Chapter 6
Services
Child Maltreatment 2004
Child protective services (CPS) agencies provide services to prevent future instances of child abuse and neglect and to remedy conditions that have come to the attention of child welfare agencies. The two categories of CPS services are described below.
- Preventive services are provided to parents whose children are at risk of abuse or neglect.1 These services are designed to increase the understanding of parents and other caregivers of the developmental stages of childhood and to improve their child-rearing competencies. Examples of preventive services include respite care, parenting education, housing assistance, substance abuse treatment, daycare, home visits, individual and family counseling, and homemaker help.
- Postinvestigation services (also termed remedial or postresponse services), are offered on a voluntary basis by child welfare agencies or ordered by the courts to ensure the safety of children.2 These services address the safety of the child and are usually based on an assessment of the family's strengths, weaknesses, and needs. Examples of postinvestigation services include individual counseling, case management, family-based services (services provided to the entire family, such as counseling or family support), in-home services (such as family preservation), foster care services, and court services.
This chapter presents information about children who received preventive services and who received postinvestigation services. The factors that influence the provision of services also are discussed.
Preventive Services
Based on data from 35 States, it is estimated that 26.7 children per 1,000 children in the population received preventive services. This results in a national estimate of nearly 2,000,000 children.3 For 2003, the rate was 25.3 children per 1,000 children in the population based on data from 36 States.
States and local communities determine who will receive preventive services, what services will be offered, and how the services will be provided. Preventive services were funded by the following Federal programs, as well as by State programs.
- Section 106 of Title I of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), as amended [42 U.S.C. 5106 et seq.]—The Child Abuse and Neglect State Grant (Basic State Grant) provides funds to States to improve CPS systems. The grant serves as a catalyst to assist States in screening and investigating child abuse and neglect reports, creating and improving the use of multidisciplinary teams to enhance investigations, improving risk and safety assessment protocols, training CPS workers and mandated reporters, and improving services to infants disabled with life-threatening conditions.
- Title II of CAPTA, as amended [42 U.S.C. 5116 et seq.]—The Community-Based Grants for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect assist each State to support community-based efforts to develop, operate, expand, enhance, and to network initiatives aimed at the prevention of child abuse and neglect; to support networks of coordinated resources and activities to strengthen and support families; and to foster appreciation of diverse populations.
- Title IV-B, Subpart 2, Section 430, of the Social Security Act, as amended Promoting Safe and Stable Families [42.U.S.C. 629 et seq.]—This legislation has the goal of keeping families together by funding such services as preventive intervention so that children do not have to be removed from their homes, services to develop alternative placements if children cannot remain safely in the home, and reunification services to enable children to return to their homes, if appropriate.
- Title XX of the Social Security Act, Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), [42 U.S.C. 1397 et seq.]—This grant says that states may use grant funds for such preventive services as child daycare, child protective services, information and referral, counseling, and foster care, as well as other services that meet the goal of preventing or remedying neglect, abuse, or exploitation of children.
Some States were able to estimate the number of recipients of services by funding source. Approximately 32.7 percent of child recipients received preventive services funded by Promoting Safe and Stable Families grants and 28.9 percent under the Social Services Block Grant.4 The Child Abuse and Neglect Basic State Grant and the Community-Based Grants for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect provided the preventive services for 1.7 percent and 8.9 percent of children, respectively. Slightly more than one-quarter of children (27.8%) received services that were paid with other sources, including other Federal and State programs.
Return to Table of Contents
Postinvestigation Services
More than three-quarters of States have policies requiring workers to provide short-term services, if needed, during an investigation. A similar percentage of States require workers to assist with the planning of ongoing services.5 Almost 60 percent (59.4%) of the child victims received postinvestigation services.6 Nearly 30 percent (27.3%) of nonvictims received such services.With a few exceptions, the State data on the average number of days to the provision of services fall within the timeframe allowed for an investigation or shortly thereafter. The average time from the start of investigation to provision of service was 46 days.7 These data result in national estimates of 518,000 victims and 718,000 nonvictims who received services.8
Children may be removed from their homes during or after an investigation. Some children who are removed on an emergency basis spend a short time in foster care, while others spend a longer time. Nearly one-fifth of victims (19.0%) were placed in foster care as a result of an investigation compared to 15.1 perecent for 2003.9 In addition, 3.9 percent of nonvictims experienced removal. Nationally, it is estimated that 268,000 children were removed from their homes as a result of a child maltreatment investigation.10 Two-thirds (66.3%) of the victims who were removed from their homes suffered from neglect, 10.6 percent from physical abuse, 4.1 percent from sexual abuse, and 14 percent from multiple types of maltreatment.11
Court proceedings to determine temporary custody of the victim, guardianship of the victim, or disposition of State dependency petitions were reported as being initiated to 16.7 percent of victims. Court-appointed representatives were assigned for 12.7 percent of child victims.12 Nearly one-quarter of child victims (23.8%) received family preservation services and 6.9 percent had received family reunification services within the previous 5 years.13
Return to Table of Contents
Factors Influencing the Receipt of Services
A multivariate analysis was used to examine which characteristics of a child's case influenced the receipt of services, and which factors influenced the removal of victims from their homes. Three categories of child victims were studied. The first category consisted of all victims who received any postinvestigation service, the second category consisted of victims who received services while living in their own homes, and the third category consisted of victims who received foster care services. This last group may have received other nonplacement services in addition to being removed.
