Abstract
The transition from childhood to adulthood can be especially difficult for young people who are leaving care and learning how to be independent. This process of moving out of the care system – such as foster care or children’s homes – and into independent life is known as ‘care-leaving’. This could happen before or after turning 18, bringing with it a variety of challenges that influence one’s general well-being. Adverse events that occur during their formal care period may have a lasting impact on their mental health and increase their susceptibility to recurrences upon leaving care and being away from their familiar surroundings. Entering adulthood can be an intimidating experience. During this phase of life, important life decisions must be made, such as starting or finishing school, finding a reliable job and somewhere to live, and starting a family.
Internationally, despite the idea of care-leaving being an extensively researched topic, there is still a lack of new theory development to account for the care-leaving journey. The call to address the absence of new theory development in the account for care-leaving experiences was made as early as 2006. Although a lot of work has been done on theory-informed research since Stein’s (2006c) article, it is now rather outdated, and there is still limited development of theories on care-leaving.
Until recent times, this was also an unexplored and largely overlooked area in the South African care-leaving sector, with few papers produced prior to 2014. The earliest research dates to 2003, which revealed the challenges faced by young people leaving the foster care system. This prompted a South African research team to examine the journey of nine male care-leavers five years after leaving Girls and Boys Town, leading to the development of the ‘theory of care-leaving’. The study focused on the social processes underlying longer-term care-leaving journeys, highlighting the need for further investigation.
Van Breda et al.’s (2012) study, which was limited to male participants, lacked comparative data. Hlungwani (2017) replicated that study using females from multiple CYCCs, and found eight social mechanisms that supported resilience in young women’s transition to independent living. Both the male and the female care-leavers experienced similar care-leaving phases, meaning that they were gender-inclusive resilience processes, which strengthened the case for Van Breda’s care-leaving theory (Van Breda, 2015).
Thus, this study’s aim was to critically validate, deepen, and advance the theory of care-leaving presented by Van Breda (2015b), using a cohort of care-leavers from GBT. The study used a qualitative methodology that drew inspiration from constructivist grounded theory design. Thirty-one
vi
care-leavers were enrolled in the study, using a non-probability, availability sampling process, comprising 12 females and 19 males who had been out of care for one to seven years. Resilience theory served as the theoretical framework, and data was gathered through semi-structured one-on-one interviews.
This thesis is presented in a ‘thesis by publications’ format, centred on the psychosocial processes. The thesis is divided into seven chapters. The format of Chapters 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 is that of journal articles. The thesis is introduced in Chapter 1 and concluded in Chapter 7. Below is an outline of the chapters.
Chapter 1 is a general introduction to the study. It introduces the topic and gives the study’s context. It outlines the theoretical foundation supporting the study as well as the motivation, goal, objectives, and research questions of the investigation. In addition, a summary of the qualitative method used in this study and a review of relevant literature are provided.
The first article (Chapter 2) aligns with objective one. Chapter 2 presents a journal article titled, “Theories used to explain care-leavers’ journey out of care: A scoping review”. It was motivated by Mike Stein’s (2006c) critique of care-leaving research as reflecting a “poverty of theory”. It provides valuable insight into what theories are being used, where, and how they are used to explain young people’s journey out of care.
Objective two undergirds Chapter 3 and consists of a journal article, “Care-leavers’ efforts to develop relationships of belonging as a resilience process in their transition out of care”. This article examined the attempts made by care-leavers to build genuine relationships. It highlights the need expressed by care-leavers in their continual striving to build strong, solid connections with family members, friends, and caregivers, all of which are essential to the development of a positive self-identity.
Chapter 4, in line with objective three, presents an article titled, “Networking people for goal attainment: Psychosocial processes facilitating resilience of care-leavers in South Africa”. The focus is on the psychosocial processes and on networking for goal attainment in which young people transitioning out of residential care engage. This article aims to enhance and theorise our understanding of these processes. The findings highlight that, by networking, care-leavers gain better access to resources, which helps them to achieve their goals and meet their various needs.
Objective four guides Chapter 5, and presents an article titled, “Contextualised responsiveness: Care-leavers’ responses to risks and opportunities in a resource-constrained social environment”. This article focuses on the third identified psychosocial process in care-leavers’ responses to risks and opportunities in their social environments (‘contextual responsiveness’ in the care-leaving theory).
vii
This process highlights the importance of understanding and responding to the social context, which is crucial for effective adaptation and for building resilience.
Chapter 6 presents an article titled, “Building hope: A South African study of care-leavers’ tenacity, self-confidence and faith amid adversity”, and addresses the fifth (and final) objective of the study. The article explores care-leavers’ building of hope and belief in themselves in the face of adversity in the care-leaving journey (‘building hopeful and tenacious self-confidence’ in the care-leaving theory). This article highlights the fact that, despite facing difficulties, care-leavers develop a hopeful mindset, tenacity, self-confidence, and faith. They trust in their ability to overcome challenges and to maintain a positive outlook. This component of this process demonstrates resilience by showing how care-leavers can stand strong and remain determined, which is essential for their overall well-being and success.
In keeping with the aim and objectives of the study, the findings of the five articles are presented in Chapter 7. Practice and policy recommendations are made, and the findings are addressed. The study’s findings could, by shedding light on what could be done at the practice and policy levels to remove obstacles to helping young people develop their resilience, help to address the long-standing need to change residential care practices into a more pre-emptive system that is better suited to providing holistic care. Thus, by deepening the care-leaving model, this study has developed a prospective resilience-building strategy. This study contributes significantly to the knowledge of residential care practice. Practitioners working with children in residential care recognise the need for the improved preparation for young people’s transitions out of the system, yet often lack the knowledge about how to achieve this. Therefore, creating a practice intervention model that is based on care-leaving theory could be highly beneficial in educating individuals who work with children in residential care, as well as policy makers, in how best to prepare children to leave the system.