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Diana J. English - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Reporting participants in research studies to Child Protective Services: limited risk to attrition.
Child Maltreatment, 2006Co-Authors: Elizabeth Dawes Knight, Diana J. English, Jamie B. Smith, Howard Dubowitz, Alan J. Litrownik, Jonathan B. Kotch, Mark D. Everson, Desmond K. RunyanAbstract:This study examines the impact of Child Protective Services (CPS) reports made by research study staff on participant retention and discusses human subjects protocols that may minimize either the need to make such reports or the negative impact of reporting on participants and on participant retention. Among 1, 354 primary caregiver-Child pairs in the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) studies, a total of 15 were reported to CPS by study staff. Within this group, rates of study-generated reports and study participation subsequent to having been reported by researchers were examined. There was an overall retention rate of 93% across a minimum of three interview waves in this sample. Reporting research participants to CPS may have little impact on attrition.
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The Effect of Fathers or Father Figures on Child Behavioral Problems in Families Referred to Child Protective Services
Child Maltreatment, 2001Co-Authors: David B. Marshall, Diana J. English, Angela J. StewartAbstract:This study examines some possible effects of the presence and quality of parent-Child interaction of fathers and father figures on the behavior of young Children in a sample of families reported to Child Protective Services. Whereas the presence or absence of a father or father figure seemed to make little difference in Child behavioral problems at age 4, lower levels of aggression and depression were observed for Children by age 6 if an adult male in some form of father-like relationship was present in the Child's life. When controlling for mother's ethnicity, Child's gender, the number of referrals to Child Protective Services, and the presence of domestic violence, the direct effect of a father/father figure was no longer significant but remained in the multivariate models as a significant interaction term.
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Neural network modeling of risk assessment in Child Protective Services.
Psychological Methods, 2000Co-Authors: David B. Marshall, Diana J. EnglishAbstract:The advantages of using neural network methodology for the modeling of complex social science data are demonstrated, and neural network analysis is applied to Washington State Child Protective Services risk assessment data. Neural network modeling of the association between social worker overall assessment of risk and the 37 separate risk factors from the State of Washington Risk Assessment Matrix is shown to provide case classification results superior to linear or logistic multiple regression. The improvement in case prediction and classification accuracy is attributed to the superiority of neural networks for modeling nonlinear relationships between interacting variables; in this respect the mathematical framework of neural networks is a better approximation to the actual process of human decision making than linear, main effects regression. The implications of this modeling advantage for evaluating social science data within the framework of ecological theories are discussed.
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Alternative responses to Child Protective Services: emerging issues and concerns.
Child Abuse & Neglect, 2000Co-Authors: Diana J. English, David B. Marshall, Tom Wingard, Matt Orme, Anna OrmeAbstract:Abstract Problem: Increased calls to “do something” about Child Protective Services (CPS) have resulted in proposals or new “paradigms” for Services to at-risk or abusive families. These new paradigms call for the reform or revamping of CPS through the development of a community-based alternative response to some reports of Child abuse and/or neglect. Method: This article reports on outcomes for 1,263 “low” risk CPS referrals diverted to a community-based alternative response system. Data on Child, family, and case characteristics and Services provided are presented as well as outcomes associated with re-referral and placement post service provision. Results: The risk level and severity of some of the referrals to alternative response systems seems inappropriately high. The rates of re-referral were similar for families who did or did not engage in assessment Services, and were highest for families where domestic violence was present. Conclusions: Criteria for diversion to community alternatives to CPS must be clearly articulated and applied. Both CPS and alternative response system workers must have the skills required to address a family’s recognition of the problem and degree of motivation to engage in problem resolution, and to understand their relationship to continued risk of CA/N.
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Risk assessment as a practice method in Child Protective Services.
Child welfare, 1994Co-Authors: Diana J. English, Peter J. PecoraAbstract:This article offers an overview of the development of risk assessment and its purpose and goals, a summary of research on risk assessment to date, and suggestions regarding future research. This overview indicates that the use of risk assessment is a widespread phenomenon, with differing goals and purposes. Research on risk assessment confirms the lack of conceptual clarity and the difficulty of incorporating it into a Child Protective Services system that emphasizes findings of abuse and/or neglect as the key to continuing involvement in the system.
