Conceptualizing effective foster parent mentor programs: A participatory planning process

J. Jay Miller, Kalea Benner, Natalie Pope, Tamikia Dumas, Larry J. Damron, Melissa Segress, Melissa Slone, Shawndaya Thrasher and Chunling Niu

Children and Youth Services Review, 2017, vol. 73, issue C, 411-418

Abstract: Mentor programs have been recognized as an integral tool in the child welfare services array. However, there are few conceptual frameworks for planning and developing mentor programs for a key constituency group: foster parents. This study employed Concept Mapping (CM) with a convenience sample of 59 foster parents in one southeastern state. CM is a participatory, mixed-method research approach that utilizes non-metric multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analyses to analyze qualitative data. As a result, pictorial representations of the data are generated. Results yielded seven (7) distinct clusters: Ongoing Supports, Matching Practices, and Program Evaluation, among others. Participants viewed the Recruitment cluster as most pertinent and most important for mentor programs. Contrariwise, Program Evaluation and Matching clusters were viewed as least feasible and least important, respectively. After a review of pertinent literature, this paper explicates CM methodology as applied to the current study, reports results, and discusses lessons learned as they apply to child welfare research and practice.

Keywords: Foster parents; Mentorship; Concept Mapping (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:cysrev:v:73:y:2017:i:c:p:411-418

DOI: 10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.01.004

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