Tag Archives: Child Protection

Signs of Sexual Abuse Tip Sheet for Media

A new pamphlet developed by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC), What Is Child Sexual Abuse?, highlights various forms of sexual victimization and their distinctive signs and symptoms. Targeted to media professionals, the pamphlet summarizes common behavioral red flags displayed by sexually abused children. The brochure illustrates characteristic behaviors exhibited by child sexual abuse perpetrators and cites common factors influencing children’s ability to disclose sexual abuse. Finally, data on the prevalence of this problem is presented and briefly discussed. Link to pdf Tip Sheet

Comparing CA&N in Rural and Urban Areas

Certain child and family characteristics make cases of abuse and neglect more likely to be substantiated—or confirmed—by child protective services (CPS) in rural versus urban settings, according to a new issue brief by the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. Using data collected in 2008 and 2009 for the second National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW II), researchers found many similarities in confirmed cases across settings. However, cases of abuse and neglect with the following three characteristics were more likely to be confirmed in rural than in urban areas:

  • Children      age 11 or older (35 percent of rural cases confirmed versus 23 percent of      urban cases)
  • Parents      experiencing cognitive impairments or domestic violence (72 percent of      rural versus 54 percent of urban cases)
  • Families      with income greater than 200 percent of the Federal poverty level (36      percent of rural versus 26 percent of urban cases)

The authors explain that abuse and neglect confirmation often affects whether families will receive support services, but that most children with reported cases experience the same outcomes regardless of confirmation. Therefore, professionals should strive to provide similar services to families with unconfirmed cases in order to improve child outcomes and reduce risks for another report. Because CPS agencies in rural settings often are challenged by finding and keeping skilled workers and providing services across long distances, the issue brief concludes with recommendations for service providers in those areas. Link to Issue Brief

Establishing and Maintaining Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Systems in State Child Welfare Agencies

Provides State title IV-B and IV-E child welfare agencies with information to establish and maintain CQI systems and to provide information on claiming allowable federal financial participation costs for CQI. While the Children’s Bureau considers how to revise the CFSR process, States are advised to maintain their QA systems and enhance them through a continuous quality improvement approach. A continuous quality improvement approach allows States to measure the quality of services provided by determining the impact those services have on child and family level outcomes and functioning and the effectiveness of processes and systems in operation in the State and/or required by Federal law. Link to pdf Information Memorandum

Developmental Neuroscience, Children’s Relationships with Primary Caregivers, and Child Protection Policy Reform

Hastings Law Journal: Part I of this Article address the state’s relationship with children and families, and the law’s recognition of the centrality of children’s primary caregivers typically their parents to children’s well-being.

Part II critiques certain aspects of our legal system’s predominant response to child maltreatment.

Part III reviews recent research on the effects of child maltreatment, with special attention to developmental neurobiological findings.

Part IV addresses some implications of these findings for child protection policy and sets forth recommendations that are consistent with the empirical research and responsive to the critiques set forth in Part II.

The heavy toll exacted by child maltreatment extends far beyond the individuals who are the direct victims of maltreatment. It is borne by the entire society, “reverberating across relationships, generations, and communities.” If policymakers make the right investments, the combined wisdom gleaned from the efforts of multiple scientific disciplines can pave the pathways to the development of effective preventive and intervention strategies that decrease the risks faced by children and promote children’s resilience in coping with those risks that remain. Link to pdf Law Journal Article