Article

The Family Journal: Counseling and

Therapy for Couples and Families
Parenting Behaviors and Parental Stress 2023, Vol. 31(1) 95-102
© The Author(s) 2022
Article reuse guidelines:
Among Foster Parents sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/10664807221104119
journals.sagepub.com/home/tfj

Rocio Lopez1, Morgan E. Cooley1 , Heather M. Thompson1

and Jennifer Newquist2

Abstract
While associations between child behavior, parenting behaviors, and foster parent stress have been established, a more
nuanced understanding of the relationship between parenting behaviors and parental stress in foster parents is needed.
This study included a convenience sample of 65 licensed foster caregivers from across the United States to address the
following research question: is there an association between foster parenting behaviors and parental stress? Separate models
were run for (a) adaptive parenting behaviors (involvement, positive parenting) as it relates to parenting stress and (b) mal-
adaptive parenting behaviors (poor monitoring/supervision, inconsistent discipline, and corporal punishment) and parental
stress. Results indicated that higher levels of parental involvement with children were associated with lower levels of parental
stress. For maladaptive parenting behaviors, it was identified that more inconsistent discipline and higher endorsement of
corporal punishment as a discipline strategy were associated with higher levels of stress, however, poor monitoring was
not found to be associated with levels of stress in this model. Results support the importance of training foster parents
in positive parenting strategies or intervening with foster parents who may endorse more negative forms of behavior
modification.

Keywords
foster parenting, foster parent stress, foster care, foster parent behaviors

