Draws on interviews with children, birth parents, foster carers, and social workers to explore some of the benefits and pitfalls of foster care. Interview respondents asserted that, in retrospect, coming into care was the best solution to their situation, favored maintaining ties and involvement with birth families, and children often had a…

This article describes the Interagency Planning and Support Project, which aimed to improve coordination among agencies serving young children with disabilities and their families by integrating disparate service documents and planning processes. Analysis of Collaborative Support Plan data on 34 families shows the approach was successful in…

A family-focused intervention model was implemented with 16 families having young children (birth to 3 years) with moderate or severe disabilities. Individualized Family Service Plans were formulated and implemented, resulting in high levels of parental satisfaction, accelerated rates of progress by the children, and acquisition of functional…

Meta-analysis was used to review 56 programs designed to promote family wellness and prevent child maltreatment to determine program effectiveness and identify positive factors. Intensive family preservation programs with high levels of participant involvement, an empowerment/strengths-based approach, and a component of social support had higher…

A study assessed the effect of family-centered early intervention services on 47 children and their families during a 12-month period. During family-centered intervention, children's developmental gains were equivalent to their rate of development prior to intervention. The intervention also did not reduce parental stress or enhance family…

This article discusses family-centered functional therapy, a model of practice for children with motor dysfunction based on tenets derived from family-centered philosophy and dynamic systems theory. This model stipulates that parents must be included in the identification of functional goals. Positive results of pilot work with 12 children are…

This study re-examined the ability of intensive family preservation services (IFPS) to prevent out-of-home placements of children in abusive or neglectful families. A retrospective, population-based design was used. The sample comprised a statewide, six-year, archival population of high-risk child protective services children. The study ensured a…

Recent Government policy has advocated universal support services for parents, including a national telephone helpline (for example, Department for Education and Skills, 2003). The Home Office funded just such a helpline--Parentline Plus--as part of the "Supporting Families" initiative. The efficiency and effectiveness of this service in…

This paper is a draft of Chapter 8 of a planned book, "Preschool and Jobs: Human Development as Economic Development, and Vice Versa". This book analyzes early childhood programs' effects on regional economic development. Four early childhood programs are considered: (1) universally accessible preschool for four-year-olds of similar…

"Success for All" is a comprehensive reform model, which applies cooperative learning, tutoring, family support services, and extensive professional development to help high-poverty schools succeed with their pupils. A review of research on "Success for All" with African American students focuses on evidence that the model reduces the achievement…

The authors examined the effects of antipoverty programs on children's cumulative poverty-related risk and the relationship between cumulative poverty-related risk and child outcomes among low-income families. Samples included 419 children ages 3-10 years in the New Hope program and 759 children ages 2-9 years in the Minnesota Family …

AISD student and parent participants in both the INVEST and Positive Families programs were asked to participate in an anonymous survey regarding their experiences of the 4-part workshop following completion of the final class. Aggregated results for quantitative survey items are summarized for the 2006-2007 program year.

Multi-component interventions for conduct disorder target several contexts of a child's life (e.g., both home and school environments) and are generally more effective than single-component behavioral interventions. Whether the multi-component approach is cost-effective remains an unanswered question. This article analyzes two decades of data from…

This report provides a detailed examination of the various federal programs for children and families and outlines ways in which the United States Congress and Executive Branch could make these programs work better. Intricate and often overlapping goals and actions are typical of the Congressional committees and Executive Branch departments that…

The Ounce of Prevention Fund is a public-private partnership which promotes the well-being of children and adolescents by working with families, communities, and policymakers. Following a letter from the Fund's directors reiterating that prevention programs save scarce resources, this report updates several prevention programs funded by this…