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Research on Social Work Practice
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What's this?

A Functional Approach to Reducing Runaway Behavior and Stabilizing Placements for Adolescents in Foster Care

Hewitt B. Clark

University of South Florida, Tampa, clark{at}fmhi.usf.edu

Kimberly A. Crosland

University of South Florida, Tampa

David Geller

University of South Florida, Tampa

Michael Cripe

University of South Florida, Tampa

Terresa Kenney

University of South Florida, Tampa

Bryon Neff

University of South Florida, Tampa

Glen Dunlap

University of South Florida, Tampa

Teenagers' running from foster placement is a significant problem in the field of child protection. This article describes a functional, behavior analytic approach to reducing running away through assessing the motivations for running, involving the youth in the assessment process, and implementing interventions to enhance the reinforcing value of placements for adolescents, thereby reducing the probability of running and associated unsafe periods. A case study illustrates this approach and a study compares 13 adolescents who ran away frequently and received interventions with a group of matched adolescents who had similar patterns of running but received only services as usual. The percentage of days on runaway status showed a significant pre-post reduction for those in the functional group, in contrast to no statistical change in the comparison group. Potential benefits this approach may have for foster care and child protection in improving youth safety, permanence, and connections for life are discussed.

Key Words: runaway behavior • functional assessment • applied behavior analysis • behavior analytic interventions • foster care • placement stability

This version was published on September 1, 2008

Research on Social Work Practice, Vol. 18, No. 5, 429-441 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1049731508314265
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