Linking worker-parent working alliance to parent progress in child welfare: A longitudinal analysis

Using a national data set of child welfare cases, we asked how parent progress in a case plan was related to four factors: collaborative engagement, child welfare history, parent characteristics, and social worker characteristics. Our secondary analysis employed a sample extracted from nationally representative longitudinal records of 3185 children and their parents. Results of generalized least squares random-effects modeling showed that parent progress was associated positively with five specific variables: collaborative engagement, maintenance of effective working relationship, parent receipt of assistance in achieving goals, parent satisfaction with collaborative engagement, parent Hispanic ethnicity, and child welfare worker with MSW or degree in other major. Associated negatively with parent progress were parent receipt of assistance with obtaining needed services, out-of-home placement, multiple problems, and family income. Practice implications are discussed.     

A longitudinal analysis of some risk and protective factors in marijuana use by adolescents receiving child welfare services

The present study sought to identify risk and protective factors in marijuana use by adolescents involved in child welfare services. Longitudinal records of 1797 adolescents were extracted from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being data set. The obtained multivariate results from generalized estimating equations showed that an adolescent's likelihood of being a current marijuana user rose with prior lifetime use of the drug and was also associated with out-of-home child welfare services, perceived parental monitoring, perceived closeness to parent, engagement with school environment, and age. Implications for child welfare services are discussed.     

The organizational structure of child welfare: Staff are working hard,but it is hardly working

Child welfare has been overseen, litigated, reviewed, and chastised by those internal to the system and those who have never faced a traumatized child or an abusive parent. The work of child welfare occurs within organizations, generally large, public sector agencies. Literature has paid little attention to the organizational structure or staffing patterns of the agencies mandated to serve vulnerable children and families. This article explores the challenges facing child welfare and ponders the notion that the structure of public child welfare agencies has developed in response to internal and external factors. The resulting organizational structure may not be the best to support the myriad of mandates that child welfare must achieve.     

Better practices in parent engagement: lessons from the USA and England

This paper undertakes an international comparison of parent engagement in the USA and England. Research from both countries is reviewed to establish the extent to which parent engagement is achieving the benefit of an improved fit between need and services and what, if any, differences exist between the experiences of parents in the USA and England. Despite some unique differences, research from both countries identifies similar experiences among parents. Those studies indicate that parent engagement is not yet contributing to the provision of services that are more timely, appropriate, or adequate in meeting parent need. The barriers to achieving a better fit between needs and services are explored and system-wide issues that limit the effectiveness of engagement with parents are discussed. The paper presents the Munro Review of Child Protection in England as a catalyst for change in improving the child welfare system's approach to parent engagement and establishing a better fit between needs and services. Consideration of the applicability of the Munro Review findings to the USA child welfare system or replication of such a review is proposed.     

Getting with the (evidence-based) program: An evaluation of the Incredible Years Parenting Training Program in child welfare

This study evaluates four group sessions of the Incredible Years (IY) Parenting Training Program used for the first-time in two child welfare agencies in New York State. Few studies have examined process and evaluation outcomes of evidence-based parenting programs in child welfare. Qualitative staff interviews and surveys on parenting behaviors were used to examine program processes, improvements in parenting behaviors, and participant satisfaction. Program participation was associated with less parental distress, defensive responding, dysfunctional parent-child interactions, child difficulty, total stress, and greater empathy and social support. The effectiveness of this evidence-based, parent education program in the context of a child welfare population, as well as implementation challenges and recommendations, are discussed.     

Effects of a video feedback parent training program during child welfare visitation

Behavioral parent training programs have documented efficacy for improving behaviors among parents and their children and are frequently used by child welfare agencies to prevent removal of a child from the parental home or to facilitate reunification. Although an ideal time for parent training might be during supervised visits where parents may practice skills with their children under the guidance and support of a therapist or caseworker, this is not typically the case. Most often, parents within the child welfare system receive parent training in small groups without their children present, and to date, few studies have examined effects of behavioral parent training interventions during supervised visitation. In this study, concurrent multiple baseline across behaviors design was used to examine effects of a behavioral parent training program, Filming Interactions to Nurture Development (FIND), on parental skill acquisition with four mothers who had lost custody of their children but were being considered for reunification. Children emitted little or no problem behaviors during baseline or intervention, so parenting behavior was the primary dependent variable. Results obtained across participants documented a clear functional relation between implementation of the FIND intervention and increases in developmentally supportive parenting behaviors. Results of social validity and contextual fit measures suggest the intervention was perceived by mothers to be positive, feasible, and appropriate within the child welfare context. Practical and conceptual implications, limitations of this study, and directions for future research are discussed.     

