Quality of life among children and adolescents in foster family homes

Although well-being has become one of the three primary outcomes in child welfare for two decades, quality of life, a vital component of subjective well-being, has been largely ignored. This study examined quality of life and associated factors in a random sample of 225 children and adolescents placed in foster family homes. Quality of life was assessed using Cantril's self-anchoring ladder and logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with quality of life. The mean Cantril ladder score was 7.52 and 80.5% were classified as having a good quality of life. Factors associated with good quality of life included better overall health status (odds ratio [OR], 1.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12-2.47), close relationship with foster parent (OR, 4.51; 95% CI, 1.78-11.43), and a higher number of visitation types (OR, 1.38; 95% CI, 1.05-1.83). Other placement-related factors (e.g., number of placements and history of previous removal) were not significantly associated with quality of life. Overall, the majority of children and adolescents in foster family homes reported a good quality of life. Efforts that target better health, close relationship with their caregivers, and more visitations among children and adolescents in foster family homes may also improve their quality of life.