Protecting Children from Maltreatment in the United States
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3989/arbor.2015.771n1005Keywords:
Maltreatment, foster care, permanency, preventionAbstract
The U.S., known as a western industrialized country with a residual welfare state, has developed a system to respond to extreme family difficulties by focusing narrowly on children’s safety and risk of harm from parents or other caregivers. In contrast to many European nations, eligibility for family services is highly restricted and prevention services are typically short-term. For children who are ultimately separated from their parents to secure their safety, the U.S. welfare system places a high priority on returning children home as quickly as possible; and for those children whose reunification is forestalled, alternative opportunities for a permanent home are pursued. This paper suggests that a family system with broader eligibility and more saturated prevention services might benefit many more children and families than those currently assisted in the U.S. today.
Downloads
References
AFCARS (Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System). (2000). The AFCARS report. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, ACF, ACYF, Children's Bureau [on line]. [Retrieved June 19, 2012]. Available from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/stats_research/afcars/tar/report12.htm
Al, C. M. W., Stams, G. J. J. M., Bek, M. S., Damen, E. M., Asscher, J. J., van, D. L. (2012). A meta-analysis of intensive family preservation programs: Placement prevention and improvement of family functioning. Children and Youth Services Review, 34, 8, pp. 1472-1479. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2012.04.002
Alpert, L. T. and Meezan, W. (2012). Moving away from congregate care: One state's path to reform and lessons for the field. Children and Youth Services Review, 34, 8, pp. 1519-1532. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2012.04.003
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2013). The kinship diversion debate: Policy and practice implications for children, families and child welfare agencies. Baltimore, MD: Annie E. Casey Foundation.
Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2012). Stepping Up for Kids: What Government and Communities Should Do to Support Kinship Families [on line]. [Retrieved July 5, 2013]. Available from http://www.aecf.org/KnowledgeCenter/Publications. aspx?pubguid={642BF3F2-9A85-4C6B-83C8-A30F5D928E4D}
Anyon, Y. (2011). Reducing racial disparities and disproportionalities in the child welfare system: Policy perspectives about how to serve the best interests of African American youth. Children and Youth Services Review, 33, 2, pp. 242-253. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2010.09.007
Berrick, J. D. (2008a). Take me home: Protecting America's vulnerable children and families. New York: Oxford University Press.
Berrick, J. D. (2008b). From private to public: Paying grandparents as caregivers. In Berrick, J. D. and Gilbert, N. (eds.). Raising children: Emerging needs, modern risks, and social responses. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 27-40.
Casey Family Programs. (2010). 2020 Strategy: A vision for America's children. Seattle, WA: Casey Family Programs.
Child Welfare Information Gateway (2013). Foster care statistics 2011. Washington, D.C.: Children's Bureau, ACYF [on line]. [Retrieved July 2, 2013]. Available from www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/foster.pdf
Child Welfare Information Gateway (2011). Definitions of Child Abuse and Neglect. Washington, D.C.: Children's Bureau, ACYF. [on line]. [Retrieved June 26, 2013]. Available from https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies statutes/define.pdf
Clancy, T. (2012). Using a ratio of pre-placement Family Maintenance to Family Reunification as a performance measure for the Title IV-E Waiver counties. Unpublished manuscript (March 30, 2012). Alameda, CA: Alameda County Social Services Agency.
Conley, A., Berrick, J. (2010). Community-based child abuse prevention: Outcomes associated with a differential response program in California. Child Maltreatment, 15, 4, pp. 282-292. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1077559510376236 PMid:20647255
Desair, K. and Adriaenssens, P. (2011). Policy toward child abuse and neglect in Belgium: Shared responsibility, differentiated response. In Gilbert, N. Parton, N. and Skivenes, M. (eds.). Child protection systems: International trends and orientations. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, pp. 204-222. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199793358.003.0010
Drake, B., Lee, S. M. and Jonson-Reid, M. (2009). Race and child maltreatment reporting: Are blacks overrepresented? Children and Youth Services Review, 31, pp. 309-316.
