focus on foster children and their parents, with little to no attention on foster siblings—the biological children of foster parents. As such, this retrospective exploratory study aims to understand in-depth the experiences of how biological children of foster parents participate in the home, and the psychosocial impacts of their involvement in the fostering process. Using a procedural conceptual framework adapting concepts from Mayne et al.’s (2018) hierarchical model of participation rights and Brookes et al.’s (2007) framework of role negotiation, this study seeks to examine the lived experiences of foster siblings as reported by adult biological children. In-depth semi-structured interviews using open-ended questions were conducted with six study participants about their experiences retrospectively. Results reflected that foster siblings not only participate and negotiate roles in the family, but also are impacted by their participation in various positive and negative ways. The ways they respond by exercising their agency in light of these impacts and the constraints they experience were also explored. Ultimately, these findings have possible implications on social work practice—bringing light to the possible gaps overlooked in practice and policy for foster siblings and their families.