Introduction
On June 7 and 10, 2021, the Children’s Bureau and the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) assembled experts virtually to discuss findings from the Building Co-Regulation Capacity to Support Positive Development for Youth with Foster Care Experience report. The convening and report build from a body of work that describes how self-regulation can be applied as a framework for promoting health and well-being for youth through ’co-regulation’, which includes caring, consistent, & responsive relationships; co-creation of supportive environments; and intentional and developmentally-informed day-to-day interactions. Co-regulation approaches are aligned with current efforts within the child welfare system to support older youth such as normalcy, prudent parenting, and relational permanency as well as trauma-informed care. Convening participants included child welfare program directors, researchers with expertise in self-regulation and child development, federal staff, foster parents, and therapists, with several attendees having lived experience in the child welfare system.
Purpose
The purpose of this convening was to discuss findings from a project examining co-regulation for older youth in or transitioning out of foster care, and to identify next steps for advancing research and creating practice change in the field. Facilitators shared the report with participants ahead of the convening to allow them time to review and reflect on the findings.
Key Findings and Highlights
Participants reflected on the implications of the findings from the literature review and program scan. When discussing the skills and competencies that should be targeted by co-regulation approaches, participants noted that foundational skills (e.g., stress management and emotion regulation) are critical and may sometimes be overlooked by the child welfare system, which often focuses on future orientation and identity development. Additionally, to effectively develop youths’ foundational skills, caring adults need to consider their voice and experiences.
Meeting participants identified opportunities for strengthening co-regulation, including:
- Start by supporting the adults who work with youth.
- Consider settings beyond child welfare.
- Listen to how youth want to be supported.
- Utilize everyday opportunities to enact co-regulation.
- Embed co-regulation into the child welfare culture.
- Focus on small steps to recognize progress.
Recommendations
- Practice recommendations:
- Collaborate with youth to create opportunities to meaningfully incorporate their voice in decisions and promote their sense of agency.
- Support youths’ connections with biological families and kin, including supporting kinship care providers.
- Support large-scale messaging promoting co-regulation within the child welfare system and across other systems.
- Provide comprehensive co-regulation training for foster parents, birth parents, kinship care providers, caseworkers, and staff working in residential settings.
- Research recommendations:
- Address the gaps in knowledge of co-regulation needs and strengths in co-regulation approaches for those who experience the greatest disparities within the child welfare system (Black Americans and American Indians/Alaskan Natives).
- Include special populations in co-regulation research, including youth with disabilities, those who identify as LGBTQ, and those who are parents.
- Identify and evaluate the use of specific co-regulation strategies in day-to-day interactions, including peer mentoring.
Citation
Murray, D.W., Sepulveda, K., & Rackers, H. (2021). Building Co-Regulation Capacity to Support Positive Development for Youth with Foster Care Experience: Convening Summary. OPRE Report #2021-235 Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Glossary
- Self-regulation:
- The act of managing cognition and emotion to enable goal-directed actions, such as organizing behavior, controlling impulses, and solving problems constructively.
- Co-regulation:
- The supportive process by which caring adults and peers promote positive youth development through Caring, Consistent, & Responsive Relationships; the Co-Creation of Supportive Environments; and Intentional and Developmentally-Informed Day-to-Day Interactions.