Child Welfare Policy Research Articles

State Child Welfare Policies and the Measurement of Child Maltreatment in the United States.

State-level child welfare policies and practices affect what can be referred, investigated, and substantiated as child maltreatment, and these institutional factors vary across states and over time. Researchers typically have not accounted for these factors in analyses, confounding institutional features with the underlying construct they seek to study. The present study addresses this limitation by demonstrating how changes in specific state child welfare policies and practices influence reported and substantiated maltreatment in the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS). Using negative binomial models with state and year fixed-effects to analyze data from 2005 to 2018, we found significant influence of state policy and practice changes on state-level rates of reported and substantiated maltreatment over time. If a state implemented three of the most common policy changes-adding mandated reporters, centralized intake, and staff-its maltreatment reports were an estimated 32% higher than they would have been in the absence of these changes. By contrast, most state policy changes decreased the number of reports that were substantiated-by 24% if they implemented both differential response and higher standards of proof. Implications for future research and policy are discussed.

'Give Me My Allowance or I'll Run!' Everyday Resistance By Foster Children and Justice Outsourced

This essay will appear in a new book co-edited by Professor Michael L. Perlin and Dr. Kelly Frailing, JUSTICE OUTSOURCED: THE THERAPEUTIC JURISPRUDENCE IMPLICATIONS OF JUDICIAL DECISION-MAKING BY NON-JUDICIAL OFFICERS (Temple University Press) (2021). The chapter fits the overall theme of this book, which looks at the role of non-judicial officers as a hidden space in the U.S. judicial system through a Therapeutic Jurisprudence lens. It examines relationships between children and their state caregivers through their recorded experiences and testimonial voices, incorporating insights from poverty law and lawyering, child welfare law and policy, administrative law, clinical legal education, and TJ. The chapter builds on Austin Sarat’s socio-legal study of the complex relationships between welfare recipients and public assistance systems, and their ambivalent relationships with legal services providers, The Law is All Over”: Power, Resistance and the Legal Consciousness of the Welfare Poor, It integrates metaphors from this field study of the welfare poor into the analysis of formal and informal, abstract and material rules that envelope foster children, illustrated by examples from the University of Miami Children & Youth Law Clinic case docket. Although foster children can challenge decisions by the child welfare bureaucracy in court or fair hearings, many decisions fall beyond the purview of judicial or administrative due process. Less formal client advocacy enables children to resist state control as individuals and as a group and to overcome daily challenges such as getting personal allowances from caregivers. This paper is not to be cited until this book is published.

Child Maltreatment in Western China: Ethnic Disparities, Poverty-related Adversity and Policy Deficiency

This study explores ethnic disparities in the prevalence, severity, and risk factors of child maltreatment in the home setting. Through multistage cluster sampling, we conducted an empirical survey of 2474 girls in Western China. The effective response rate was 93.7%. There are three major findings from this study. First, Chinese ethnic minority children face a higher risk of more prevalent or more severe child maltreatment than Han children. Second, ethnic desegregation appears to have a positive impact on reducing ethnic heterogeneity in child maltreatment. Third, ethnic disparities exist in the risk factors of child maltreatment, and ethnic desegregation can partly mitigate the ethnic differences in the risk factors of maltreatment. The results of this study indicate that there are visible ethnic disparities in child maltreatment in Western China. Ethnic heterogeneity is mainly caused by poverty-related adversity and residual child welfare policies in China. Ethnic desegregation may partly mitigate ethnic disparities, but it can effectively work only if similar life styles are shared among different ethnic groups. Multiethnic developing countries, such as China, should investigate the positive role of ethnic desegregation in countering child maltreatment, reduce the impact of poverty-related adversity on ethnic minority families, and popularize high-quality child welfare services in multiethnic areas.

Child welfare policy and services in Korea

AbstractOver the past 20 years, the Korean government has developed child welfare laws to respond to an increasing number of child maltreatment cases and create a centralized child welfare delivery system. However, the system remains fragmented and under‐developed due to a lack of understanding of child maltreatment and limited government support. Further, few studies have comprehensively reviewed the system. This study examines the Korean child welfare system, identifies challenges for child welfare policies and services, and discusses the implications for future policy; the results can be used to improve the safety, permanency, and well‐being of children and families in Korea. The analysis shows that the government has prioritized family preservation over removal from families, even in substantiated cases of abuse. However, ensuring the safety of children in Korea will require not only working to preserve families but also developing and implementing better options for in‐home services and out‐of‐home placement.

아동복지정책 및 복지서비스 연구동향 분석

아동복지정책 및 복지서비스 연구동향 분석

Learning Collaborative Events With Child Welfare and Health Care Providers Improve Systems Knowledge and Intent to Change.