Sarah Anne Font - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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patterns of intergenerational Child Protective Services involvement
Child Abuse & Neglect, 2020Co-Authors: Sarah Anne Font, Lawrence M. Berger, Maria Cancian, Anna DigiovanniAbstract:Abstract Background Prior research on Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement among at-risk youth focuses on their roles as parents perpetrating maltreatment against biological offspring. Given family complexity and assortative partnering, measuring all CPS involvement – as perpetrators and non-offending parents of victims – provides new insight into intergenerational maltreatment patterns. Objectives Our objective was to investigate the risk of multiple forms of parent or perpetrator CPS involvement (PP-CPS) by age 25, among those exposed to three forms of adversity in their late teens (at ages 14–17): alleged victim on a CPS investigation, out-of-home care (OHC), and poverty. Participants and setting We used a sample of 36,475 individuals born in 1990–1991 from the Wisconsin Data Core longitudinal administrative database, and tracked their involvement in CPS, OHC, and the food assistance program (SNAP) over time. Our sample consisted of individuals who, at ages 14–17, met one of the following criteria: were in OHC; had CPS involvement as a victim but no OHC (CPSV group), or received food assistance without CPSV or OHC (SNAP group). Methods Using logistic regression, we modeled four forms of PP-CPS involvement: parent-perpetrator, resident parent non-perpetrator, nonresident parent non-perpetrator, and non-biological parent-perpetrator. Results Predicted risks of any PP-CPS involvement by age 25 were 10 % (SNAP group), 17–22 % (CPSV group), and 26–33 % (OHC group); among OHC youth known to have a biological Child, rates exceeded 40 %. The proportion of CPS involvement that involved parent-perpetration varied substantially by sex and adversity type. Conclusions Focusing only on intergenerational maltreatment in which the parents are the perpetrators may substantially understate the risk of maltreatment recurring across generations.
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The Organizational Context of Substantiation in Child Protective Services Cases
Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2019Co-Authors: Sarah Anne Font, Kathryn Maguire-jackAbstract:Substantiation of Child maltreatment is among the most important decisions made by Child Protective Services and may have wide-reaching implications for Child and family well-being. Yet, relatively little research has been undertaken to understand the organizational context of substantiation. Using national population data from the United States, this study examined the associations between state and county contexts with county substantiation rates using multilevel negative binomial regression. The results show that organizational context (policy and practice characteristics) influences substantiation rates. In particular, standards of evidence, alternative options for investigation and disposition of allegations, and workload burden were all significant predictions of substantiation rates. However, the associations of organizational factors and substantiation varied across types of maltreatment allegations; neglect and physical abuse allegations were more heavily influenced by organizational factors than sexual abuse or multi-type maltreatment allegations. Implications for Child protection policy and practice are discussed.
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Resilience in young Children involved with Child Protective Services.
Child Abuse & Neglect, 2018Co-Authors: Kierra M.p. Sattler, Sarah Anne FontAbstract:Child maltreatment increases the risk of poor developmental outcomes. However, some Children display resilience, meaning they are high-functioning despite their adverse experiences. To date, few research studies have examined Protective factors among very young maltreated Children. Yet, domains of resilience, and the Protective factors that promote resilience among maltreated Children, are likely to differ by developmental stage. Drawing on ecological systems theory and life course theory, we examined how Protective factors at multiple ecological levels across early Childhood were related to social and cognitive resilience among very young Children involved with Child Protective Services. The results demonstrated that the buffering effects of Protective factors varied by social or cognitive resilience and the cumulative effects of Protective factors were more consistently related to later resilience than Protective factors at specific time points. In addition, the influence of specific Protective factors on resilience slightly varied by initial in-home or out-of-home placement. These findings have important policy and research implications for promoting optimal development among Children involved in Child Protective Services.
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Home Foreclosure and Child Protective Services Involvement.