Receipt of Postinvestigation Services
There are several reasons why only some children and families receive postinvestigation services or family reunification services. For example, there may not be enough services available for families or the waiting lists may be very long. One hypothesis is that the characteristics of a child's case influence the receipt of services. This hypothesis was explored by using the case-level data submissions to examine which factors influenced whether or not a victim or the victim's family received postinvestigation services. Highlights of the findings are listed below.14
- Child victims who were reported with a disability were 70 percent more likely to receive postinvestigation services than children without a disability.15
- When compared with physical abuse victims, victims of multiple maltreatments were 65 percent more likely to receive services.
- Child victims of undetermined or unknown race or ethnicity were 66 percent less likely to receive services when compared with White victims.
- Child victims who were abused or maltreated by nonparental perpetrators were 60 percent less likely to receive postinvestigation services than child victims who were abused or maltreated by their mothers.
Return to Table of Contents
Some victims who received in-home services did not experience a removal because of the investigation. Highlights of findings related to the characteristics of these children include the following.
- When compared with physical abuse victims, victims of multiple maltreatments were 60 percent more likely to receive in-home services.
- Child victims of undetermined or unknown race or ethnicity were 64 percent less likely to receive in-home services when compared with White victims.
- Child victims who were abused or maltreated by nonparental perpetrators were 63 percent less likely to receive in-home services than child victims who were abused or maltreated by their mothers.
Return to Table of Contents
Receipt of Foster Care Services
Children who received foster care services may also have received other services. Findings related to these child victims include the following.
- Prior child victims were 75 percent more likely to be placed in foster care than children with no prior victimization.
- Child victims reported with a disability were 94 percent more likely to be placed in foster care than child victims with no reported disability.
- When compared with victims of physical abuse, victims of multiple maltreatments were more than twice as likely to be placed in foster care.
- When compared with White child victims, victims of "other" or multiple races were 56 percent more likely to be placed in foster care. Child victims of undetermined or unknown race were 54 percent less likely to be placed in foster care.
- Children who were victimized by their fathers were 54 percent less likely to be placed in foster care than children who were victimized by their mothers.
Tables and Notes
The following pages contain the tables referenced in Chapter 6. Unless otherwise explained, a blank indicates that the State did not submit usable data. Specific information about State submissions can be found in appendix D. Additional information regarding methodologies that were used during table creation are provided below.
Table 6-3
- The average number of days to services was rounded to whole days.
- A zero indicates an average of less than 1 day.
Table 6-5
- The category neglect includes medical neglect.
Table 6-7
- Total percentages were calculated by dividing the total number of victims who received family preservation services or family reunification services by the total number of victims for only those States that reported data for each category and multiplying by 100.
Table 6-8
- Odds ratios indicate the likelihood, relative to the reference group, of the outcome occurring. Odds ratios greater than 1.00 indicate an increased likelihood of occurrence. Odds ratios less than 1.00 indicate a decreased likelihood of occurrence.
- The category neglect includes medical neglect.
Notes
1 Data about preventive services are captured through the Agency File or the Summary Data Component (SDC). States are not limited to reporting only those children who received an investigation by the CPS agency. Back
2 Data about postinvestigation services are collected through the Child File or the SDC. States are asked to report only those children who received services by the CPS agency within 90 days of the disposition date. Back
3Thirty-five States reported that 1,320,419 children received preventive services for a rate of 26.7. When this rate is applied to the national population of 73,277,998, it is estimated that 1,956,523 children received preventive services. Supporting data are provided in table 6-1, which is located at the end of this chapter. Back
4 See table 6-2. Back
5 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Children and Families/Children's Bureau and Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. [HHS/ACF and OASPE] National Study of Child Protective Services Systems and Reform Efforts: Review of State CPS Policy. (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2004). Back
6 See table 6-3. Back
7 See table 6-3. Back
8 A national estimate of 518,000 victims who received postinvestigation services was calculated by multiplying the total number of victims (872,000) by the percent of child victims who received postinvestigation services for the 45 States that reported victim postinvestigation data (59.4%). The resulting number was rounded to the nearest 1,000.
A national estimate of 718,000 nonvictims who received postinvestigation services was calculated by multiplying the total number of nonvictims (2,631,000) by the percent of child nonvictims who received postinvestigation services for the 39 States that reported nonvictim postinvestigation data (27.3%). The resulting number was rounded to the nearest 1,000. Back
9 See table 6-4. Back
10 The national estimate of 268,000 children who were removed from their home was calculated by multiplying the national estimate of victims (872,000) by 19.0% and multiplying the national estimate of nonvictims (2,631,000) by 3.9%, adding the resulting two numbers, and rounding to the nearest 1,000. Back
11 See table 6-5. Back
12 See table 6-6. Back
13 See table 6-7. Back
14 The bulleted findings identify those factors that were more than 1.50 or less than 0.50. See table 6-8. Back
15 In general, children with such conditions are undercounted as not every child receives a clinical diagnostic assessment. Back
Return to Table of Contents