Introduction:Children in foster care are at higher risk of health problems. These risks present challenges to achieving permanency, safety, and well-being. Despite efforts to improve the systems serving children in foster care, gaps remain in achieving timely and quality health services. Based on stakeholder reports that health care provider knowledge about child welfare systems is a barrier to care, the Fostering Health Partnerships project conducted 2-session learning collaborative events across Michigan. The project team hypothesized that participants would increase knowledge of child welfare policy and that physician participants would identify and commit to practice change to improve health care services to children in foster care.Methods:Learning collaborative events included an in-person session followed by a live webinar session. Participants included child welfare professionals, physicians, and other health care representatives. Participants completed surveys assessing knowledge about child welfare health policy. Physician participants completed a post-event interview. The investigators used pre- and post-intervention survey design and qualitative evaluation of physician interview data to assess the impact of the learning collaborative events on knowledge and practice.Results:A total of 781 individuals attended the initial session and 383 attended the second session of 36 events for 80 counties in Michigan. 247 individuals completed pre- and post-event surveys and 7 physicians completed interviews after the events. Survey data showed that event participants demonstrated increased knowledge of child welfare policy related to health (P < .001). Interviewed physicians reported making practice changes to improve health care services and indicated that the events were valuable though time intensive.Conclusion:An abbreviated learning collaborative process is an effective tool to improve knowledge and drive practice change. Future efforts will build on this project to improve access, coordination, and quality health services for children in foster care.

The impact of targeted permanency and post-permanency services on continued family stability: an introduction

For over three decades federal child welfare policy has promoted three goals to achieve permanent outcomes for children: 1) making reasonable efforts to prevent out of home placement; 2) reunifying...

Public-private interaction in child welfare: lessons for critical social work from Chile and the United States

This article discusses the public-private partnership that exists in Chile and in the United States to collaborate on issues of child welfare. By comparing both countries, we look at ideologies and economic issues that have historically shaped the contemporary perspective of public-private partnerships in child welfare. Additionally, we probe the role of social work in this area to see its current position within the public and private sectors in child welfare provision. Some conclusions are that neoliberalism and a residual worldview about childhood have shaped this public-private partnership. Also, social work has historically played a relevant role in advocacy and development of child policies and in both countries, private sector primarily implements child welfare policies and public sector funds them. Some of the lessons for critical social work include the importance of promoting a change in the way we address social phenomena in child welfare, and demanding an effective installation of the human rights approach to guide public-private partnerships on child welfare in both countries.

Normalcy for children in foster care in the time of coronavirus

Purpose This paper aims to describe how a sense of normalcy for young people in foster care can be critical to their well-being. Design/methodology/approach This paper reports on policy and practice efforts in the USA to promote normalcy for youth in care. The authors review policy that promotes normalcy and report on one organization's efforts to support these goals. Findings COVID-19 has offered profound challenges to the goal of normalcy. Rise Above has adapted to meet the challenges. Originality/value The authors argue that COVID may also offer opportunities to build toward a more robust paradigm of normalcy within child welfare policy and practice.

USING PARTICIPATORY METHODS TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT RESEARCH ON HISTORICAL COMPULSORY SOCIAL MEASURES AND PLACEMENTS IN SWITZERLAND

Many of the child welfare policies and practices in Switzerland before the law reform of 1981 were rather invasive and were exercised under a legal context that sometimes threatened basic human rights. The inclusion of survivors of such measures in the research process has been vigorously requested in Switzerland. Therefore, four individuals who had been placed in institutions as children have been included in the process of preparing a recently initiated, 60-year follow-up study of individuals placed in infant care institutions in Switzerland in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Using focus interviews and “think-aloud” methods, the interviewees commented on two parts of the planned research process: (a) how to contact the cohort, and (b) finalising the assessment instruments. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Interviewees felt their participation was a sign of recognition of their experience and expertise. Their input contributed to the research in a host of ways. For example, they helped to make documents more understandable, identified errors and redundancies, and pointed out wording that might cause insecurities or negative reactions. They also pointed to shortcomings in some of the items used in the assessment instruments. In addition, they made significant contributions regarding how best to approach and work with the cohort. This study shows that, when researching historical compulsory social measures, the inclusion of formerly institutionalised individuals in development and implementation is not only feasible, but is of significant benefit to the quality of the research.

An Exploratory Study to Assess School Principals’ Knowledge of Child Welfare Policies

Because schools are a customary location to conduct child abuse and neglect investigative interviews, this study examines survey results from 109 principals in Tennessee to determine if the Title I status of a school or years of experience as a principal predict awareness of DCS interview policies and an ability to accurately interpret policies related to school-based interviews. A statistically significant relationship was found between the Title I status of a school and principals’ awareness of interview policies. Not all school principals in Tennessee were aware of or could accurately interpret policies for conducting interviews. This study identified principals being more aware of school district issued policies than state-issued policies, and that including the DCS policy as part of school-district policy may increase awareness.

