UC Irvine

The practice of giving youth a voice in their dependency cases and the precise age at which this should be done, is heavily debated upon. However, very little empirical research exists to support the different notions about youth’s rights, responsibilities and burdens that come with giving them such a voice. The present study investigated how youth’s placement within family networks – an important predictor of youth’s well-being in out-of-home care – shape their placement preferences. Specifically, we investigated if youth prefer placements with kin and/or siblings when in out-of-home care. We also investigated if placement preferences vary as a function of youth being younger versus older than the age cut-off for legal competency or age at which youth are asked about their preferences in some states (i.e. 12 years). Data from a national survey (NSCAW) were used in which foster youth were asked a close-ended and an open-ended question (ages 6 to 18 years, N= 1565) about their placement preferences . Binary and Multinomial Logistic Regressions revealed that placement type had robust associations with placement preferences, youth consistently preferred kin over non-kin foster families. Sibling presence had a weaker association with youth’s placement preferences. Finally, the associations of placement type and sibling presence with placement preferences were mostly similar across youth younger than 12 years and those 12 and older (the age cut-off for legal competency). Contributions to the debate surrounding asking youth about their placement preferences in dependency cases and relevant policy implications for child welfare have been discussed.