Foster parenting is immensely challenging for a variety of
reasons (Adams et al., 2018; Cooley et al., 2017), yet child
behaviors are particularly challenging for foster parents
(Cooley et al., 2015; Hebert & Kulkin, 2018; Octomon et al.,
2014). Due to the circumstances that led to the removal from
their birth parents or primary caregivers (i.e., substantiated
abuse and/or neglect deemed too severe to remain in the
home), children in foster care often exhibit a high frequency
and intensity of behavioral problems (Gabler et al., 2018).
Researchers have also identified that the complexity and
severity of foster youth behavior problems has been increasing
over time (Goemans et al., 2016; Goemans et al., 2015).
Child welfare professionals and foster care parents typically
expect children’s behavior problems will improve in their
foster care placement as a result of the warm, nurturing, and
skilled parenting provided by the trained foster parents
(Vanschoonlandt et al., 2013). However, increased behavior
problems often exhibited by children in foster care can put
foster parents at increased risk for parental stress (Gabler et al.,
2014). Other researchers have similarly found that persistent
behavioral problems can diminish foster mothers’ effective par-
enting techniques and increase parental stress (Vanderfaeillie
et al., 2012). In turn, increased parental stress in foster care
parents is associated with placement disruption (Crum, 2010),
which places children in foster care at further risk for increasingly
poor behavioral and mental health outcomes. The role of foster
parent stress should be better understood, particularly consider-
ing that foster caregiver well-being is less frequently examined
in foster care research (Ahn et al., 2017). The current study
seeks to fill this gap in the literature by examining a model for
parental stress in foster caregivers.
Foster Parent Stress
Deater-Deckard (1998) defined parental stress as “the aversive
psychological reaction to the demands of being a parent”
(p. 315). Parental stress has a reciprocal relationship with
child behaviors, which is particularly salient for foster care pop-
ulations where child behavior problems are more prevalent
(Raviv et al., 2010). Vanderfaeillie et al. (2013) found that
while foster parent perceptions of poorer child behavior were
1
Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work, Florida Atlantic University,
Boca Raton, FL, United States
2
Human Development and Family Studies, Stephen F. Austin University,
Nacogdoches, Texas, United States
Corresponding Author:
Morgan E. Cooley, Phyllis and Harvey Sandler School of Social Work, Florida
Atlantic University, 777 Glades Road, SO 314, Boca Raton, FL 33431.
Email: cooleym@fau.edu
96 The Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families 31(1)
associated with higher stress, foster parent reported stress was
also associated with ineffective and maladaptive parenting
responses. Wilson et al. (2000) noted that foster parents can
experience stress pileup, given the roles, responsibilities, and
needs they must balance in caring a foster child. One study
found that over 20% of foster parents reported parental stress
in the clinical range, and notably, child emotional and behavio-
ral difficulties were indicated as a significant source of stress
(Harding et al., 2018).
Foster parent stress presents a potentially significant concern
as it might impact their well-being or even the outcomes of
youth in their care. As noted earlier, foster parent stress is asso-
ciated with placement disruption, as well as reductions in foster
parents’ self-efficacy, making them feel less adequate in their
role (Whenan et al., 2009). Consequently, foster parents may
not be satisfied in their caregiving role, and thus experience
reduced desire to continue providing out-of-home care
(Whenan et al., 2009). Lohaus et al. (2018) expressed
concern that consistent levels of stress may negatively impact
the foster parents’ interactions with youth in their care.
As such, exploring the connection between parental stress and
foster parenting behavior appears critical.
Foster Parent Behaviors
In their study of foster parent-child dyads, Fuentes et al. (2015)
identified rigid control, harsh punishment, inconsistent disci-
pline, and parental negativity as ineffective and maladaptive
parenting behaviors. Conversely, they defined adaptive and
positive parenting behaviors as those demonstrating expres-
sions of warmth, clear communication of expectations of
behavior, and appropriate consequences. The researchers iden-
tified that children whose foster parents used primarily mal-
adaptive parenting behaviors exhibited more problematic
behaviors (including both internalizing and externalizing symp-
toms), while children whose foster parents reported using
higher levels of adaptive parenting exhibited more prosocial
behaviors. Using similar definitions of maladaptive and adap-
tive parenting behaviors, Vanschoonlandt (2013) concluded
that foster mothers of children with higher levels of externaliz-
ing behavior problems reported more stress and were more
likely to use maladaptive parenting behaviors compared to a
sample of biological mother-child dyads. The reciprocal inter-
action of a child’s problem behavior and the foster parent’s
more negative parenting response creates and perpetuates a
cycle of dysfunctional interactions that have been referred to
as a “negative spiral” (Harding et al., 2018). Despite the impor-
tance of parenting behavior there have been relatively few arti-
cles examining foster parents, particularly in the U.S., and more
specifically how parenting behavior is associated with foster
parents’ perceived stress.
Theoretical Perspective
The cognitive-behavioral and developmental framework of
Mowder’s (2005) Parent Development Theory describes
parenting as a series of behaviors that are learned over time,
and these behaviors reflect parents’ thoughts and feelings regard-
ing the parental role. Role Strain Theory posits that parental
stress occurs when there is a mismatch between parents’ percep-
tion of their role expectations and their actual parenting behaviors
(Simon, 1992). Thus, these theoretical frameworks when taken
together, could explain the parenting phenomena observed in
the foster care literature. When foster parents have preconceived
notions of what the parenting role entails and their parenting
behaviors fail to meet the expectations of this parenting role
concept (e.g., when the child’s behavior problems exceed the
resources of the foster care parent), this results in parental stress.
Purpose
While associations between child behavior, parenting behav-
iors, and foster parent stress have been established, the relation-
ship between parenting behavior and parental stress in foster
parents needs additional attention. Given the important
context of parenting behavior and parental stress in the foster
care setting and how it may impact the behaviors of children
in foster care, a better understanding of these two parenting con-
structs seem imperative given potential implications. The
current study examined the following research question: is
there an association between foster parenting behaviors and
parental stress? Separate models were run for (a) adaptive par-
enting behaviors (involvement, positive parenting) as it relates
to parenting stress and (b) maladaptive parenting behaviors
(poor monitoring/supervision, inconsistent discipline, and cor-
poral punishment) and parental stress. Based on previous liter-
ature discussed above, it is hypothesized that maladaptive
parenting behaviors will be positively correlated with parental
stress, while adaptive parenting behaviors will be negatively
correlated with parental stress.
Methods
Sample
The sample for this study included foster caregivers aged 18
years and over who were fluent in English, were licensed to
foster, and had provided licensed foster care services within
the past year. Having a child currently in their home at the
time they took the survey was not required. Non-licensed or
informal foster caregivers were excluded from the study given
they may not have the same experiences as formal foster care-
givers who have undergone training to become licensed foster
parents; and these varying caregiving experiences could influ-
ence the results or implications of the study. The sample for
this study included a total of 65 participants, who were all
female and mostly White. Two participants identified as
Native American/American Indian, while the other racial/
ethnic categories of Black/African American, Hispanic or
Latino, and Asian/Pacific Islander were each represented by
one participant. Table 1 contains additional information on
other key demographic variables.
Lopez et al. 97

Table 1. Foster Caregiver Demographic Characteristics (N = 65).

