Date of Conferral

10-16-2025

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Counselor Education and Supervision

Advisor

Marta Sheridan

Abstract

The specific research problem addressed in this study is that the relationship between parent engagement with child safety personnel and the trauma histories of parents with transgenerational child welfare involvement is not well understood. Parent engagement is a critical component of child safety family outcomes. Although past research recognizes lower engagement for former foster youth (FFY) parents with child safety systems and the negative effects of trauma throughout a person’s life, there is no prior research that examines how trauma affects FFY parent engagement with child safety systems. Grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, the purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional study was to analyze the key variables of childhood adversity, types of lifetime traumatic experiences, and parent engagement. Through snowball and convenience samplings 253 FFY parents in Arizona completed the Adverse Childhood Experiences questionnaire, Trauma History Questionnaire, and Client Engagement with Child Protective Services scale. Results of multiple linear regression analysis indicated that both physical or sexual abuse F(2, 236) = 55.821, p < .001, adj. R2 = .315 and crime-related F(2, 242) = 72.320, p < .001, adj. R2 = .369 types of traumatic experiences for FFY were statistically significant predictors of parent total engagement. Moderation analysis results showed that the three types of traumatic experiences did not moderate the relationship between childhood adversity and parent engagement. These results provide evidence of the need for trauma aware practices with FFY parents and case plans tailored to meet their unique needs, which could improve child safety family reunification outcomes and increase safety for families.

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