Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) today released a first-of-its-kind report highlighting new data on Americans’ views and experiences with foster care, adoption and family support.
The report “Engagement in US Foster Care: 2025 Data and Trends” draws from more than 1,500 US participants who were asked a series of questions related to their experiences, motivations and barriers on topics ranging from foster parenting and adoption to supports including financial gifts, family aid, mentoring, advocacy, and other services.
Some of the notable findings from the research included elevated trust for faith-based nonprofits to “do the right thing” for vulnerable children and families — far above any other institution — as well as a broad desire to see more churches involved in supporting vulnerable children and families.
Christian faith is associated with significantly higher levels of fostering and adopting, as well as alternative methods of support:
- Compared to those who are Agnostic, Atheist, or No Faith (“nones”), Christians are nearly twice as likely to have adopted and three times more likely to have fostered.
- Christians were also more likely to donate money or goods for this work (45% versus 24%), and more than twice as likely to volunteer with nonprofits, help foster and adoptive families and aid struggling biological parents.
- Notably, the more devoted a person is to their faith, the more likely they are to do all these things.
CAFO President Jedd Medefind said he hopes the findings will help guide the work of Christian child welfare nonprofits and encourage them in their vibrant-but-difficult service.
“Our faith makes a world of difference,” Medefind said. “Committed Christians actively foster, adopt, give, volunteer and mentor at significantly higher rates. That’s a tremendous foundation to build on as we work together to deepen and grow the faithful service of each frontline organization and church.”
One unexpected finding showed an interesting trend in responses on family wellbeing. Even amidst the special challenges they often face, families that have fostered or adopted children are more than twice as likely to report they are “flourishing” compared to families who haven’t.
“While the difficulties can be immense, families who adopt and/or foster tend to do remarkably well in the long run — indeed, notably more so than families who don’t,” Medefind said.
To access all of the data and insights, download the full report here.
The data from the report was collected in partnership with Pinkston, a leading communications and research agency.
Explore the Full 2025 Data and Trends Report
You see people in your community moving toward vulnerable children and families in beautiful ways. But what is the scale and nature of that engagement, by the numbers? Who is most likely to become foster or adoptive parents—or support kids and families in other ways—and what are the primary barriers to people taking those steps? Learn more about the research and data in this new report from CAFO, “Engagement in US Foster Care and Adoption.”
