Appendix B
Glossary
Child Maltreatment 2003
Adoptive Parent: A person with the legal relation of parent to a child not related by birth, with the same mutual rights and obligations that exist between children and their birth parents. The legal relationship has been finalized.
Age: Age calculated in years at the time of the report of abuse or neglect or as of December 31 of the reporting year.
Agency File: One of two data files submitted to NCANDS on a periodic basis. Contains aggregated child abuse data that cannot be derived from the case-level information in the Child File, such as response time to reports of abuse and provision of preventive services. See Child File.
Alleged Perpetrator: An individual who is alleged to have caused or knowingly allowed the maltreatment of a child as stated in an incident of child abuse or neglect.
Alleged Victim: Child about whom a report regarding maltreatment has been made to a CPS agency.
Alternative Response Nonvictim: A conclusion that the child was not identified as a victim when a response other than investigation was provided.
Alternative Response Victim: A conclusion that the child was identified as a victim when a response other than investigation was provided.
American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.
Anonymous or Unknown Report Source: An individual who notifies a CPS agency of suspected child maltreatment without identifying himself or herself; or the type of report source is unknown.
Asian: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Assessment: A process by which the CPS agency determines whether the child or other persons involved in the report of alleged maltreatment is in need of services.
Biological Parent: The birth mother or father of the child.
Black or African-American: A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
Boy: A male child younger than 18 years.
CAPTA: See Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act.
Caregiver: A person responsible for the care and supervision of the alleged child victim.
CASA: See Court-Appointed Special Advocate.
Case-Level Data: Information submitted by the States in the Child File containing individual child or report maltreatment characteristics.
Caseworker: A staff person assigned to a report of child maltreatment at the time of the report disposition.
Child: A person younger than 18 years of age or considered to be a minor under State law.
Child Abuse and Neglect State Grant: Funding to the States for programs serving abused and neglected children, awarded under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA).May be used to assist States in intake and assessment; screening and investigation of child abuse and neglect reports; improving risk and safety assessment protocols; training child protective service workers and mandated reporters; and improving services to disabled infants with life-threatening conditions.
Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act [42 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.] (CAPTA): Federal legislation amended and reauthorized in 1996 that provides the foundation for Federal involvement in child protection and child welfare services. The 1996 Amendments provide for, among other things, annual State data reports on child maltreatment to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The most recent reauthorization of CAPTA, The Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003 [42 U.S.C. 5106], retained these provisions.
Child Daycare Provider: A person with a temporary caregiver responsibility, but who is not related to the child such as a daycare center staff member, a family day care provider, or a baby-sitter. Does not include persons with legal custody or guardianship of the child.
Child Death Review Team: A State team of professionals who review all reports surrounding the death of a child.
Child File: The data file submitted to NCANDS on a periodic basis that contains detailed case information about children who are the subjects of an investigation or assessment.
Child ID: See Child Identifier.
Child Identifier: A unique identification assigned to each child. This identification is not the State child identification but is an encrypted identification assigned by the State for the purposes of the NCANDS data collection.
Child Maltreatment: An act or failure to act by a parent, caregiver, or other person as defined under State law that results in physical abuse, neglect, medical neglect, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm to a child.
Child Protective Services (CPS): An official agency of a State having the responsibility for child protective services and activities.
Child Protective Services (CPS) Supervisor: The manager of the caseworker assigned to a report of child maltreatment at the time of the report disposition.
Child Protective Services (CPS) Worker: The person assigned to a report of child maltreatment at the time of the report disposition.
Child Protective Services (CPS) Workforce: The CPS supervisors and workers assigned to handle a child maltreatment report. May include other administrative staff, as defined by the State Agency.
Child Record: A case-level record in the Child File containing the data associated with one child in one report.
Child Victim: A child for whom an incident of abuse or neglect has been substantiated or indicated by an investigation or assessment. A State may include some children with alternative dispositions as victims.
Children's Bureau: Federal agency within the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which is responsible for the collection and analysis of NCANDS data.
Closed with No Finding: Disposition that does not conclude with a specific finding because the investigation could not be completed for such reasons as: the family moved out of the jurisdiction; the family could not be located; or necessary diagnostic or other reports were not received within required time limits.