Variables N (%) M (SD) Range

Age 37.56 (8.650) 23–60

Years fostered 3.61 (3.922) 1–19
Children fostered 10 (15.471) 1–103
Race/ethnicity
Asian or Pacific Islander 2 (3.1)
Black/African American 1 (1.5)
Hispanic or Latino 1 (1.5)
American Indian or Native American 1 (1.5)
White 53 (81.5)
Missing 7 (10.8)
Relationship status
Married 41 (63.1)
Partnered but not married 5 (7.7)
Single 11 (16.9)
Widowed 1 (1.5)
Divorced 1 (1.5)
Missing 6 (9.2)
Education
High school diploma or less 7 (10.7)
Some college 11 (16.9)
Vocational/technical training 5 (7.7)
Associate degree 4 (6.2)
Bachelor’s degree 19 (16.9)
Graduate degree 13 (20)
Missing 6 (9.2)

Recruitment and Data Collection
A non-random sampling method was used, recruiting foster care-
givers by inviting users of two foster parent Facebook groups
from a specific state to participate and through word-of-mouth
(i.e., participants were asked to share the link if they knew
other foster parents). Because it is not possible to know how
many potential participants saw the survey invitation, the
researchers could not calculate a response rate. Data were col-
lected over a two-month period from January to February 2018
using the Qualtrics online survey platform. One initial invitation
and one reminder was posted. At the end of the data collection
period, data were exported into SPSS for analysis.
Measures
Parenting Behaviors
The Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ) was used in this
study to measure the parenting behaviors of the foster caregiv-
ers (Frick, 1991). The APQ consists of 42 items total, including
five parenting behavior subscales/dimensions: (1) parental
involvement (10 items), (2) positive parenting (6 items),
(3) poor monitoring/supervision (10 items), (4) inconsistent dis-
cipline (6 items), and (5) corporal punishment (3 items). The
remaining items that were not included in a subscale measured
specific discipline practices other than corporal punishment and
were included in the original survey to avoid casting an implicit
negative bias toward the items on corporal punishment.
Although foster parents are not allowed to use corporal punish-
ment with foster children, they were asked to respond with their
views or endorsement of corporal punishment practices.
Respondents answered the items on a five-point Likert scale,
with possible responses of (1) Never, (2) Almost Never,
(3) Sometimes, (4) Often, and (5) Always. Shelton et al. (1996)
concluded that the reliability of the APQ in the global format
administered to parents was overall acceptable, finding that the
Cronbach’s alpha levels were good for the parental involvement
scale (α = .80) and the positive parenting scale (α = .80), moder-
ate for the poor monitoring/supervision scale (α = .67) and the
inconsistent discipline scale (α = .67), and poor for the corporal
punishment scale (α = .46). Shelton et al. (1996) further found
that the APQ had good criterion validity with differentiating clin-
ical groups where the children were diagnosed with disruptive
behavior disorders and nonclinical groups.
Parenting Stress
The Parental Stress Scale (PSS) was used in this study to
measure the levels of stress experienced by the foster caregivers
(Berry & Jones, 1995). The PSS is an 18-item measure that
assesses respondents’ perception of parenting that are both
positive (i.e., rewards and satisfaction) as well as negative
98 The Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families 31(1)