PEDIATRICS, 2015Co-Authors: Lawrence M. Berger, Sarah Anne Font, Kristen S. Slack, J. Michael Collins, Leah M. Gjertson, Timothy M. SmeedingAbstract:OBJECTIVE: We estimated associations between experiencing a home foreclosure filing and experiencing a Child Protective Services (CPS) investigation or substantiation. METHODS: We linked a large sample drawn from administrative data on foreclosure filings, CPS involvement, and participation in a host of other public programs for >60 000 Wisconsin households over a 4-year period from 2008 to 2011. Our empirical analyses used piecewise exponential survival models to estimate the risk of CPS involvement (investigation or substantiation) as a function of a home foreclosure filing and a set of individual and household characteristics. We fitted these models with and without the inclusion of propensity score weights. RESULTS: Households that experienced a foreclosure filing had a much higher probability of CPS involvement. This was true in the year before the filing as well as the year after the foreclosure filing. However, these associations were generally largest in the period before or shortly afterward. CONCLUSIONS: Experiencing a foreclosure filing is associated with increased CPS involvement. However, it is not clear that this association is driven by the foreclosure filing action itself. Rather, increased risk of CPS involvement is apparent during the process of moving toward the filing as well as the year or so after the filing, both of which are likely characterized by limited economic resources as well as by financial and other stress.
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Physically Hazardous Housing and Risk for Child Protective Services Involvement.
Child welfare, 2015Co-Authors: Bomi Kim Hirsch, Sarah Anne Font, Mi-youn Yang, Kristen S. SlackAbstract:The quality and safety of the home environment is a common focus of Child Protective Services (CPS) investigations.Yet little is known about whether such conditions influence CPS outcomes. The present study uses a sample of low-income families to assess the relative importance of housing conditions and other common risk and Protective factors associated with Child maltreatment. Results show that hazardous conditions predict investigated Child neglect, but not physical abuse or indicated reports.
Lawrence M. Berger - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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patterns of intergenerational Child Protective Services involvement
Child Abuse & Neglect, 2020Co-Authors: Sarah Anne Font, Lawrence M. Berger, Maria Cancian, Anna DigiovanniAbstract:Abstract Background Prior research on Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement among at-risk youth focuses on their roles as parents perpetrating maltreatment against biological offspring. Given family complexity and assortative partnering, measuring all CPS involvement – as perpetrators and non-offending parents of victims – provides new insight into intergenerational maltreatment patterns. Objectives Our objective was to investigate the risk of multiple forms of parent or perpetrator CPS involvement (PP-CPS) by age 25, among those exposed to three forms of adversity in their late teens (at ages 14–17): alleged victim on a CPS investigation, out-of-home care (OHC), and poverty. Participants and setting We used a sample of 36,475 individuals born in 1990–1991 from the Wisconsin Data Core longitudinal administrative database, and tracked their involvement in CPS, OHC, and the food assistance program (SNAP) over time. Our sample consisted of individuals who, at ages 14–17, met one of the following criteria: were in OHC; had CPS involvement as a victim but no OHC (CPSV group), or received food assistance without CPSV or OHC (SNAP group). Methods Using logistic regression, we modeled four forms of PP-CPS involvement: parent-perpetrator, resident parent non-perpetrator, nonresident parent non-perpetrator, and non-biological parent-perpetrator. Results Predicted risks of any PP-CPS involvement by age 25 were 10 % (SNAP group), 17–22 % (CPSV group), and 26–33 % (OHC group); among OHC youth known to have a biological Child, rates exceeded 40 %. The proportion of CPS involvement that involved parent-perpetration varied substantially by sex and adversity type. Conclusions Focusing only on intergenerational maltreatment in which the parents are the perpetrators may substantially understate the risk of maltreatment recurring across generations.
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Families at the Intersection of the Criminal Justice and Child Protective Services Systems
The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 2016Co-Authors: Lawrence M. Berger, Maria Cancian, Laura Cuesta, Jennifer L. NoyesAbstract:The prevalence of incarceration in the United States is increasingly well known. The prevalence of family involvement with Child Protective Services (CPS) is less understood, though, and there is limited research examining links between incarceration and CPS involvement. Here, we describe the incidence and prevalence of incarceration and CPS involvement in the United States and outline reasons that the same individuals and families may be at risk for involvement in both systems. We then use unique longitudinal data from Wisconsin to describe intergenerational and intragenerational overlap in the two systems. Specifically, we calculate (1) the proportion of all CPS-involved Children who have an incarcerated parent; (2) the proportion of incarcerated adults who have a CPS-involved Child; (3) the proportion of incarcerated young men and women who were involved in the CPS system as adolescents; and (4) the proportion of CPS-involved adolescents who subsequently became incarcerated. We conclude with a discussi...
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Home Foreclosure and Child Protective Services Involvement.
