Date of Project

11-11-2025

Document Type

Honors Thesis

School Name

College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Psychology

Major Advisor

Dr. Stella Kanchewa

Second Advisor

Dr. Christy Wolfe

Abstract

Estimates suggest 6% of U.S. children (nearly half a million) will be placed in foster care at any point between their birth and eighteenth birthday (Turney & Wildeman, 2017). This population of children is subject to multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs; Turney & Wildeman, 2017). Such ACEs include parental divorce, parental incarceration, parental abuse, a household member with a psychological disorder, violence exposure, or a household member grappling with substance use. Exposure to childhood ACEs can negatively affect children behaviorally, emotionally, socially, and academically (Lawrence et al., 2006; McGuire et al., 2021). Research indicates youth in foster care are more vulnerable to school dropout, more likely to perform poorly in school, and more likely to receive low standardized test scores (Luke & O’Higgins, 2018; Trout et al., 2008; Zetlin et al., 2012). Research also indicates children in foster care may experience psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety, and PTSD, at higher rates (Harman et al., 2000; Pilowsky & Wu, 2006). Due to the heightened number of psychopathological challenges foster children may face, it is valuable to consider effective therapeutic interventions for children in substitute care, including foster care.

One possible intervention, bibliotherapy techniques may be beneficial in encouraging positive academic, emotional, and social development in children with trauma histories. A recent study of 17,545 American children suggested activities such as shared reading, singing, or storytelling can improve school readiness scores in all children, including those exposed to ACEs (Crosh et al., 2024). Other findings indicate foster children may emotionally and socially benefit from reading stories about being in foster care (Baker, 2007). Since children in foster care may benefit from reading books they can relate to, my thesis project presents a trauma-informed book, intentionally designed for children in foster care. The children’s book presented will focus on attachment styles, specifically. The focus on attachment styles is beneficial to help children in foster care, who commonly experience disrupted relationships due to their placement in the system, understand what healthy attachment looks like (Font & Kim, 2021, Höltge, 2022). Understanding healthy attachment can help build the foundation for future healthy relationships. In other words, the book will help children in foster care understand how it feels to be seen, safe, soothed, and secure, which can provide a lens through which they can evaluate their current and future relationships.

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