Abstract
Experiencing maltreatment and being placed in foster care is associated with a number of negative outcomes throughout the life course. Thus, making sure that former foster youth have the support and sustenance they require to become resilient, educated adults is important for society and future generations. This study aimed to explore the narratives of individuals who were in the foster care system in order to examine the ways they conceptualized resilience as well as factors that they attributed contributing to their resilience. This study interviewed 7 individuals who had aged out of foster care. The interview was a semi-structured interview that prompted in- depth responses of their experiences of overcoming struggle. Recordings were then transcribed and separated into general themes that correlated with past research. The researchers found that a combination of factors lead to resilience in former foster youth. Structure and consistency appeared to be the most salient factor of resilience as well as being able to foster other areas of resilience. These other areas included self-efficacy and self-awareness. While these three factors appeared to be the most important in terms of sustaining resilience, there were a number of other themes that were significant to mention within the discussion section. The findings from this study suggest that making sure that foster youth have access to consistent support could help promote resilience in a greater number of children in the system.