(i.e., stressors and loss of control). There were 10 negatively punishment subscale scores of the APQ predicted higher PSS
worded items and eight positively worded items. Item responses scores, as hypothesized.
fell along a five-point Likert scale, with possible responses of
(1) Strongly disagree, (2) Disagree, (3) Undecided, (4) Agree,
and (5) Strongly agree. After reverse scoring the positive Results
items, a composite parental stress score was calculated
ranging from 18 to 90, with higher scores indicating greater The first hierarchical multiple regression analysis was calcu-
parental stress. Berry and Jones (1995) found that the PSS lated to examine a model of adaptive parenting behaviors on
had good internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .83) and parental stress. The three control variables (age, years fostered,
good reliability over time (test-retest correlation = .81 over six number of children fostered) were entered into step 1. Results
weeks). Berry and Jones (1995) further concluded that the indicate that the three covariates were not significantly associ-
PSS had good criterion validity for the PSS, finding positive ated with parental stress (F(3, 51) = 2.066, p > .05), with an
correlations with the Perceived Stress Scale and the total R2 of .114. The independent variables, parental involvement
score on the Parenting Stress Index. The PSS has been used and positive parenting, were added into step 2 and results indi-
in other studies with foster parents (Miller et al., 2020; cated that the model was significant (F(5, 51) = 5.236, p < .01),
Harding et al., 2020; Richardson et al., 2018). with an R2 of .363. Although the model was significant, two
control variables and one independent variable were signifi-
cantly associated with parental stress: (a) age (β = .308, t =
Control Variables 2.045, p = .047), (b) years fostered (β = −1.122, t = −2.382,
p = .021), and (c) parental involvement (β = −1.266, t =
Age of foster parent, years fostered, and number of children
−2.170, p = .035). Higher levels of involvement are associated
fostered were included as control variables in this analysis
with lower levels of parental stress. See Table 2 for the
(e.g., see Lietz et al., 2016).
summary of the hierarchical multiple regression analyses for
the adaptive parenting model.
Data Analysis The second hierarchical multiple regression analysis was
calculated to create a model for maladaptive parenting behav-
Preliminary Analyses iors to examine parental stress scores based on poor monitoring,
IBM SPSS Statistics Version 27.0 was used to run all analyses. inconsistent discipline, and corporal punishment scores. The
Missing data were assumed to be missing at random (MAR), three control variables (age, years fostered, number of children
thus pairwise deletion was used (Kang, 2013). Before running fostered) were entered into step 1. Results indicated that the
further analyses, data were examined for normality and other three covariates were not significantly associated with parental
indicators of quality and found to conform to acceptable stan- stress (F(3, 49) = 1.546, p > .05), with an R2 of .092. Poor mon-
dards (histograms, p-plots, scatterplots, skewness, kurtosis). itoring, inconsistent discipline, and corporal punishment were
Multicollinearity diagnostics were also run and found to be in added into step two. The addition of poor monitoring, inconsis-
an acceptable range. tent discipline and corporal punishment on parental stress
resulted in a statistically significant model (F(6, 49) = 5.318,
p < .001), with an R2 of .426. Significant associations with
Primary Analyses parental stress were found for: (a) inconsistent discipline
Regression analyses were utilized to determine if there was a sig- (β = 1.280, t = 2.304, p = .026) and (b) corporal punishment
nificant linear relationship between the independent (adaptive (β = 4.076, t = 2.744, p = .009). Higher levels of inconsistent
and maladaptive parenting behaviors) and dependent variables discipline and higher endorsement of corporal punishment as
(parenting stress). Multiple regression analysis was appropriate
to test the hypotheses because the analysis requires two or Table 2. Hierarchical Linear Regression Analyses of Adaptive
more independent variables (APQ subscales) and one continuous Parenting and Covariates on Parental Stress.
dependent variable (PSS score; Cohen et al., 2003). Based on the
recommendations of Cohen et al. (2003), the control variables Variable B SE(B) β t Sig. (p)
(age of foster parent, years fostered, number of children fostered) Age .289 .174 .239 1.664 .103
were entered into the regression equation model in the first step, Years fostered −.798 .174 −.244 −1.535 .131
followed by the independent variables in the second step. To Children fostered −.069 .101 −.103 −.681 .131
address the hypotheses that positive parenting behaviors would
Age .308 .151 .254 2.045 .047
be associated with lower parental stress and negative parenting
Years fostered −1.122 .471 −.343 −2.382 .021
behaviors would be associated with higher parental stress, two
Children fostered −.068 .088 −.102 −.770 .445
hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed:
Parental involvement −.609 .363 −.244 −1.679 .100
(1) to determine if the parental involvement and positive parent- Positive parenting −1.266 .583 −.330 −2.170 .035
ing subscale scores of the APQ predicted lower PSS scores, and
(2) to examine whether the inconsistent discipline and corporal Significant associations are bolded.
Lopez et al. 99

