Speaker
Description
Authors: Matilda Karlsson (University of Gothenburg, Department of Social Work), Martin Bergström (Lund University, School of Social Work), Therése Skoog (University Of Gothenburg), Tina M Olsson (Jönköping University)
Presenter/Corresponding author: Matilda Karlsson
Background: Adolescents with experience of out-of-home care (OHC; e.g. foster care, group home care) have an increased risk of low mental, social, and physical wellbeing compared to the general population that persist into middle age. Social support is important for human wellbeing, but this population often lack strong social support networks. Wellbeing in the general population is known to fluctuate during the life-course, particularly during adolescence. The aim of this study was to increase our understanding of how wellbeing differs at different time-points in adolescents with experience of OHC and the extent to which quantity and perceived quality of social support predict wellbeing during adolescence for this group. The overarching objective was to inform development of preventive interventions for adolescents transitioning from OHC to independent adulthood.
Methods: A sample of OHC-experienced adolescents (N=132) completed a self-report questionnaire at two time-points eight months apart. We used a broad range of measures to capture hedonic and eudaimonic aspects of wellbeing. We used paired samples t-tests, cluster analysis and parallel diagrams to explore differences in wellbeing across time-points at the group and individual level. We used logistic regression to assess the predictive abilities of social support for wellbeing.
Results: Results show that group level differences in wellbeing indicators were stable, but that patterns of wellbeing profiles and individual wellbeing indicator scores differed across time-points. Quality of social support was the strongest predictor of exhibiting a relatively higher wellbeing at both time-points.
Discussion: The implications of these results for developing and providing preventive services for this population will be discussed. Can universal interventions accommodate needs that may be shifting across both individuals and across short time-periods? And what is the role of social work professionals in providing and fostering high quality relationships to promote future wellbeing for this population?
Conflict of interest: We declare no known conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise.
| Conflict of interest | We declare no known conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise. |
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