Promises and Possibilities: The Application of Research in the Area of Child Maltreatment to Policies and Practices (original) (raw)

Development of a Policy-Relevant Child Maltreatment Research Strategy

Milbank Quarterly, 2007

Child maltreatment is associated with a huge burden of suffering, yet there are serious gaps in knowledge about its epidemiology and approaches to intervention. This article describes the development of a proposed national research framework in child maltreatment, as requested by the Department of Justice, Canada, based on (1) a review of the literature, (2) consultation with experts, and (3) application of evaluation criteria for considering research priorities. The article identifies gaps in knowledge about child maltreatment in Canada and proposes a research agenda to make evidence-based policy decisions more likely. Although this work was driven by gaps in Canada's knowledge about child maltreatment, the international scope of the review and consultation process could make the findings useful to broader research and policy audiences.

Educating on child maltreatment

PsycCRITIQUES, 2001

In Child Maltreatment: An Introduction (Miller-Perrin and Perrin; see record 1999-08148-000) designed for undergraduate and master's level students, these authors provide substantive knowledge in a well-written and accessible format with a striking emphasis on advocacy that sets this child maltreatment text apart from other related areas of inquiry. They educate on the continuum of child maltreatment in a comprehensive fashion and provide thoughtful discussion of the legal and clinical issues throughout their book. Child Maltreatment has three main parts: introductory chapters on historical context and methodological issues; individual chapters devoted to the major forms of maltreatment; and finally, a chapter devoted to policy, planning, and prevention. Positive features across chapters include boxed specialty topics, interviews with leading researchers, a consistent organization for the separate maltreatment chapters, and a listing of maltreatment-related resources. The text could find an integrative chapter examining both the extent of overlap among the various forms of maltreatment and the meaning of such overlap, a chapter devoted to theoretical formulations, and more case reports useful additions. Overall, this is a timely and well-crafted text that should find a wide and appreciative readership.

Current research on child maltreatment: Implications for educators

1999

The increasing rate of child abuse and neglect is a special concern for educators who are legally mandated reporters of suspected maltreatment, are often the first to identify and refer children who have been harmed, are in contact with parents and are aware of the family conditions contributing to child maltreatment, and who must often work closely with other professionals in their efforts to support child victims and prevent further abuse. Moreover, children's emotional or behavioral problems, learning disabilities, or other difficulties often reflect broader problems that are associated with abuse or neglect. Consequently, understanding the causes and consequences of child maltreatment, and contemporary child protection efforts, is essential to educators in their efforts to assist victimized children. This article surveys current research on child maltreatment with particular attention to the challenges of child protection, the multidimensionality of child maltreatment (distinguishing physical abuse, physical neglect, sexual abuse, and psychological maltreatment), and hopeful new avenues for prevention. The implications of this research for educational professionals are emphasized.

The Extent and Consequences of Child Maltreatment

The Future of Children, 1998

Specific, accurate understanding of the extent of maltreatment in American society, the nature of the maltreatment that occurs, and the consequences it has for children are crucial to inform policies regarding child protection and to guide the design of prevention and treatment programs. This article examines how child abuse and neglect are defined and discusses the controversies that surround that definition, which attracts attention because it justifies government intervention to stop actions by parents or caregivers that seriously harm children. The article also presents statistics indicating how widespread maltreatment is, reviews research on the characteristics of families that are more prone to abuse or neglect, and summarizes knowledge about the impact of maltreatment on children. Finally, it mentions the efforts of public child protective services agencies to responsibly ration calls on their limited resources by using risk-assessment approaches to target scarce services to the children who need them the most.

Child maltreatment research: Federal support and policy issues

American Psychologist, 1995

The recent history of federal support for child maltreatment research paints a mixed picture of inadequate funding and uncertain administrative guidance against a backdrop of growing public concern about the prevalence of child abuse and neglect. This article describes some of the problems that have been identified in federal research funding, administration, and support of research initiatives and training concerning child abuse and neglect. Remedies for these difficulties are outlined, priorities for new research in this area are identified, and ways in which to rejuvenate the federal government's role in this area, in league with a concerted commitment to policy-relevant research by behavioral scientists, are suggested.

Child Maltreatment 2 Recognising and responding to child maltreatment

2009

Professionals in child health, primary care, mental health, schools, social services, and law-enforcement services all contribute to the recognition of and response to child maltreatment. In all sectors, children suspected of being maltreated are under-reported to child-protection agencies. Lack of awareness of the signs of child maltreatment and processes for reporting to child-protection agencies, and a perception that reporting might do more harm than good, are among the reasons for not reporting. Strategies to improve recognition, mainly used in paediatric practice, include training, use of questionnaires for asking children and parents about maltreatment, and evidence-based guidelines for who should be assessed by child-protection specialists. Internationally, studies suggest that policies emphasising substantiation of maltreatment without concomitant attention to welfare needs lead to less service provision for maltreated children than do those in systems for which child maltr...

Child maltreatment 2002: recognition, reporting and risk

Pediatrics international : official journal of the Japan Pediatric Society, 2002

Child abuse is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the USA and in all other countries which have studied its incidence. It is the second leading cause of death of children in the USA. To decrease the incidence of child abuse and improve the welfare of children there must be international efforts to recognize, and report child abuse and to decrease those risk factors, which place children in jeopardy. In the USA, reports of child maltreatment have decreased each year since 1994 after nearly two decades of increase. The increase was associated with the passage of laws that mandated reporting child maltreatment and increased recognition of maltreatment. Several theories have been proposed to explain the decrease. These include: improved economy with decreased caretaker stress and more vulnerable children in day-care, imprisonment of offenders, treatment of victims to prevent reactive abuse, decreased use of corporal punishment, earlier recognition and reporting, prevention prog...