Table 3. Hierarchical Linear Regression Analyses of Maladaptive parental stress due to other factors. Another explanation
Parenting and Covariates on Parental Stress. relates to how foster parents perceive their parental involve-
Variable B SE(B) β t Sig. (p)
ment, specifically their thoughts and feelings of how they are
fulfilling their parental role, regardless of their training or par-
Age .225 .190 .178 1.183 .243 enting skill. For example, Semke et al. (2010) found that
Years fostered −.779 .596 −.219 −1.307 .198 parents who reported a greater sense of parental self-efficacy
Children fostered −.081 .108 −.118 −.745 .460 also reported less parental stress and more parental involvement
Age .083 .159 .065 .518 .607 with their children. Therefore, it could also be important to
Years fostered −.907 .510 −.255 −1.777 .083 assess self-efficacy (e.g., thoughts and beliefs about parenting)
Children fostered −.028 .102 −.040 −.271 .788 in addition to actual behaviors.
Inconsistent discipline −.368 .453 −.118 −.814 .420 Among maladaptive parenting behaviors, poor monitoring/
Corporal punishment 1.280 .556 .337 2.304 .026 supervision was not associated with parental stress. It is possi-
Poor monitoring 4.076 1.485 .396 2.744 .009 ble that the foster parents in this study do not endorse or have
the option to use lower monitoring or supervision with the chil-
Significant associations are bolded. dren in their care, due to the context of foster caregiving, so
there was not a significant association with parental stress.
Leeuwen et al. (2012) found that more parental monitoring
a discipline strategy were associated with higher levels of stress.
was associated higher levels of depression and anxiety in chil-
See Table 3 for the summary of the hierarchical multiple regres-
dren and parents. Parental monitoring and supervision are
sion analyses for the maladaptive parenting model.
nuanced parenting behaviors in which parental stress may
depend highly on individual and contextual factors (e.g.,
Cooley et al., 2017). On the other hand, both inconsistent use
Discussion of discipline and endorsement of corporal punishment were pre-
The results of this study provide partial support for the proposed dictors of higher parental stress. Inconsistent discipline and cor-
research hypotheses. Among the adaptive parenting behaviors, poral punishment are both known to be ineffective parenting
foster parents who reported higher levels involvement reported behaviors that are associated with more negative child behavior
lower levels of parental stress. For maladaptive parenting problems (Saunders, 2013). It is possible that foster parents who
behaviors, foster parents who reported more inconsistent disci- reported more inconsistent discipline or endorsement of corpo-
pline and higher endorsement of corporal punishment as a dis- ral punishment may report more parental stress because their
cipline strategy reported higher levels of parent stress. Although parenting behaviors and/or their children’s behaviors are asso-
Parent Development Theory and Role Strain Theory were used ciated with lower perceived self-efficacy as a parent or the
to support the research hypotheses, these theories may nonethe- inability to fulfill the parent role.
less explain why the hypotheses were only partially supported.
According to Mowder (2005), parenting behaviors reflect
parents’ thoughts, feelings, and learned experiences regarding Limitations
the parental role. Simon (1992) theorized that if parents’ behav- The current study adds to literature on the association between
iors did not meet their own expectations for the parenting role, foster parenting behaviors and parental stress. However, this
this would result in more parental stress. Among the adaptive study also has several limitations. The nonprobability, conve-
parenting behaviors, only parental involvement was associated nience sampling method limits the external validity of the
with reduced stress, while positive parenting was not a signifi- study. The sample was small and over-represented by White
cant predictor. Perhaps participants felt confident in their level and female foster parents, which may not be representative of
of involvement and interaction with their child, but they did all foster parents in the United States. There is also a risk of
not feel as confident in their positive parenting abilities. For selection bias because volunteer participants might differ
example, licensed foster parents receive training prior to foster- from the general population of foster parents if they chose to
ing, but this training does not always cover behavioral parenting participate in this study because of their particular interest in
strategies or ways to manage child behavior (Cooley, Newquist, this topic. Participants were also recruited from online
et al., 2019). Consequently, the participants may have reported support groups, which may mean that they were receiving
more moderate or inconsistent reports of positive parenting that more support for their parent stress or child behaviors than
were not associated with significantly lower parent stress. foster parents not engaged in support groups. Given that
It is also possible that the context or behavioral needs of chil- foster parents were the only informants in this study, the data
dren in foster care are also more significant. Another study may be more reflective of the foster parents’ perceptions of
found that foster mothers displayed similar levels of positive their behaviors rather than their actual behaviors, and a more
parenting behaviors as biological mothers in the comparison objective or observational measure may have produced differ-
group, yet still reported experiencing higher levels of parental ent results. Lastly, because the survey included questions on
stress (Vanschoonlandt et al., 2013). Even if a foster parent is parenting behavior and parental stress, participants may also
applying appropriate discipline, they could still experience have been vulnerable to social desirability bias and
100 The Family Journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families 31(1)
