Preventive intervention for maltreated preschool children: Impact on children's behavior, neuroendocrine activity, and foster parent functioning

Objective: This article describes the results of a pilot study that evaluated the effectiveness of the Early Intervention Foster Care (EIFC) program in the period immediately following a child's placement in a new foster home. Method: Data were collected from an ElFC group, a regular foster care group, and a community comparison group - each with 10 participants - via questionnaires for children and their caretakers and salivary cortisol sampling. Results: EIFC foster parents adopted and maintained positive parenting strategies, EIFC children's behavioral adjustment improved, and changes occurred in several salivary cortisol measures. Moreover, regular foster care children exhibited decrements in functioning in several areas over the same time period. Conclusions: Results are discussed with regard to how such research fits into a larger program of prevention research for high-risk preschool children.