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Matching children with foster carers: A literature review

Matching in family foster care is a form of complex decision-making influenced by more than case factors alone. Organizational, contextual, and decision-maker factors also contribute to the process. This scoping review has synthesized the empirical literature on matching decisions in family foster c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Children and youth services review 2017-02, Vol.73, p.257-265
Main Authors: Zeijlmans, Kirti, López, Mónica, Grietens, Hans, Knorth, Erik J.
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Matching in family foster care is a form of complex decision-making influenced by more than case factors alone. Organizational, contextual, and decision-maker factors also contribute to the process. This scoping review has synthesized the empirical literature on matching decisions in family foster care. The 12 included studies reveal that a diverse, broad range of case factors is considered during matching. Organizational factors can limit practitioners' ability to choose a desired placement. Furthermore, policy-related influences affect matching practices, as do personal viewpoints of decision-makers. We conclude that matching in foster care is a very complex process. Two interrelated topics can guide future research: outcomes (knowledge of case factors when making matching decisions) and processes (understanding the different organizational, decision-maker, and external influences that might hinder or promote good matching practice). Bringing both together in one comprehensive model could help to improve matching practice. •Matching in foster care is complex and uncertain, making research very challenging.•A broad range of factors influence matching, and most are intertwined.•There are major gaps in our knowledge on all aspects of the Decision-Making Ecology.•There is an urgent need for a comprehensive and in-depth model on matching.
ISSN:0190-7409
1873-7765
DOI:10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.12.017