Emi Furukawa

BACKGROUND: Foster parents' unique challenges significantly impact their mental health, which in turn influences child well-being and placement stability. Although various intervention programs have been developed to support foster families, research specifically targeting foster parents' mental health as a primary outcome remains limited. Previous reviews have examined parenting stress, leaving a gap in understanding the effectiveness of interventions addressing broader mental health domains such as depression and anxiety. This systematic review aims to evaluate the efficacy of foster parent training programs in improving psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and stress. METHODS: This protocol follows the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 guidelines and is registered with the Open Science Framework. Information sources will include MEDLINE, CENTRAL, PsycINFO, and Embase, searched from inception to May 2023. An updated search will be conducted prior to final analysis. The review will include randomized controlled trials published in peer-reviewed English-language journals. Eligible interventions will include structured training, educational, or support programs for foster parents. Eligible comparators will include any control condition (e.g., usual care, waitlist, no intervention) or other active interventions. Primary outcomes will include psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and stress. Secondary outcomes will assess family-related psychological outcomes. Risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool (RoB 2) and certainty of evidence using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Data will be synthesized using meta-analysis when appropriate; otherwise, narrative synthesis will be conducted the Synthesis Without Meta-analysis (SWiM) guidelines. Subgroup analyses will explore differential effects by theoretical framework and specific mental health outcomes. The review began on May 14, 2023, with an anticipated completion date of August 31, 2025. The study is supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI, Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B), Grant Number JP21H03253. DISCUSSION: This systematic review will evaluate interventions targeting foster parents' mental health across multiple psychological dimensions, surpassing the limited scope of prior studies. The rigorous methodology aims to inform the development of evidence-based mental health support programs for foster parents. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework ( https://osf.io/qzd43 ).

Along with the comparator model, the perception of action-outcome regularity is involved in the generation of sense of agency. In addition, the perception of action-outcome regularity is related to motor performance. However, no studies have examined the developmental changes in the perception of action-outcome regularity. The current study measured perceptual sensitivity to action-outcome regularity and manual dexterity in 200 children aged between 5 and 16 years. The results showed that perceptual sensitivity to action-outcome regularity was significantly lower in 5-6-year-old children than in 9-16-year-old children, and that it was significantly lower in children with low manual dexterity than in children with medium to high manual dexterity. Correlation analyses revealed significant correlations of age and perceptual sensitivity to action-outcome regularity, but no significant correlation of manual dexterity and perceptual sensitivity to action-outcome regularity, either overall or in any age band. The present study suggests that perceptual sensitivity to action-outcome regularity is immature at 5-6 years of age and that it may be impaired in 5-16-year-old children with poor manual dexterity.