Community-Based Family Resource and Supportt Grant: Grant provided under Section 210 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) that assists States to prevent child abuse and neglect and promote positive development of parents and children by developing, operating, expanding, and enhancing a network of community-based, prevention-focused, family resource and support programs that coordinate resources among a broad range of human service organizations.
Contact Person, State: The State person with the responsibility to provide information to the NCANDS.
Court-Appointed Representative: A person appointed by the court to represent a child in a neglect or abuse proceeding. May be an attorney or a court-appointed special advocate (or both) and is often referred to as a guardian ad litem (GAL). The representative makes recommendations to the court concerning the best interests of the child.
Court-Appointed Special Advocate: Adult volunteers trained to advocate for abused and neglected children who are involved in the juvenile court.
Court Action: Legal action initiated by a representative of the CPS agency on behalf of the child. This includes authorization to place the child in foster care, filing for temporary custody, dependency, or termination of parental rights. It does not include criminal proceedings against a perpetrator.
Disability: A child is considered to have a disability if one or more of the following risk factors has been identified: mentally retarded child, emotionally disturbed child, visually impaired child, child is learning disabled, child is physically disabled, child has behavioral problems, or child has some other medical problem. In general, children with such conditions are undercounted as not every child receives a clinical diagnostic assessment.
Disposition: See Investigation Disposition.
Educational Personnel: Employees of a public or private educational institution or program; includes teachers, teacher assistants, administrators, and others directly associated with the delivery of educational services.
Family Perservation Services: Activities designed to help families alleviate crises that might lead to out-of-home placement of children, maintain the safety of children in their own homes, support families preparing to reunify or adopt, and assist families in obtaining services and other supports necessary to address their multiple needs in a culturally sensitive manner.
Family Support Services: Community-based preventive activities designed to alleviate stress and promote parental competencies and behaviors that will increase the ability of families to nurture their children successfully, enable families to use other resources and opportunities available in the community, and create supportive networks to enhance childrearing abilities of parents.
Fatality: Death of a child as a result of abuse or neglect, because either an injury resulting from the abuse or neglect was the cause of death; or abuse or neglect were contributing factors to the cause of death.
Federal Fiscal Year: The 12-month period from October 1 through September 30 used by the Federal Government. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends.
Foster Care: Twenty-four-hour substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians and for whom the State Agency has placement and care responsibility. This includes family foster homes, foster homes of relatives, group homes, emergency shelters, residential facilities, child care institutions, and pre-adoptive homes. The NCANDS category applies regardless of whether the facility is licensed and whether payments are made by the State or local agency for the care of the child, or whether there is Federal matching of any payments made. Foster care may be provided by those related or not related to the child. All children in care for more than 24 hours are counted.
Foster Parent: An individual licensed to provide a home for orphaned, abused, neglected, delinquent, or disabled children, usually with the approval of the government or a social service agency. May be a relative or a nonrelative.
Friend: A nonrelative acquainted with the child, the parent, or caregiver.
FTE: See Full-Time Equivalent.
Full-Time Equivalent: A computed statistic representing the number of full-time employees if the number of hours worked by part-time employees had been worked by full-time employees.
Girl: A female child younger than 18 years.
Group Home or Residential Care: A nonfamilial 24-hour care facility that may be supervised by the State Agency or governed privately.
Guardian Ad Litem: See Court-Appointed Representative.
Hispanic Ethnicity: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. See Race.
Indicated or Reason to Suspect: An investigation disposition that concludes that maltreatment cannot be substantiated under State law or policy, but there is reason to suspect that the child may have been maltreated or was at risk of maltreatment. This is applicable only to States that distinguish between substantiated and indicated dispositions.
Initial Investigation: The CPS initial contact or attempt to have face-to-face contact with the alleged victim. If face-to-face contact is not possible with the alleged victim, initial investigation would be when CPS first contacted any party who could provide information essential to the investigation or assessment.
Intake: The activities associated with the receipt of a referral—the assessment or screening, the decision to accept, and the enrollment of individuals or families into services.
Intentionally False: The unsubstantiated investigation disposition that indicates a conclusion that the person who made the allegation of maltreatment knew that the allegation was not true.
Investigation: The gathering and assessment of objective information to determine if a child has been or is at risk of being maltreated. Generally includes face-to-face contact with the victim and results in a disposition as to whether or not the alleged report is substantiated.
Investigation Disposition: A determination made by a social service agency that evidence is or is not sufficient under State law to conclude that maltreatment occurred.
