“The impact of formal and informal respite care on foster, adoptive, and kinship parents caring for children involved in the child welfare system.”

Madden, Elissa E., et al.Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal (May 23, 2016).

This paper summarizes the results of a quantitative survey that explored the impact and utilization of respite services among kinship, foster and adoptive parents. Specifically, the study looked at parents’ opinions on the impact of respite care on aspects of their life: including family cohesion and stability, childcare, and parents’ personal wellbeing. The author’s results point to mixed experiences with respite care: parents’ utilization of informal versus formal respite care, or a combination of both, culminated in different degrees of positive benefits and stress-reduction.