PEDIATRICS, 2015Co-Authors: Lawrence M. Berger, Sarah Anne Font, Kristen S. Slack, J. Michael Collins, Leah M. Gjertson, Timothy M. SmeedingAbstract:OBJECTIVE: We estimated associations between experiencing a home foreclosure filing and experiencing a Child Protective Services (CPS) investigation or substantiation. METHODS: We linked a large sample drawn from administrative data on foreclosure filings, CPS involvement, and participation in a host of other public programs for >60 000 Wisconsin households over a 4-year period from 2008 to 2011. Our empirical analyses used piecewise exponential survival models to estimate the risk of CPS involvement (investigation or substantiation) as a function of a home foreclosure filing and a set of individual and household characteristics. We fitted these models with and without the inclusion of propensity score weights. RESULTS: Households that experienced a foreclosure filing had a much higher probability of CPS involvement. This was true in the year before the filing as well as the year after the foreclosure filing. However, these associations were generally largest in the period before or shortly afterward. CONCLUSIONS: Experiencing a foreclosure filing is associated with increased CPS involvement. However, it is not clear that this association is driven by the foreclosure filing action itself. Rather, increased risk of CPS involvement is apparent during the process of moving toward the filing as well as the year or so after the filing, both of which are likely characterized by limited economic resources as well as by financial and other stress.
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examining racial disproportionality in Child Protective Services case decisions
Children and Youth Services Review, 2012Co-Authors: Sarah Anne Font, Lawrence M. Berger, Kristen S. SlackAbstract:Using a national sample of 1461 Child Protective Services (CPS) investigations in the United States, we examine differences between black and white families with regard to caseworker ratings of risk and harm to the Child, as well as the probability that a case is substantiated for maltreatment. We employ difference-in-difference methods to identify whether gaps in outcomes for black and white families are equivalent when black and white CPS workers conduct the investigation, and Blinder–Oaxaca decomposition methods to identify the portion of the black–white difference in outcomes that is attributable to differences in case characteristics (risk factors) versus differences in associations between these characteristics and the outcomes by race (differential treatment). We find no differences in outcomes by Child race after adjusting for case characteristics. At the same time, we find that, relative to white caseworkers, black caseworkers are more likely to rate black Children at subjectively higher risk of harm than white Children and are also more likely to substantiate black families for maltreatment. The decomposition results suggest that—even after accounting for caseworker race—differences in outcomes for black and white Children are primarily explained by differences in family and case circumstances rather than differential treatment. Thus, our analyses suggest that interventions addressing maltreatment-related risk factors that disproportionately affect black families may have greater utility for reducing racial disparities in CPS involvement than current emphases on cultural competence training.
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caseworker perceived caregiver substance abuse and Child Protective Services outcomes
Child Maltreatment, 2010Co-Authors: Lawrence M. Berger, Jane Waldfogel, Kristen S. Slack, Sarah K BruchAbstract:The authors used data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being to examine associations of Child Protective Services (CPS) caseworkers' perceptions of caregiver substance abuse with their perceptions of the severity of risk and harm a Child experienced as a result of alleged maltreatment, as well as with whether a family experienced a range of CPS outcomes.The outcomes included whether the family received Services from CPS, was substantiated for maltreatment, experienced Child removal, and was subject to a termination of parental rights (TPR) petition. The authors also compared the magnitude of the association between caseworker-perceived caregiver substance abuse and each outcome to that of the association between other maltreatment-related risk factors and each outcome. Findings suggest that, all else equal, caseworker-perceived caregiver substance abuse is associated with increased caseworker perceptions that Children have experienced severe risk and harm and also with an increased probability of each of the CPS outcomes except TPR. Moreover, these associations are equal in magnitude or larger than those between the other risk factors and the outcomes. These findings imply that CPS decisions are heavily influenced by caseworker perceptions of caregiver substance abuse, regardless of the presence of other risk factors for Child maltreatment.
Michael J. Camasso - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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The Social Outrage Routinization Process in Child Protective Services (CPS) System: A Case Study
Journal of Policy Practice, 2014Co-Authors: Michael J. Camasso, Radha JagannathanAbstract:In this article we describe how singularly disturbing cases of Child maltreatment propelled public Child welfare reform in one large northeastern state in the United States. This case analysis demonstrates how these horrific cases set in motion a dynamic that we term the social outrage routinization process and illustrates the key roles played by the media, moral entrepreneurs, the courts and Child Protective Services (CPS) workforce in moving the process forward. The substantial trauma to the CPS workforce is considered as a consequence of the zero tolerance, infinite jeopardy, and punctuated equilibria mechanisms of the routinization process. The implications of this process for CPS policy and research on Child maltreatment deaths are discussed.
