Coordinated Response to Child Abuse and Neglect: The Foundation for Practice

• NCJ Number: 205564
• Author(s): Jill Goldman; Marsha K. Salus; Deborah Wolcott; Kristie Y. Kennedy
• Date Published: 2003
• Length: 108 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Health and Human Services
• Corporate Author: ICF International
• Sale Source: National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Instructional Material
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: From the "Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series"

Annotation

The first in the "Child Abuse and Neglect User Manual Series," this manual addresses the definition, scope, causes, and consequences of child abuse and neglect and also presents an overview of prevention efforts and the child protection process from identification and reporting through investigation and assessment to service provision and case closure.

Abstract

This manual provides the basic information that professionals and community residents need to become involved in and enhance their community's response to child maltreatment. A chapter on the philosophical tenets of child protection discusses the three national goals for child protection as promoted in the Federal Adoption and Safe Families Act (ASFA). These are safety, permanency, and child and family well-being. The philosophical tenets outlined expand upon the principles promoted in ASFA and the values that underlie sound practices in community responses to child abuse and neglect. A chapter on the definition of "child maltreatment" addresses definitions in Federal law, sources of definitions in State law, and general definitions by type of maltreatment. A chapter on the scope of the problem provides information and data on reported child maltreatment victims, child maltreatment perpetrators, and unreported child abuse and neglect. Factors that contribute to child abuse and neglect are discussed in another chapter. These factors pertain to the parent or caregiver, family functioning, the child's characteristics, and environmental characteristics. Factors that help protect against child abuse and neglect are also discussed. Other chapters examine the consequences of child abuse and neglect for the child, strategies for preventing child abuse and neglect, the laws and policies that guide public intervention in child maltreatment, the features of the child protection process, who should be involved in child protection at the community level, and how community organizations can work together to protect children. 150 notes and appended glossary of terms, listing of selected national organizations concerned with child maltreatment, and State toll-free telephone numbers for reporting child abuse