Development and Preliminary Evaluation of a Training Method to Assist Professionals in Reporting Suspected Child Maltreatment

• NCJ Number: 231517
• Journal: Child Maltreatment Volume: 15 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2010 Pages: 211-218
• Author(s): Krisann M. Alvarez; Brad Donohue; Alisha Carpenter; Valerie Romero; Daniel N. Allen; Chad Cross
• Date Published: August 2010
• Length: 8 pages
• Grant Number(s): 1R01 DA020548-01A1
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article discusses the development and preliminary evaluation of a training program created to assist health care professionals in effectively reporting suspected cases of child maltreatment.

Abstract

The understudied process of reporting suspected child maltreatment to authorities is often difficult for both mental health professionals and family members who are intimately involved. Therefore, the current study was conducted to develop a training curriculum to assist professionals in reporting suspected child maltreatment. Fifty-five professional and student mental health practitioners were randomly assigned to workshop conditions that were relevant to either (a) reporting suspected child maltreatment or (b) learning to be sensitive to ethnicity. Results indicated participants in the reporting suspected child maltreatment condition demonstrated significant improvement in knowledge of child maltreatment reporting laws, accuracy in recognizing child maltreatment, and clinical expertise in reporting. Implications to clinical practice are discussed in light of the results. Tables and references (Published Abstract)