Foster children grow up with few skills. The foster parents can find situations where stronger punishments are needed the social worker will over ride what they want to happen. For example a child steals from school. Caregiver grounds them from going on school camp. Social worker decides child should still go. The child is rewarded for doing a crime. Over the years the child begins shop lifting and other crimes. The chance for change was lost.
Often due to being encouraged to make disclosures the teen has spent a life making up allegations to punish adults, although the first few disclosure may have been true (remember children love attention and making a disclosure true or not gets it in abundance) . The first few caregivers subjected to these false allegations might be heavily punished and the child removed and thus the teen learns they are able to control those around them. When out in the real world they find that no one wants to hear their complaining about others. Attention seeking builds and the ability to make good relationships is broken because they are simply unable to form them. Where as while in care the world revolved around them, now it doesn't. Where once adults met all their needs now they have no one.
It is time the department consider its own parenting skills, one it often judges parents on. With almost anything that could result in 'emotional abuse' these young adults not only know they were abused by parents but could consider their time with the caregivers abusive because they didn't get all they wanted. So who steps up then? The department cut them off from family, shouldn't it be the departments role then to step up and continue to be 'family' for the entire time of that teens life?
Conituned.....