Dworsky, A. (2008). The transition to adulthood among youth ";aging out"; of care: What have we learned? In Shlonsky, A. and Lindsey, D. (eds.). Child welfare research: Advances for practice and policy. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 125-144. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195304961.003.0007
Edleson, J. L., Gassman-Pines, J. and Hill, M. B. (2006). Defining child exposure to domestic violence as neglect: Minnesota's difficult experience. Social Work, 51, 2, pp. 167-174. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/sw/51.2.167
Esping-Anderson, G. (1999). Social foundations of post-industrial economies. New York: Oxford University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/0198742002.001.0001
Falconnier, L. A., Tomasello, N. M., Doueck, H. J., Wells, S. J., Luckey, H. and Agathen, J. M. (2010). Indicators of quality in kinship foster care. Families in Society, 91, 4, pp. 415-420. http://dx.doi.org/10.1606/1044-3894.4040
Ferguson, C. and Duchowny, L. (2012). State of California Title IV-E Child Welfare Waiver Demonstration Capped Allocation Project (CAP) final evaluation report. San Jose, CA: San Jose State University, School of Social Work.
Field, T. (2011). Congregate Care Rightsizing: What's best for kids is also good for State budgets [on line]. Available from http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/1209PolicyInstituteFeild.pdf
Finkelhor, D. and Jones, L. (2006). Why have child maltreatment and child victimization declined? Journal of Social Issues, 62, 4, pp. 685-716.
Gilbert, N. (ed.) (1997). Combatting child abuse: International perspectives and trends. New York: Oxford University Press.
Gilbert, N., Parton, N. and Skivenes, M. (2011). Child protection systems: International trends and orientations. New York: Oxford University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199793358.001.0001
Gornick, J. C. and Meyers, M. K. (2003). Families That Work: Policies for Reconciling Parenthood and Employment. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Government Accountability Office (2013). Child welfare: States use flexible funds, But struggle to meet service needs. Washington, D.C.: GAO [on line] [Retrieved June 28, 2013]. Available from http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13-170.
Head Start: Indicators on Children and Youth. (2013). Child Trends Data Bank [on line]. Available from http://www.childtrends.org/wp-content/uploads/ 2013/02/97_Head_Start.pdf
Johnson, W. (2004). Effectiveness of California's child welfare Structured Decision Making model: A prospective study of the validity of the California family risk assessment. Sacramento, CA: California Department of Social Services.
Kempe, H. C., Silverman, F. N., Steele B. F., Droegemueller, W. and Silver H. K. (1962). The Battered-Child Syndrome. Journal of the American Medical Association, 181, 1, pp. 17-24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.1962.03050270019004
Kirp, D. (2007). The sandbox investment: The preschool movement and kids-first politics. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Knijn, T. and van Nijnatten, C. (2011). Child welfare in the Netherlands: Between privacy and protection. In Gilbert, N., Parton, N. and Skivenes, M. (eds.). Child protection systems: International trends and orientations. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 223-242. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199793358.003.0011
Landsman, M. J. and Boel-Studt, S. (2011). Fostering families' and children's rights to family connections. Child Welfare, 90, 4, pp. 19-40.
Magruder, J. J. (2010). A comparison of near term outcomes of foster children who reunified, were adopted, or were in guardianship. [Unpublished dissertation]. University of California at Berkeley: Berkeley, CA.
McMillen, J. C., Zima, B. T., Scott, L. D., Auslander, W. F., Munson, M. R., Ollie, M. T. And Spitznagel, E. L. (2005). Prevalence of psychiatric disorders among older youths in the foster care system. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 44, 1, pp. 88-95. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/01.chi.0000145806.24274.d2 PMid:15608548
Mikton, C. and Butchart, A. (2009). Child maltreatment prevention: a systematic review of reviews. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 87, 5, pp. 353-361. http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.08.057075 PMCid:PMC2678770
Murtagh, L. and Ludwig, D. S. (2011). State Intervention in Life-Threatening Childhood Obesity. Journal of the American Medical Association, 306, 2, pp. 206-207. Available from http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1104076 http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.2011.903
National Council on Crime and Delinquency. (2013). Structured Decision Making [on line]. [Retrieved June 29, 2013]. Available from: http://www.nccdglobal.org/assessment/sdm-structured-decision-making-systems/child-welfare
Needell, B., Webster, D., Armijo, M., Lee, S., Dawson, W., Magruder, J., Exel, M., Cuccaro-Alamin, S., Putnam-Hornstein, E., Williams, D., Yee, H., Hightower, L., Lou, C., Peng, C., King, B., Henry, C. and Lawson, J. (2013). Child Welfare Services Reports for California [on line]. [Retrieved March 7, 2013]. Available from http://cssr.berkeley.edu/ucb_childwelfare
National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) (2007). Foster children's caregivers and caregiving environments, Research Brief, Findings from the NSCAW Study. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children, Youth, and Families [on line]. Available from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/resource/national-survey-of-child-and-adolescent-well-being-nscaw-no-2-foster
National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) (2003). NSCAW: One year in foster care wave 1 data analysis report. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children, Youth, and Families [on line]. Available from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/resource/nscaw-one-year-in-foster-care-wave-1-data-analysis-report
OECD. (2011). Benefits and wages. www.oecd.org/els/social/workincentives.
