Peer-reviewed article
Trauma exposure and traumatic stress in foster carers: a scoping review.
Sanne G Helder, Sander J A de Vries, Petra Helmond, Joost Daams, Ramón J L Lindauer et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This scoping review examines trauma exposure and secondary traumatic stress among foster carers who care for children removed from their families. The review of nine studies involving over 2,200 foster carers found that many carers have experienced adverse childhood experiences themselves, are exposed to trauma through children's stories and direct threats or violence, and many experience high levels of secondary traumatic stress. The research highlights that higher trauma exposure among carers is linked to higher secondary traumatic stress, and recommends mental health screening, training, and systemic support for foster carers as part of trauma-informed care.
Key points
- Many foster carers have personally experienced adverse childhood experiences
- Carers report both indirect trauma exposure through children's narratives and direct exposure such as threats or violence
- A notable portion of foster carers experience high levels of secondary traumatic stress
- Higher levels of trauma exposure among carers is related to higher levels of secondary traumatic stress
- Mental health screening, ongoing training, and systemic support for foster carers are needed
Limitations
This is a scoping review of only nine studies, so the evidence base is limited. The review does not specify which countries the studies were from, and does not provide detailed information about how secondary traumatic stress affects carers' capacity to provide quality care or foster placement stability.
Abstract
Background: Foster carers provide care for children who have been removed from their primary caregivers due to serious adverse experiences. While considerable research focuses on trauma among foster children, little is known about the traumatic experiences and resulting (secondary) traumatic stress in foster carers themselves.Objective: To review existing literature on traumatic experiences and traumatic stress among foster carers. Methods: We conducted a scoping review following the methodological framework developed by the Joanna Briggs Institute [Peters, M. D. J., Marnie, C., Tricco, A. C., Pollock, D., Munn, Z., Alexander, L., McInerney, P., Godfrey, C. M., & Khalil, H. (2020). Updated methodological guidance for the conduct of scoping reviews. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 18(10), 2119-2126. https://doi.org/10.11124/JBIES-20-00167] and reported it in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines and checklist. We searched for literature in MEDLINE, Embase and PsycINFO.Results: We included nine studies (2005-2024) involving over 2,200 foster carers. Results indicate that (1) many foster carers have personally experienced adverse childhood experiences; (2) carers report indirect trauma exposure through their children's narratives and direct exposure, such as threats or violence; (3) a notable portion experience high levels of secondary traumatic stress; and (4) higher levels of trauma exposure are related to higher levels of secondary traumatic stress.Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for mental health screening, ongoing training, and systemic support for foster carers. Acknowledging carers as both caregivers and trauma-affected individuals is essential to trauma-informed care, as it contributes to the wellbeing of both foster children and foster carers, and helps ensure stable foster placements. Given the limited number of studies, future research should further explore the specific trauma foster carers encounter in their caregiving role, the nature and severity of their secondary traumatic stress symptoms, and how these factors influence their caregiving capacity and the stability of foster placements.