Money Issues in Foster Care: Practitioners and Carers' Insights
https://doi.org/10.60543/ts_iss.vi9.10828
Abstract
In Portugal there is an increasing demand for child foster care placements, however there is a shortage of carers within a solidary nature. Carers receive compensation for their service and professionalization is not considered. In light of the lack of knowledge in this area, our aim is to provide insights into financial matters, focused on remuneration’s impact on motivation levels to foster, and the evaluation of fostering experiences in relation to expenses. Thematic analysis of interviews with foster carers and practitioners (n=13) was informed by the Grounded Theory. The findings indicated financial considerations influence the motivation of specific applicant groups, namely unemployed. The financial strain associated with the direct and indirect costs of fostering was outweighed by the benefits of providing a family environment for foster children. Given the economic constraints, adequate compensation could be a form of recognition. To increase foster carers’ recruitment and retention it was advocated reimbursement of healthcare costs. Finally, we discuss implications for policy and practice and how the legal framework has evolved to carers’ dignified remuneration, tax and employment status.
Downloads
Open Access Policy
Temas Sociais Journal is an open access journal, providing free, immediate and unrestricted access to its contents, with the aim of promoting the circulation of scientific knowledge and academic exchange at national and international levels.
By submitting their manuscripts, authors authorize the publication, dissemination and public communication of their work within the scope of the journal, while retaining full responsibility for the content of the submitted manuscripts.
Copyright
Authors retain copyright over their works and grant Temas Sociais Journal the right to publish, reproduce, disseminate and archive the contents in digital format, in accordance with the journal’s editorial policy and open access principles.
Any reuse of published content must comply with the conditions established by the journal and with applicable copyright legislation.
Code of Ethics and Good Practices
Temas Sociais Journal is committed to the ethical principles of research and scientific publishing, promoting academic integrity, editorial transparency, and equal opportunities in access to knowledge. To this end, it adopts the following Code of Ethics and Good Practices:
-
Submitted manuscripts must be original, unpublished, and of exclusive authorship, and must not have been previously published, disseminated, or submitted to another journal.
-
Authors are responsible for obtaining all necessary permissions for the publication of their work and for properly acknowledging all sources and references used.
-
Research resulting from external funding must ensure, where applicable, authorization for the dissemination of the results.
-
All submitted manuscripts are subject to plagiarism detection, using the tool in force at the Universidade Lusófona – Centro Universitário de Lisboa.
-
Articles are evaluated by external peer reviewers with expertise in the relevant field, under a double-blind peer review system, ensuring the anonymity of both authors and reviewers throughout the process.
-
Research involving human participants must ensure informed consent, strict respect for data confidentiality, and, where applicable, approval by an Ethics Committee.
-
Authorship must reflect exclusively those individuals who have made a significant intellectual contribution to the conception and execution of the research, analysis of results, drafting of the manuscript, and approval of the final version.
