This session addressed how to intervene with young children who are at risk of child welfare involvement and who are in the foster care system, and their families. The session began with a presentation of the conceptual and empirical foundations regarding the well-being of young children exposed to adversity. Building on a public health, multi-level framework, the session described preventive and therapeutic interventions that have been found to be effective with young children and their families. This component of the session emphasized experiential, parent-child interactional approaches that are based on infant and early childhood mental health principles. The session ended with a focus on a place-based early childhood system to care that can be situated in child-serving settings to address the needs of the most vulnerable children and families.

Objectives

1. Review the conceptual foundations and empirical evidence regarding the well-being of infants and young children at risk for or experiencing child welfare system involvement.
2. Delineate evidence-based preventive and therapeutic interventions for infants and young children at risk for or experiencing child welfare system involvement.
3. Explore the enhancement of positive parent-child relationships and interaction as the mechanism through which child welfare case goals can be achieved (e.g., prevention, family time/visitation, reunification, permanency).
4. Describe an early childhood system of care that can be utilized to provide preventive and therapeutic intervention services.

To learn more about the 2026 TTAC Conference, please visit: https://ttacny.org/trainings/2026-TTAC-Conference/