underreported on behaviors they may perceive as controversial
or negative. However, results indicated that a significant rela-
tionship existed between endorsement of corporal punishment
and higher levels of parental stress, which seems to reflect
some level of honesty as foster parents receive training to
understand that corporal punishment is not appropriate for use
with foster children. Though the findings may not be generaliz-
able to a wider population of foster parents, the current study
retains value as a preliminary study to explore the need for
future studies with experimental designs and larger sample
sizes.
Research and Practice Implications
This study produces implications for future research and clini-
cal practice. Future research should expand on the findings of
this study by collecting larger, more representative samples
for studies with quasi-experimental designs to better understand
the direction of relationships between parenting behaviors and
parental stress. Future research studies should also collect
observational data on parenting behaviors to minimize potential
biases associated with self-reporting. Furthermore, researchers
may consider other validated measures to assess the constructs
identified in this study. This study evaluated associations
between parenting behaviors and stress, however there may
have been other factors, such as child factors or parental
self-efficacy, that directly influenced these associations.
Lohaus et al. (2017) noted that parental stress and child behav-
iors may have reciprocal interactions, which could also influ-
ence parenting behaviors. Other researchers have noted the
role that self-efficacy may play in parental experiences
(Semke et al., 2010; Whenan et al., 2009). As such, future
research studies should consider various models that could
assess multiple factors influencing parental stress for substitute
caregivers.
Marriage and family practitioners who serve foster families
may consider focusing their interventions on addressing parent-
ing behaviors and/or parental stress to ensure the parent is best
equipped for responding to and reducing problem behaviors in
their foster children. For example, increasing social support
may be one informal intervention that helps to alleviate or
diminish parental stress for foster parents. Lohaus et al.
(2017) found that social support was particularly helpful for
foster fathers. Another study found that social support predicts
foster parents’ confidence and satisfaction which has been
noted to influence parents’ stress levels (Cooley, Thompson,
et al., 2019). It should also be noted that parental stress can
lead to placement disruptions for youth in care, and social
support may be a means to combat the stress and prevent dis-
ruption (Leathers et al., 2019). It should also be noted that qual-
itative findings from a randomized control trial indicated that
the most valuable aspects of a group parenting intervention
were the peer support that was developed among group
members (Conn et al., 2018).
Ongoing training – both individual and group – could
directly address appropriate forms of discipline (e.g., reduced
endorsement of corporal punishment techniques and increased
awareness of how to use positive parenting techniques) and
promote ways to reduce parental stress. Since licensed foster
parents already receive training before fostering children, agen-
cies could leverage in-service training or even home visits to
proactively address the emerging or targeted needs of foster
parents (e.g., behavioral concerns of foster children, parental
self-efficacy concerns, ways of increasing involvement with
their foster child). Foster parents have reported that training is
one of the ways in which they learn skills and knowledge that
help them navigate the complexity of the child welfare
system, which inherently involves stressful experiences
(Cooley et al., 2017). Furthermore, child welfare agencies can
support the needs of foster parents by institutionalizing
ongoing training and support. While many foster parents
report using an authoritative parenting style, many desire addi-
tional training in specific positive parenting techniques which
can be reinforcing across time (King et al., 2007). Requirements
for in-service trainings should be at a frequency that allows
for foster parents to receive ongoing and incremental support,
not just a one-time training, as a means to potentially reduce
foster parental stress. Additionally, specific interventions tar-
geted at increasing foster parent involvement with youth
could be beneficial. It has been noted in previous studies that
interventions that involve foster parents need to be tailored to
their unique needs and roles (Dorsey et al., 2014). An interven-
tion to enhance foster parent engagement with youth may have
a mutual benefit for the youth in their care, as well as reduce
parental stress (e.g., McKay & Bannon, 2004). For example,
foster parents reported higher levels of involvement with their
child when they are included in youths’ educational experiences
(Mires et al., 2018). Targeted efforts to increase foster parent
involvement can potentially reduce the increased risk for paren-
tal stress.
Conclusion
Prior research has only produced a limited number of studies
that have examined the association between foster parents’ per-
ceived parenting behavior and their parental stress. Although
this study included a small sample and self-report data, the find-
ings of this study provide incremental support that specific
foster parenting behaviors, both adaptive and maladaptive, are
related to foster parent stress. These results produce implica-
tions for ongoing support and training for foster parents,
which should be addressed and provided by child welfare
agencies.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to
the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article.
Lopez et al.
ORCID iD
Morgan E. Cooley https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5564-9582
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