Foster parents in the child welfare system occupy a unique position in our culture. While expected to parent and provide safe, loving, and normative family experiences to a child removed from her/his family of origin, they are, simultaneously, expected to remember that they are not the child's biological parent. Increasingly, foster parents are being asked to care for children with severe disabilities that sometimes precipitate an early death. How do foster parents experience the death of a foster child with disabilities in their care? Semi-structured interviews with bereaved foster parents revealed foster parents' self-identification as “parents” who shared “parent/child” relationships with foster children whom they considered to be part of their families. The foster parents' experience of the death of the foster child with a disability was reported comparable to the death of a birth child, however, their identification as legitimate grievers was often disenfranchised by others.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AndersonG. R.GurdinP., & ThomasA. (1989). Dual disenfranchisement: Foster parenting children with AIDS. In DokaK. J. (Ed.), Disenfranchised grief: Recognizing the hidden sorrow (pp. 43–53). Toronto, Ontario: Lexington Books.
2.
BowlbyJ. (1982). Attachment and loss: Retrospect and prospect. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 52(4), 664–678.
3.
BrownJ., & CalderP. (2000). Concept mapping the needs of foster parents. Child Welfare, LXXIX(6), 729–746.
4.
CaracelliV. J., & GreeneJ. C. (1997). Crafting mixed-method evaluation designs. New Directions for Evaluation, 74, 19–31.
5.
CharmazK. (1983). The grounded theory method: An explication and interpretation. In EmersonR. M. (Ed.), Contemporary Field Research (pp. 109–126). Boston: Little & Brown.
6.
CresswellJ. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions.Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.
7.
DokaK. J. (Ed.). (1989). Disenfranchised grief: Recognizing the hidden sorrow.Toronto, Ontario: Lexington Books.
8.
DokaK. J. (2002a). Introduction. In DokaK. J. (Ed.), Disenfranchised grief: New directions, challenges, and strategies for practice (pp. 5–22). Champaign, IL: Research Press.
9.
DokaK. J. (2002b). How we die: Stigmatized death and disenfranchised grief. In DokaK. J. (Ed.), Disenfranchised grief: New directions, challenges, and strategies for practice (pp. 323–336). Champaign, IL: Research Press.
10.
EdelsteinS. B.BurgeD., & WatermanJ. (2001). Helping foster parents cope with separation, loss, and griefChild Welfare, LXXX(1), 5–25.
11.
FultonR., & SchwartzG. (1993). Partners in care: Responding to the needs of children, Executive summary.Toronto, Ontario: The Ontario Association of Residences Treating Youth.
12.
GardnerH. (1996). The concept of family: Perceptions of children in family foster care. Child Welfare, LXXV(2), 161–182.
13.
HughesR. C., & RycusJ. S. (1998). Developmental disabilities and child welfare.Washington, DC: C.W.L.A. Press.
14.
ItensonD. (1993). Children with Developmental Disabili***lies in Children's Aid Society Care Project.Toronto, Ontario: Government of Ontario.
15.
KlassD. (1997). The deceased child in the psychic and social worlds of bereaved parents during the resolution of grief. Death Studies, 21(2), 147–175.
16.
LindemannE. (1977). Symptomatology and management of acute grief. In MonatA. & LazarusR. (Eds.), Stress and coping: An anthology (pp. 334–348). New York: Columbia University Press.
17.
MactavishJ. B.MahonM. J., & LutfiyyaZ. M. (2000). “I can speak for myself”: Involving individuals with intellectual disabilities as research participants. Mental Retardation, 38(3), 216–227.
18.
McCrackenK. (1988). The long interview.New York: Sage Publications.
19.
MeagherD. K. (1989). The counsellor and the disenfranchised griever. In DokaK. J. (Ed.), Disenfranchised grief: Recognizing the hidden sorrow (pp. 313–328). Toronto, Ontario: Lexington Books.
20.
MiddletonW., & RaphaelB. (1992). Bereavement. In PaykelE. S. (Ed.), Handbook of affective disorders (pp. 619–633). New York: The Guildford Press.
21.
Moulton MiloE. (1997). Maternal responses to the life and death of a child with a developmental disability: A story of hope. Death Studies, 21(5), 443–476.
22.
MurphyS. A.JohnsonC.CainK. C.Das GuptaA.DimondM.LohanJ. (1998). Broad-spectrum group treatment for parents bereaved by the violent deaths of their 12–28 year old children: A randomized control trial. Death Studies, 22(3), 209–236.
23.
MurphyS. A.Das GuptaA.CainK. C.JohnsonL. C.LohanJ.WuL. (1999). Changes in parents' mental distress after the violent death of an adolescent or young adult child: A longitudinal perspective analysis. Death Studies, 23(2), 129–159.
24.
OsterweisM.SolomonF., & GreenM. (Eds.). (1984). Bereavement: Reactions, consequences, and care.Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
25.
Powell-CopeG. M. (1995). The experiences of gay couples affected by HIV infection. Qualitative Health Research, 5(1), 36–62.
26.
RandoT. A. (1985). Bereaved parents: Particular difficulties, unique factors, and treatment issues. Social Work, 30(1), 19–23.
27.
RaphaelB., & MiddletonW. (1987). Current state of research in the field of bereavement. Israel Journal of Psychiatry Relationship Science, 24(1), 5–32.
28.
RodwellM. K. (1998). Social work constructivist research.New York & London: Garland Publishing, Inc.
29.
SchwabR. (1998). A child's death and divorce: Dispelling the myth. Death Studies, 22(5), 445–468.
30.
SoricelliB. A., & Lorenz UtechC. (1985). Mourning the death of a child: The family and group processes. Social Work, 30(5), 429–434.
31.
SteinhauerP. D. (1991). The least detrimental alternative: A systematic guide to case planning and decision making for children in care.Toronto, Ontario: University of Toronto Press.
32.
StraussA., & CorbinJ. (1998). Basics of qualitative research (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
33.
ThompsonA. H., & NewmanS. C. (1995). Mortality in a child welfare population: Implications for policy. Child Welfare, LXXIV(4), 843–857.
34.
TrocméN.MacLaurinB.FallonB.DaciukJ.BillingsleyD.TourignyM. (2001). Canadian incidence study of reported child abuse and neglect: Final report.Ottawa, Ontario: Health Canada.
35.
WilsonL., & ConroyJ. (1999). Satisfaction of children in out of home care. Child Welfare, LXXVIII(91), 53–69.
