Early Intervention Foster Care: A Prevention Trial (EIFC)

July 3, 2025 updated by: Philip A. Fisher, PhD, Oregon Social Learning Center
The Early Intervention Foster Care [EIFC] project is an efficacy trial of the Oregon Social Learning Center Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care Program, a preventive intervention that targets 3 commonly co-occurring variables among young foster children: (1) behavioral problems, (2) physiological dysregulation within the neuroendocrine system (i.e., HPA axis activity), and (3) developmental delays.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

The Early Intervention Foster Care project is an ongoing randomized efficacy trial to evaluate the Early Intervention Foster Care Program (EIFC). EIFC, also known at Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care-Preschool (MTFC-P), is a preventive intervention that is specifically designed to address the needs of preschool-aged foster children and their caregivers. Over the first 5 years of the project data was collected from 177 preschool-aged children, 117 of whom were in the Oregon foster care system and 60 of whom were living with their biological families for a community comparison sample. Foster children in the study were randomly assigned to the EIFC experimental intervention condition or a regular foster care condition (RFC). The following hypotheses are under investigation: (1) Relative to children in the RFC condition, children in the EIFC condition will show greater improvements in temporally proximal outcomes (e.g., behavioral/emotional, salivary cortisol, and developmental) and in temporally distal outcomes (e.g., behavioral functioning in the school setting; long-term placement stability, including reunification or adoption; and mental health status, including psychiatric diagnoses). (2) Proximal outcomes over the course of the intervention will predict distal outcomes during the early elementary school years. (3) Proximal outcomes will be mediated by caregivers' childrearing practices-specifically, engagement with and monitoring of the child in the home, the quality and consistency of parental discipline, and the use of positive reinforcement strategies. (4) The same childrearing practices will mediate the psychosocial adjustment of the child in the aftercare setting (i.e., return to family of origin, placement in adoptive home, or continued placement in long-term foster home). (5) The EIFC intervention will cost-effectively reduce the need for mental health and social services for children, decreasing the length of time that children spend in foster care and reducing the need for special education services for children.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
177

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Oregon
      • Eugene, Oregon, United States, 97401
        • Oregon Social Learning Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

3 years to 6 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • child age 3 to 6 years currently in foster care
  • child has entered new foster placement
  • child currently living in Lane County, Oregon

Exclusion Criteria:

  • child is medically or developmentally unable to complete assessment tasks

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: 1
EIFC/MTFC-P
Behavioral: Early Intervention Foster Care (EIFC)
The EIFC/MTFC-P intervention is delivered through a treatment team approach. Foster parents receive preservice training and ongoing consultation from program staff. Children receive individual therapy and attend a therapeutic playgroup. The intervention emphasizes the use of concrete encouragement for prosocial behavior; consistent, nonabusive limit-setting to address disruptive behavior; and close supervision of the child. The EIFC intervention employs a developmental framework in which the challenges of foster preschoolers are viewed from the perspective of delayed maturation and is oriented toward creating optimal environmental conditions to facilitate developmental progress. These conditions include a responsive and consistent caregiver and a predictable daily routine.
Other Names:
  • Multidemensional Treatment Foster Care-Preschool (MTFC-P)
No Intervention: 2
Services as usual
Behavioral: Early Intervention Foster Care (EIFC)
The EIFC/MTFC-P intervention is delivered through a treatment team approach. Foster parents receive preservice training and ongoing consultation from program staff. Children receive individual therapy and attend a therapeutic playgroup. The intervention emphasizes the use of concrete encouragement for prosocial behavior; consistent, nonabusive limit-setting to address disruptive behavior; and close supervision of the child. The EIFC intervention employs a developmental framework in which the challenges of foster preschoolers are viewed from the perspective of delayed maturation and is oriented toward creating optimal environmental conditions to facilitate developmental progress. These conditions include a responsive and consistent caregiver and a predictable daily routine.
Other Names:
  • Multidemensional Treatment Foster Care-Preschool (MTFC-P)
No Intervention: Community Comparison
Non-maltreated community pre-schoolers from low-income biological families.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
placement stability
Time Frame: 6 months to 48 months post-intervention
6 months to 48 months post-intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
attachment and behavioral regulation
Time Frame: baseline through 48 months post-intervention
baseline through 48 months post-intervention
neuroendocrine and executive functioning
Time Frame: baseline through 48 months post-intervention
baseline through 48 months post-intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Oregon Social Learning Center

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Philip A Fisher, PhD, Oregon Social Learning Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 1, 1999

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 1, 2011

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 1, 2011

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 17, 2008

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 18, 2008

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 19, 2008

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
July 9, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 3, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
July 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • R01MH059780 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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