Investigation Disposition Date: The point in time at the end of the investigation or assessment when a CPS worker declares a disposition to the child maltreatment report.
Investigation Start Date: The date when CPS initially contacted or attempted to have face-to-face contact with the alleged victim. If this face-to-face contact is not possible, the date would be when CPS initially contacted any party who could provide information essential to the investigation or assessment.
Legal Guardian: Adult person who has been given legal custody and guardianship of a minor.
Legal, Law Enforcement, or Criminal Justice Personnel: People employed by a local, State, tribal, or Federal justice agency. This includes law enforcement, courts, district attorney's office, probation or other community corrections agency, and correctional facilities.
Maltreatment Type: A particular form of child maltreatment determined by investigation to be substantiated or indicated under State law. Types include physical abuse, neglect or deprivation of necessities, medical neglect, sexual abuse, psychological or emotional maltreatment, and other forms included in State law.
Medical Neglect: A type of maltreatment caused by failure by the caregiver to provide for the appropriate health care of the child although financially able to do so, or offered financial or other means to do so.
Medical Personnel: People employed by a medical facility or practice. This includes physicians, physician assistants, nurses, emergency medical technicians, dentists, chiropractors, coroners, and dental assistants and technicians.
Mental Health Personnel: People employed by a mental health facility or practice, including psychologists, psychiatrists, and therapists.
NCANDS: The National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System.
Neglect or Deprivation of Necessities: A type of maltreatment that refers to the failure by the caregiver to provide needed, age-appropriate care although financially able to do so or offered financial or other means to do so.
Neighbor: A person living in close geographical proximity to the child or family.
No Alleged Maltreatment: A maltreatment level where the no alleged child is associated with a victim or nonvictim of child maltreatment or neglect. The no alleged child did not have any allegations of abuse or neglect.
Noncaregiver: A person who is not responsible for the care and supervision of the child, including school personnel, friends, and neighbors.
Nonparent: Includes other relative, foster parent, residential facility staff, child daycare provider, foster care provider, unmarried partner of parent, legal guardian, and "other."
Other Professional: A perpetrator who had contact with the child victim as part of his or her job, but the relationship of the perpetrator to the child is not one of the identified NCANDS codes. For example, clergy, sports coach, camp counselor, etc.
Other Relative: A nonparental family member.
Out-of-Court Contact: A meeting, which is not part of the actual judicial hearing, between the court-appointed representative and the child victim. Such contacts enable the court-appointed representative to obtain a first-hand understanding of the situation and needs of the child victim, and to make recommendations to the court concerning the best interests of the child.
Pacific Islander: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
Parent: The birth mother or father, adoptive mother or father, or step mother or father of the child victim.
Perpetrator: The person who has been determined to have caused or knowingly allowed the maltreatment of a child.
Perpetrator Age: Age of an individual determined to have caused or knowingly allowed the maltreatment of a child. Age is calculated in years at the time of the report of child maltreatment.
Perpetrator ID: See Perpetrator Identifier.
Perpetrator Identifier: A unique, encrypted identification assigned to each perpetrator by the State for the purposes of the NCANDS data collection.
Perpetrator Relationship: Primary role of the perpetrator to a child victim.
Physical Abuse: Type of maltreatment that refers to physical acts that caused or could have caused physical injury to a child.
Postinvestigation Services: Activities provided or arranged by the child protective services agency, social services agency, or the child welfare agency for the child or family as a result of needs discovered during the course of an investigation. Includes such services as family preservation, family support, and foster care. Postinvestigation services are delivered within the first 90 days after the disposition of the report.
Preventive Services: Activities aimed at preventing child abuse and neglect. Such activities may be directed at specific populations identified as being at increased risk of becoming abusive and may be designed to increase the strength and stability of families, to increase parents' confidence and competence in their parenting abilities, and to afford children a stable and supportive environment. They include child abuse and neglect preventive services provided through such Federal funds as the Child Abuse and Neglect Basic State Grant, Community-Based Family Resource and Support Grant, the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program (title IV-B, subpart 2), Maternal and Child Health Block Grant, Social Services Block Grant (title XX), and State and local funds. Such activities do not include public awareness campaigns.
Prior Child Victim: A child victim with previous substantiated, indicated, or alternative response victim reports of maltreatment.
Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program: Program that provides grants to the States under Section 430, title IV-B, subpart 2 of the Social Security Act, as amended, to develop and expand four types of services—community-based family support services; innovative child welfare services, including family preservation services; time-limited reunification services; and adoption promotion and support services.
Psychological or Emotional Maltreatment: Type of maltreatment that refers to acts or omissions, other than physical abuse or sexual abuse that caused, or could have caused, conduct, cognitive, affective, or other mental disorders. Includes emotional neglect, psychological abuse, and mental injury. Frequently occurs as verbal abuse or excessive demands on a child's performance.
Race: The primary taxonomic category of which the individual identifies himself or herself as a member, or of which the parent identifies the child as a member. See American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African-American, Pacific Islander, White, and Unable to Determine. Also, see Hispanic.
Receipt of Report: The log-in of a referral to the agency alleging child maltreatment.
Relative: A person connected to the child by blood, such as parents, siblings, and grandparents.
Referral: Notification to the CPS agency of suspected child maltreatment. This can include one or more children.
Report-Child Pair: Refers to the concatenation of the Report ID and the Child ID, which together form a new unique ID which represents a single unique record in the case-level Child File.
Report Date: The month, day, and year that the responsible agency was notified of the suspected child maltreatment.
Report Disposition: The conclusion reached by the responsible agency regarding the report of alleged maltreatment pertaining to the child.
Report ID: See Report Identifier.
Report Identifier: A unique identification assigned to each report of child maltreatment for the purposes of the NCANDS data collection.
Report Source: The category or role of the person who notifies a CPS agency of alleged child maltreatment.
Reporting Period: The 12-month period for which data are submitted to the NCANDS.
Residential Facility Staff: Employees of a public or private group residential facility, including emergency shelters, group homes, and institutions.
Response Time with Respect to the Initial Investigation: The time between the log-in of a call to the State agency alleging child maltreatment and the face-to-face contact with the alleged victim, where this is appropriate, or to contact with another person who can provide information.
Response Time with Respect to the Provisions of Services: The time from the log-in of a call to the agency alleging child maltreatment to the provision of postinvestigative services, often requiring the opening of a case for ongoing services.
Screened-in Reports: Referrals of child maltreatment that met the State's standards for acceptance.
Screened-out Referral: Allegations of child maltreatment that did not meet the State's standards for acceptance.
Screening: The process by which the CPS agency makes a decision about whether or not to accept a referral of child maltreatment.
Service Date: The date activities began as a result of needs discovered during the CPS response.
Services: Noninvestigative public or private nonprofit activities provided or continued as a result of an investigation or assessment. In general, only activities that occur within 90 days of the disposition date are included in NCANDS.
Sexual Abuse: A type of maltreatment that refers to the involvement of the child in sexual activity to provide sexual gratification or financial benefit to the perpetrator, including contacts for sexual purposes, molestation, statutory rape, prostitution, pornography, exposure, incest, or other sexually exploitative activities.
Social Services Block Grant: Funds provided by title XX of the Social Security Act that are used for services to the States that may include child care, child protection, child and foster care services, and daycare.
Social Services Personnel: Employees of a public or private social services or social welfare agency, or other social worker or counselor who provides similar services.
State: The primary geopolitical unit from which child maltreatment data are collected. U.S. territories, U.S. military commands, and Washington, DC, have the same status as States in the data collection effort.
State Agency: The agency in a State that is responsible for child protection and child welfare.
Stepparent: The husband or wife, by a subsequent marriage, of the child's mother or father.
Substantiated: A type of investigation disposition that concludes that the allegation of maltreatment or risk of maltreatment was supported or founded by State law or State policy. This is the highest level of finding by a State Agency.
Summary Data Component (SDC): The aggregate data collection form submitted by States that do not submit the Child File.
Unable to Determine: Any racial or ethnicity category not included in the following: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African-American, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, or White.
Unknown: The State collects data on this variable, but the data for this particular report or child were not captured or are missing.
Unmarried Partner of Parent: Someone who has a relationship with the parent and lives in the household with the parent and maltreated child.
Unsubstantiated: A type of investigation disposition that determines that there is not sufficient evidence under State law to conclude or suspect that the child has been maltreated or is at risk of being maltreated.
Victim: A child having a maltreatment disposition of substantiated, indicated, or alternative response victim.
White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.
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