Quality Foster Care May Improve Psychological Outcomes Associated with Severe Deprivation

High-quality foster care mitigated development of callous-unemotional traits in boys who experienced severe deprivation early in life.

Callous-unemotional (CU) traits in children are associated with early psychosocial deprivation and a lack of guilt and empathy that may persist into adult life. Can a high-quality foster care program prevent the development of CU traits in the most vulnerable children?

In the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, 136 children who were abandoned at birth and placed in state-run institutions were randomized (at a mean age of 22 months) to either high-quality foster care (supported by a social worker who emphasized a child-centered approach to physical and psychological needs) or continued institutional care as usual. Children and caregivers were videotaped at 30 and 42 months of age to assess the caregiver's warmth and response to distress (e.…

Reviewing Author

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics