10.1177/1077559504266998 Timmer et al. / KIN VS. NONKIN FOSTER CHILD MALTREATMENT / AUGUST 2004 Timmer et al. / KIN VS. NONKIN FOSTER CHILD MALTREATMENT / MONTH 2004 Challenging Children in Kin Versus Nonkin Foster Care: Perceived Costs and Benefits to Caregivers Susan G. Timmer Georganna Sedlar Anthony J. Urquiza University of California, Davis Children’s Hospital This study uses social exchange theory as a framework for ex- amining 102 kin and 157 nonkin foster parents’ perceptions of their foster children, their relationships with them, and their own functioning. The authors argue that these percep- tions reflect perceived costs and benefits of parenting these children, which may influence their investment in them. All children in the study were referred to Parent-Child Interac- tion Therapy (PCIT) for treatment of the children’s behavior problems, participating with their foster parents. Analyses showed that nonkin caregivers rated their foster children’s be- havior problems as significantly more severe than kin care- givers but rated themselves as significantly less stressed. Analyses predicting early treatment termination showed that kin caregivers were more likely than nonkin caregivers to complete the course of treatment in PCIT, particularly if they reported elevated levels of parental distress. The authors dis- cuss the implications of these findings for foster children’s placement stability and long-term success. Keywords: foster care; kinship care; foster parent function- ing; mental health treatment; PCIT Involvement in foster care has been shown to exacer- bate (Newton, Litrownik, & Landsverk, 2000) and alleviate the negative effects of maltreatment on chil- dren (Jonson-Reid, 2002). Foster care, by its imper- manence, is expected to aggravate children’s mental health problems, impeding foster children’s inability to form meaningful attachments (Newton et al., 2000). At the same time, foster care is believed to improve children’s outcomes insofar as it removes them from a pathogenic home environment and increases the amount of supervision the child receives (Jonson-Reid, 2002). As a counterpoint to debates concerning the long-term costs and benefits of foster care, research consistently records high levels of men- tal health and externalized behavior problems among foster children (e.g., Armsden, Pecora, Payne, & Szatkiewicz, 2000; Clausen, Landsverk, Ganger, Chadwick, & Litrownik, 1998; Fanshel, Finch, & Grundy, 1990). These mental health problems are made worse by multiple placements, an unfortunate characteristic of the foster care experience (Newton et al., 2000). Research on placement stability has consistently shown differences in the placement stability of chil- dren placed with kin caregivers and those placed with nonkin caregivers (Berrick, Barth, & Needell, 1994; Needell et al., 2003, 2004). Policy makers have argued that kin caregivers have a greater investment in the success of their own family members than nonkin fos- ter caregivers (Ehrle & Geen, 2002), while other research has found few differences in the emotional quality of kin and nonkin foster home environments (Berrick, 1997). It is likely, however, that if kin and nonkin foster caregivers vary in their investment in their foster children’s success, that the difference would not be visible in a sample containing a sizeable proportion of children with no mental health needs. One would expect differences between kin and nonkin foster caregivers (and children’s experiences 251 CHILD MALTREATMENT, Vol. 9, No. 3, August 2004 251-262 DOI: 10.1177/1077559504266998 © 2004 Sage Publications