Attachment, Regulation and Competency (ARC) Reflections
Attachment, Regulation and Competency (ARC) Reflections is a skills and competencies-focused program designed to serve caregivers of children in foster care from birth through young adulthood who may have experienced complex trauma. ARC Reflections aims to support foster parents and kinship caregivers to manage their stress and promote well-being, stability, and permanency for the children and adolescents in their care.
ARC Reflections uses the ARC components-based framework that co-facilitators deliver to groups of foster parents and kinship caregivers. The ARC framework has three core domains: (1) Attachment, (2) Regulation, and (3) Competency. In the Attachment domain, facilitators aim to strengthen the caregiving system by building skills to understand and manage emotional and psychological responses to trauma, enhance the child-caregiver relationship, and effectively respond to the child or adolescent’s needs (which are often expressed as behavior). In the Regulation domain, facilitators aim to support caregivers in building tools to increase child or adolescent capacity for self-regulation. Strategies or tools focus on helping the child or adolescent to identify, understand, tolerate, and manage their internal experience. In the Competency domain, providers support caregivers in building tools and strategies to improve child or adolescent decision-making skills, strengthen relationships, and explore personal identity.
ARC Reflections includes nine sessions, each with a different key theme. Facilitators weave a narrative thread of a young girl’s experiences throughout the sessions to encourage discussion and reflection and to leverage the story for skill-building. Each session begins with a warm-up activity and opening check-in followed by a review of the prior week’s content and at home practice assignment. The facilitators present material about the session theme and lead participants through discussion and a self-reflection activity. Participants write down their learning takeaway from the session and receive a new at home practice assignment to support application of learned material in the home setting. Sessions close with a group check-in to support continued caregiver practice of regulation skills.
The Prevention Services Clearinghouse’s independent systematic review of ARC Reflections found that no studies met eligibility criteria for review.
As of December 2025, the ACF Assistant Secretary has final approval authority over the determination of the program or service rating. For more information, please visit the FAQ on the rating determination policy.
Date Last Reviewed by the Prevention Services Clearinghouse (Handbook Version 2.0): Mar 2026
Date Program or Service Description Last Updated: Mar 2026
Sources
The following sources informed the program or service description, target population, and program or service delivery and implementation information: the program or service manual and the program or service.
This information does not necessarily represent the views of the program or service developers. For more information on how this program or service was reviewed, download the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 2.0
Target Population
ARC Reflections is designed for caregivers of children in foster care from birth through young adulthood who may have experienced complex trauma. ARC Reflections focuses on trauma-related diagnoses including PTSD, behavioral disorders, depression, and anxiety.
Dosage
Two co-facilitators deliver ARC Reflections to groups of approximately 12 caregivers in nine 2-hour weekly sessions. Sessions can be lengthened to 3 hours, depending on participants’ needs.
Location/Delivery Setting
Recommended Locations/Delivery Settings
Facilitators can deliver ARC Reflections to groups of foster parents and kinship caregivers in community-based settings or in the home.
Education, Certifications and Training
Child welfare agency staff who work directly with children and adolescents in foster care and foster and kinship caregivers deliver ARC Reflections. As such, facilitators can include frontline investigators, child welfare case workers, and mental health providers. Foster parents and kinship caregivers can also be trained to deliver ARC Reflections. ARC Reflections facilitators are expected to understand complex trauma and child development. Facilitators should also have skills in applying instructional design principles and learning theory to deliver effective and engaging sessions. ARC Reflections recommends that one co-facilitator be a professional child welfare agency staff member, and the other be a trained parent or kinship caregiver. ARC Reflections training is required and involves a 4- or 5-day training program that includes practice delivering sessions.
Program or Service Documentation
Book/Manual/Available documentation used for review
The following materials are used to deliver ARC Reflections:
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Implementing ARC Reflections for foster parents. A guide for child welfare agencies. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-implementingarcreflections-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Understanding trauma. Session one facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguideone-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Behavior makes sense. Session two facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidetwo-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Put on your oxygen mask. Session three facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidethree-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Cultivate connection. Session four facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidefour-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Mirror, mirror. Session five facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidefive-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Calm, cool, connected. Session six facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidesix-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Respond, don’t react. Session seven facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguideseven-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Who are you? All about identity. Session eight facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguideeight-2017.pdf
- Blaustein, M., & Kinniburgh, K. (2017). Endings and beginnings. Session nine facilitator guide for ARC Reflections. The Annie E. Casey Foundation. https://assets.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/aecf-ARCreflectionsfacilitatorguidenine-2017.pdf
Available languages
The ARC Reflections manual is available in English. Other program materials are available in English.
Other supporting materials
ARC Reflections Training Program Overview
For More Information
Website: https://arcframework.org/
Phone: (781) 400-9173
Email: info@centerfortraumatraining.org
Note: The details on Dosage; Location; Education, Certifications, and Training; Other Supporting Materials; and For More Information sections above are provided to website users for informational purposes only. This information is not exhaustive and may be subject to change.
| Results of Search and Review | Number of Studies Identified and Reviewed for Attachment, Regulation and Competency (ARC) Reflections |
|---|---|
| Identified in Search | 0 |
| Eligible for Review | 0 |
| Rated High | 0 |
| Rated Moderate | 0 |
| Rated Low | 0 |
| Reviewed Only for Risk of Harm | 0 |