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Family Preservation and Reunification Programs

Child welfare policy in the United States is based on the assumption that strengthening and preserving families serves the long-term welfare and safety interests of children. Family preservation and reunification programs are short-term and intensive interventions intended to help parents whose children are in imminent danger of abuse or neglect. They attempt to stabilize a crisis, teach families new problem solving skills, and break the cycle of family dysfunction. Their primary goal is to remove the risk of harm so that the child does not have to be permanently removed from the home. This entry discusses the history of family preservation programs and the services provided by them, as well as debates about the effectiveness of such programs.

History of Family Preservation

Historically, the child welfare system has struggled to reconcile the sometimes competing goals of child protection and family unity. With the passage of the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-272), the goal of family preservation became the guiding principle. The 1980 act, sometimes referred to as the “Reunification Act,” requires that states, as a condition of receiving federal child welfare funding, make every “reasonable effort” to rehabilitate abusive parents and keep families together.

The Family Preservation and Support Services Act of 1993 (PL. 103-66) and the 1997 Adoption and Safe Families Act (P.L. 105-89) changed and clarified a number of policies established in the Reunification Act, subtly moving federal policy away from preservation as the overriding concern. Although family unity remains an important long-term goal, the 1997 law explicitly established child safety as a “paramount concern” and encouraged expedited permanency decisions for abused children.

Social Services Provided

Family preservation and reunification programs are based on the assumption that parents whose children have been removed from the home, or who face the possibility that their children could be removed, will be open to receiving services and learning new behaviors. Specific programs vary by state, but typical services provided include behavioral training for parents (including appropriate and inappropriate discipline techniques), child development issues, conflict resolution, and various other household issues related to family stress, neglect, and abuse (e.g., budgeting, housekeeping). States may also coordinate referrals on any of a number of other needs, including medical or psychological treatment, emergency financial assistance, housing information and assistance, day-care assistance, and substance abuse treatment.

The oldest and most thoroughly researched family preservation program is Homebuilders, which began in Washington State in 1974 and has now been implemented in various locals across the country. The Homebuilder model calls for small caseloads (typically two to three families per caseworker), intensive home-based services (10-20 hours per week for 4-6 weeks), and 24-hour-per-day availability of caseworkers. Like other preservation and reunification services, Homebuilders is based on the assumption that families in the midst of a crisis are amenable to change. In addition to child protection and family preservation, the goals of Homebuilders include providing social support; improved family functioning, school, and job performance; improved living conditions; and increased adult and child self-esteem.

Debate about Family Preservation Programs

There is considerable debate about whether family preservation programs are effective in successfully rehabilitating abusive parents. Proponents of the family preservation model maintain that children can be safely left in their homes if their communities offer vulnerable families the social services and training they need. Other defenders of family preservation assert that needy families need to be protected from the strong arm of the state. The real problem facing abusive families, they argue, is lack of resources. In less serious cases of abuse, where poor, young, stressed, and needy parents are likely to benefit from social services, family reunification should be the goal, and supportive intervention should be the means to achieving that end.

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