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Decision making in Child Protective Services: a risky business?
Risk Analysis, 2012Co-Authors: Michael J. Camasso, Radha JagannathanAbstract:Child Protective Services (CPS) in the United States has received a torrent of criticism from politicians, the media, Child advocate groups, and the general public for a perceived propensity to make decisions that are detrimental to Children and families. This perception has resulted in numerous lawsuits and court takeovers of CPS in 35 states, and calls for profound restructuring in other states. A widely prescribed remedy for decision errors and faulty judgments is an improvement of risk assessment strategies that enhance hazard evaluation through an improved understanding of threat potentials and exposure likelihoods. We examine the reliability and validity problems that continue to plague current CPS risk assessment and discuss actions that can be taken in the field, including the use of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve technology to improve the predictive validity of risk assessment strategies.
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Risk Assessment in Child Protective Services: A Canonical Analysis of the Case Management Function.
Child Abuse & Neglect, 1996Co-Authors: Radha Jagannathan, Michael J. CamassoAbstract:This study examined the relationship between levels of risk and the patterns of service intervention in Child Protective Services. A stratified, random sample of 239 cases from the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services was examined using canonical correlation techniques. Risk was measured using the Washington Risk Assessment Matrix while case management and service strategies were recorded from case records. Principal results indicate that three distinctive risk profiles operate in the data: older Children with behavior problems, Children from disadvantaged households, and Children with an unemployed parent. Each can be linked to a distinctive service intervention pattern. Implications of these results for workflow management and workload are discussed as well as the implications for future research in the areas of risk assessment and case management.
Radha Jagannathan - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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The Social Outrage Routinization Process in Child Protective Services (CPS) System: A Case Study
Journal of Policy Practice, 2014Co-Authors: Michael J. Camasso, Radha JagannathanAbstract:In this article we describe how singularly disturbing cases of Child maltreatment propelled public Child welfare reform in one large northeastern state in the United States. This case analysis demonstrates how these horrific cases set in motion a dynamic that we term the social outrage routinization process and illustrates the key roles played by the media, moral entrepreneurs, the courts and Child Protective Services (CPS) workforce in moving the process forward. The substantial trauma to the CPS workforce is considered as a consequence of the zero tolerance, infinite jeopardy, and punctuated equilibria mechanisms of the routinization process. The implications of this process for CPS policy and research on Child maltreatment deaths are discussed.
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Decision making in Child Protective Services: a risky business?
Risk Analysis, 2012Co-Authors: Michael J. Camasso, Radha JagannathanAbstract:Child Protective Services (CPS) in the United States has received a torrent of criticism from politicians, the media, Child advocate groups, and the general public for a perceived propensity to make decisions that are detrimental to Children and families. This perception has resulted in numerous lawsuits and court takeovers of CPS in 35 states, and calls for profound restructuring in other states. A widely prescribed remedy for decision errors and faulty judgments is an improvement of risk assessment strategies that enhance hazard evaluation through an improved understanding of threat potentials and exposure likelihoods. We examine the reliability and validity problems that continue to plague current CPS risk assessment and discuss actions that can be taken in the field, including the use of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve technology to improve the predictive validity of risk assessment strategies.
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Risk Assessment in Child Protective Services: A Canonical Analysis of the Case Management Function.
Child Abuse & Neglect, 1996Co-Authors: Radha Jagannathan, Michael J. CamassoAbstract:This study examined the relationship between levels of risk and the patterns of service intervention in Child Protective Services. A stratified, random sample of 239 cases from the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services was examined using canonical correlation techniques. Risk was measured using the Washington Risk Assessment Matrix while case management and service strategies were recorded from case records. Principal results indicate that three distinctive risk profiles operate in the data: older Children with behavior problems, Children from disadvantaged households, and Children with an unemployed parent. Each can be linked to a distinctive service intervention pattern. Implications of these results for workflow management and workload are discussed as well as the implications for future research in the areas of risk assessment and case management.