O'Hare, W. (2007). Review of data on foster children collected by the U.S. Census Bureau. Presentation to the John Burton Foundation, San Francisco.
Pew Charitable Trusts. (2011). Pew Inventory of State Home Visiting Programs [Interactive Data Visualization]. [Retrieved 28 July, 2013]. Available from http://www.pewstates.org/research/data-visualizations/home-visiting-inventory- 85899372712
Reynolds, A. J., Mathieson, L. C. and Topitzes, J. W. (2009). Do early childhood interventions prevent child maltreatment? A review of research. Child Maltreatment, 14, 2, pp. 182-206. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1077559508326223 PMid:19240245
Roberts, D. (2002). Shattered bonds: The color of child welfare. New York: Basic Civitas Books.
Shlonsky, A. and Wagner, D. (2005). The next step: integrating actuarial risk assessment and clinical judgment into an evidence-based practice framework in CPS case management. Children and Youth Services Review, 27, pp. 409-427. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2004.11.007
Skivenes, M. (2011). Norway: Toward a child-centric perspective. In Gilbert, N., Parton, N. and Skivenes, M. (eds.). Child protection systems: International trends and orientations New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 154-182. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199793358.003.0008
Testa, M. and Cohen, L. (2010). Pursuing permanence for children in foster care. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. (2007). National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being: No. 15: Kinship Caregivers in the Child Welfare System [on line] [Retrieved July 5, 2013]. Available from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/resource/national-survey-of-child-and-adolescent-well-being-no-15-kinship-caregivers
United States Department of Health and Human Services (2012). Mandatory reporters of child abuse and neglect. Washington, D.C.: Child Welfare Information Gateway. https://www.childwelfare.gov/systemwide/laws_policies/statutes/manda.cfm
United States Department of Health and Human Services) (2012b). Child maltreatment: 2011. Washington, D.C.: Children's Bureau. https://www.childwelfare.gov/can/statistics/stat_natl_state.cfm
United States Department of Health and Human Services) (2012c). AFCARS report#19. Washington, D.C.: ACF/ACYF/Children's Bureau. [on line] [Retrieved July 2, 2013]. Available from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb
United States Department of Health and Human Services) (2012d). AFCARS report#12. Washington, D.C.: ACF/ACYF/Children's Bureau [on line]. [Retrieved July 2, 2013]. Available from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb
Wald, M. (in press). Beyond maltreatment: Developing support for children in multiproblem families. In Korbin, J. and Krugman, R. (eds.), Handbook on child maltreatment. London: Springer publishers.
Waldfogel, J. (1998). The Future of Child Protection: How to Break the Cycle of Abuse and Neglect. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Wulczyn, F., Barth, R. P., Yang, Y-Y. and Harden, B. J. (2005). Beyond common sense: Child welfare, child well-being, and the evidence for policy reform. New York: Aldine.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2015 Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
© CSIC. Manuscripts published in both the printed and online versions of this Journal are the property of Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, and quoting this source is a requirement for any partial or full reproduction.
All contents of this electronic edition, except where otherwise noted, are distributed under a “Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International” (CC BY 4.0) License. You may read the basic information and the legal text of the license. The indication of the CC BY 4.0 License must be expressly stated in this way when necessary.
Self-archiving in repositories, personal webpages or similar, of any version other than the published by the Editor, is not allowed.