Simms M D, Horwitz S M
Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, USA.
J Dev Behav Pediatr. 1996 Jun;17(3):170-5.
This study evaluated the quality of developmental and emotional stimulation available to young children in their first foster home placement. Visits were made to 28 of 34 (82%) homes of children ages 2 to 6 years who were enrolled in a prospective study of foster care. Based on the results of the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) scale, 18% of homes were found to be understimulating. Multivariate analysis revealed that low HOME scores were related only to income level and not to other foster parent characteristics. Subscale scores showed that low HOME scores were due largely to lack of adequate play materials and limited interaction between the foster parents and the children. These results demonstrate great variability in the quality of foster home environments. Adjusting foster care subsidies according to foster parents' income levels, providing age-appropriate books and play materials, and additional training of foster parents should increase the developmental and emotional stimulation available to foster children.
本研究评估了幼儿首次被安置在寄养家庭时所获得的发育和情感刺激的质量。对参与寄养前瞻性研究的34名2至6岁儿童中的28个（82%）家庭进行了家访。根据环境测量家庭观察（HOME）量表的结果，发现18%的家庭刺激不足。多变量分析显示，HOME得分低仅与收入水平有关，与其他寄养父母特征无关。分量表得分表明，HOME得分低主要是由于缺乏足够的游戏材料以及寄养父母与孩子之间的互动有限。这些结果表明寄养家庭环境质量存在很大差异。根据寄养父母的收入水平调整寄养补贴、提供适合年龄的书籍和游戏材料以及对寄养父母进行额外培训，应该会增加寄养儿童可获得的发育和情感刺激。
