The Evil You Know: How Teenage Foster Youth in California Attempt to Reduce Placement Instability

This research paper delves into the experiences of former foster youth in California and the strategies they utilized to minimize their chances of placement instability. While the academic literature focuses extensively on placement instability, it treats foster youth as passive participants in this process. Having spent ten years in the foster care system in Southern California, I recall actively trying to manage the threat of placement instability. As such, I interviewed 37 former foster youth from four different counties in California to ascertain whether my experience was shared. In addition to highlighting a series of strategies that foster youth use to prevent placement instability, participants report that placement instability was "weaponized" against them and that they felt the system offered ineffective avenues to report their grievances. Policies that would address or reduce the salience of placement instability are suggested, as are recommendations on how to strengthen relationships for foster children.