Sustainable Family Life and Child Welfare: A Conceptual Framework

Although there have been developments in family and child welfare services, these have not been prioritized from a sustainability perspective. This article aims to provide a framework for supporting sustainable provisions for family and child welfare. We demonstrate how the need for a socially sustainable stance on family and child welfare arises from the recognition of global changes that constantly influence families as well as children’s rights, which ground child- and family-centered actions. The conceptual framework includes three overarching dimensions and four levels of actors that provide a body for 16 conceptual entities in providing socially sustainable family and child welfare. The analysis showed that functional child welfare and family policies, systems, and practices appear essential elements, even necessary preconditions, of sustainability and sustainable development in general. Leaning on the concept of children’s rights, we conclude that the idea of child welfare promises citizens that society has committed to promoting all children’s wellbeing. Implementation of this requires a shared understanding that the conceptual framework provided in this paper urges to actualize.

The Scope, Nature, and Causes of Child Abuse and Neglect

Child maltreatment is a complex problem affecting millions of children in the United States every year. This article examines existing knowledge on the scope, nature, and causes of child abuse and neglect. First, we review the discordant definitions and conceptualizations of child maltreatment and consider the implications of broad and narrow definitions for the size and scope of the child welfare system and for child safety. Second, we provide an assessment of the quality and comprehensiveness of existing data for understanding the incidence rates and trends in child abuse and neglect. Third, we review theory and evidence on the causes of child maltreatment, with particular attention to whether and how social policy can reduce its prevalence. Last, we provide recommendations for improving the use of data and scientific evidence in child welfare policy and systems.

The Contemporary U.S. Child Welfare System(s): Overview and Key Challenges

This volume of The ANNALS aims to increase awareness among scholars, policy-makers, and practitioners of the size, scope, and functions of child welfare services in the United States. We aim to promote a wider understanding of the broad impacts of child welfare policies and point to ways in which child welfare services can be better incorporated into cross-cutting social policy debates. The articles in this volume offer concrete recommendations for policies and practices that can reduce child maltreatment, and for systemic approaches—both within the purview of child welfare services and across the broader community and social policy landscape—that can better identify and respond to the needs of children and families in which maltreatment has already occurred or where there is a risk of abuse and neglect. This introduction sets a foundation for understanding the contents of the volume: we provide an overview of child welfare services in the United States and highlight current challenges that the U.S. child welfare systems face.

The Social Welfare Policy Landscape and Child Protective Services: Opportunities for and Barriers to Creating Systems Synergy

Contemporary child welfare policies in the United States are well-suited for prevention of child abuse but fail to account for the relationship between family financial hardship and neglect, that is, the lack of safe and consistent care. We argue that rates of child neglect have been stagnant because of two failures: (1) lack of recognition of financial hardship as a causal mechanism of neglect and (2) federal policy that purposefully omits alleviation of financial hardship as a solution to the occurrence of neglect. Because U.S. antipoverty programs operate independently of one another, our siloed policy structure misses opportunities for the alleviation of child maltreatment and, worse, creates negative and unintended consequences in child welfare. We present a model for change: systems synergy for the promotion of safe and consistent care that makes reduction of child maltreatment the responsibility of every social service program in the United States.

The Evolution of Federal Child Welfare Policy through the Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018: Opportunities, Barriers, and Unintended Consequences

The Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018 affords child welfare agencies a new opportunity to fund evidence-supported interventions to prevent children’s removal into public foster care and ensure that youth in care receive appropriate treatment in the least restrictive (most family-like) setting. The new law has been generally heralded as a much-needed improvement over prior funding constraints, but there are concerns among a growing number of child welfare leaders, researchers, professional membership organizations, and advocacy groups that its focus on the families of children who are at immanent risk of removal because of maltreatment is too limiting and that overreliance on strict evidence standards may contribute to racial disparity. This article considers how child welfare agencies can best leverage the opportunities presented by Family First while addressing potential barriers posed by the paucity of evidence-supported prevention programs and avoiding the unintended consequences of limiting reimbursement to only selective prevention services that meet rigorous evidence standards of effectiveness.

