The impact of mental health issues, substance use, and exposure to victimization on pregnancy rates among a sample of youth with past-year foster care placement

Victoria H. Coleman-Cowger, Binta Alleyne Green and Trenette T. Clark

Children and Youth Services Review, 2011, vol. 33, issue 11, 2207-2212

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to (1) compare youth entering substance abuse treatment with and without a history of foster care placement to determine any differences in mental health, substance use, and exposure to victimization, and (2) determine if mental health, substance use, and/or exposure to victimization predict past pregnancy among the sample with a history of foster care placement. The pooled dataset consisted of 17,124 adolescents (12–17years of age) who completed the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs at intake for substance abuse treatment in 2009. Of these, 366 (2.1%) reported having been in foster care in the past year. When compared with a non-foster care sample, the foster care sample reported significantly higher internal mental distress scores, behavior complexity scores, and general victimization scores, after controlling for race, gender, and level of care. Problems associated with substance use did not differ between groups, though regular tobacco use was present at a higher rate in the foster care sample. Multivariate logistic regression results revealed that, within the foster care sample, internal mental distress and gender predicted past pregnancy. There may be room for intervention within substance abuse treatment centers for youth with a history of foster care, who may be at risk for pregnancy if their levels of internal mental distress are high.

Keywords: Foster care; Pregnancy; Substance use; Victimization; Mental health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:33:y:2011:i:11:p:2207-2212

DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.07.007

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