Communicated Meaning-Making in Foster Families: Relationships Between Foster Parents’ Entrance Narratives and Foster Child Well-Being

Abstract

Guided by narrative theorizing, the present study analyzed the ways foster parents create and tell foster entrance narratives (FENs) to their foster child. Thematic and content analyses of 101 foster parents’ FENs illuminated nine emergent themes—birth parent consequences, deep connection, special, untold, birth parent learning, temporary, pragmatic, forever, and better off. Structural equation modeling revealed significant relationships between FEN themes and foster parents’ perceptions of foster child adjustment and foster parent–child relational closeness. Findings demonstrate the way foster parents narratively manage birth parent identity, how FENs clarify family boundaries, and the impact of (not) telling FENs on relationships outside the family.