A pendulum swing in child welfare policy – the case of implementing GIRFEC in Sweden

ABSTRACT Sweden is among those countries traditionally ranked highly in international comparisons of children’s well-being and conditions for development. However, in recent years a development towards greater inequality in health has occurred. The general welfare model’s capacity to safeguard both the universal provisions for the general population’s standard of living and targeted support for those in need has also been doubted. System-related deficiencies such as collaborative breakdown, inadequate effectiveness and lack of clarity concerning how to uphold the best interests of the child are cited as examples, and several calls for policy reformations have been raised. The Scottish model for supporting child well-being, Getting It Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) has garnered keen interest in Sweden and is an example of how ideas for policy reformation flow both between and within countries, and thereby undergo more or less radical transformations. This article analyses the first-phase implementation of GIRFEC in a Swedish county. It emerges that although there is a great deal of enthusiasm for the original model, the intention is to implement an adapted version. What similarities and differences would be realized is not clarified from the start, but is left for the implementation process. The positive reception is understood as arising from a perceived familiarity of the model, based on current practice and discourse. GIRFEC can therefore be regarded as part of a pendulum swing in which ideas are borrowed and lent between countries and contexts.

Exploring support for LGBTQ youth transitioning from foster care to emerging adulthood

• Limited research exists on LGBTQ youth leaving foster care as adults. • LGBTQ transition-age youth described the sources and types of support they received. • Many LGBTQ youth indicated child welfare professionals in their support networks. • Key deficits included a lack of attention to safety and access to essential services. • Potential implications for child welfare policy, practice, and research are provided. Former foster youth are often uniquely disenfranchised, as many suffer from a lack of support (e.g., financial, informational, emotional) resulting from their involvement in foster care. Although all youth who exit foster care as adults may have difficulty accessing the support they need to become healthy-functioning adults, these issues may be exacerbated for LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning) youth who face added health and wellbeing challenges associated with their sexual and/or gender minority statuses. This study used face-to-face, qualitative interviewing and eco-mapping techniques to explore the experiences and perspectives of 21 LGBTQ foster youth, ages 17–21, to identify and describe who provides them with support, the kinds of support they have received, and whether there were any specific support-related needs and challenges they may be experiencing during this critical time. Results revealed that although many LGBTQ foster youth included a variety of child welfare professionals (e.g., caseworkers, foster parents) and other service providers (e.g., teachers, therapists) within their support networks, the majority experienced several unmet needs and challenges—most of which were associated with their sexual and/or gender minority statuses. Multiple themes were identified, including a lack of attention to safety and protection from risks of harm and access to essential care and services (e.g., LGBTQ affirming health care, safe and supportive housing, LGBTQ community-based resources, guidance related to LGBTQ identity development). Results provide initial understanding and awareness of some of the support-related issues and challenges faced by these youth, and help to build a framework of knowledge from which to develop further hypotheses regarding how LGBTQ youth are faring in our nation’s child welfare system. Implications for child welfare policy, practice, and research are discussed.

Virtual parent-child visitation in support of family reunification in the time of COVID-19

When children are removed from their birth parents and placed in foster care, child welfare policy and practice prioritizes family reunification in permanency planning. Of the many services offered to families in support of reunification, parent-child visitation is one of the most important. The purposes of visitation are to maintain and support the parent-child relationship, facilitate improved parenting skills, and offer social workers opportunities to gauge the family’s progress in meeting reunification goals. Whether supervised or unsupervised, parent-child visitations most often involve face-to-face contact between family members. During periods of sheltering in place in response to COVID-19, however, face-to-face visits have been largely curtailed. In their place, child welfare agencies have begun using virtual visitation through various technology platforms such as smartphones, FaceTime, Zoom, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Skype, often facilitated by foster parents. A number of questions have arisen, however, about the effectiveness of virtual visitations and how best to use them as a means of supporting reunification goals. In the present article, we examine existing data on how children respond to virtual communication with parents and extended family and what practical issues and training needs are encountered when implementing virtual visits in juvenile dependency cases.

Foster agency workers’ perceptions of sleep health among children in foster care

Quality sleep during the formative years directly contributes to healthy physical and emotional outcomes via interactions with multiple bioregulatory systems. At the same time, sleep regulation is adversely affected by trauma, unstable/inconsistent environments and insecure attachment to a caregiver, suggesting youth in foster care are at extraordinary risk for sleep disturbances. To date, however, the sleep health of these children has received scant attention. The current study surveyed 43 foster care licensing agency personnel (95.3% female) who work directly with foster families about their experiences and perceptions of sleep among these children. On average, participants reported having worked with foster families for almost 10 years (M = 9.6 years; SD = 7.6) at the time of survey completion. The most frequently endorsed sleep-related problems were difficulty falling asleep (endorsed by 86% of participants), resisting/refusing to go to bed (65.1%), nightmares (62.7%), nighttime fears (62.7%) and wetting the bed (62.7%). These problems were perceived to sometimes contribute to child placement disruption. With regard to sleep-focused education/training, a majority of participants believed a brief, group-based training about sleep would be the most effective approach for helping caregivers to ensure children receive adequate sleep. While preliminary, findings indicate trauma-related sleep disturbances are common among children in foster care and potentially contribute to placement instability. In addition to more research, there is need for child welfare policies and programs to promote healthy sleep.