Integrating Couple Teamwork Conversations Into Child Welfare Practice

This article summarizes the importance of and challenges to addressing couple teamwork issues in the child welfare population. Although there is substantial evidence to support the importance of healthy adult relationships for child well-being and the prevention of child maltreatment, there are a number of barriers to addressing these couple relationships in child welfare. These barriers include diverse family configurations and uncertain relationship commitments, the individual presentation of maltreatment, and worker discomfort with these issues. Additionally, there are few relationship programs designed specifically for low income individuals, and a number of policy and environmental constraints affect couple relationships in this population. However, building upon a comprehensive practice model for child welfare known as Solution Based Casework, this article describes casework skills to initiate and maintain couple teamwork conversations. These initiation skills include assessing patterns in everyday life, building partnerships with families, normalizing and externalizing problems, and tracking interactional sequences related to parent teamwork. The maintenance skills described include maintaining a common language, utilizing family team meetings, recognizing small steps of change, keeping treatment providers on track, and making the most of setbacks. These practical guidelines will assist child welfare professionals with building couple teamwork for child protection.     

Children,Parents and the State: The Children Act, 1908

SUMMARY: This article examines the first major consolidating piece of child welfare legislation in Britain, the 1908 Children Act. The focus is on the relationship established between child, parent, and state. Contemporary reasons for the need for this re-ordered relationship are suggested, but it is also argued that in certain respects parallels can be found between the Edwardian Act and that of 1989. This in turn suggests the persistence of certain issues in child welfare, and especially that of the division of responsibilities for the care of children between parents and State.     

Relationship of risk assessment to placement characteristics in a statewide child welfare population

Risk assessments allow child and youth services to identify children who are at risk for maltreatment (e.g., abuse, neglect) and help determine the restrictiveness of placements or need for services among youth entering a child welfare system. Despite the use of instruments by many agencies within the U.S. to determine the appropriate placements for youth, research has shown that placement decisions are often influenced by factors such as gender, age, and severity of social–emotional and behavior problems. This study examined ratings of risk across multiple domains using a structured assessment tool used by caseworkers in the Rhode Island child welfare system. The relationship between ratings of risk and placement restrictiveness was also examined. Risk levels varied across placement settings. Multivariate analyses revealed that lower caseworker ratings of parent risk and higher ratings of youth risk were associated with more restrictive placements for youth. Implications for the child welfare system are discussed.     

Liability in child welfare

Child welfare workers and agencies are vulnerable to lawsuits. Recent court rulings have more clearly defined the liability of workers. The distinguishing variable is custody. Children injured while in the custody of the state are entitled to sue for damages. Children injured by their parent, even if under the supervision of a child welfare agency, are not entitled to claim a violation of their 14th Amendment rights. These cases are reviewed and strategies designed to minimize vulnerability are offered.     

Toward relationship-based child welfare services

A relationship-based theoretical framework for child welfare services is proposed. Research literature is reviewed relative to attachment theory, relationship quality of maltreated child-parent and maltreated child-surrogate parent dyads, and effective child-parent and child-surrogate parent relationship-enhancing interventions. Authors recommend that establishment or repair of a protective, emotionally responsive positive child-parent or child-surrogate parent relationship be the central focus of child welfare services. A model is offered as a conceptual foundation for measures to be used in federal Child and Family Services Reviews.     

Parent-worker relationships in child welfare social work: a Belgian case study

The involvement of parents within child and family social work has become an important research topic during the past few decades. Within this research, a lot of attention is paid to partnership, which is recognised as a dominant concept in current thinking about the parent–worker relationship in present-day practice. The debate on parent–worker relationships, however, seems to be mainly focussed on the individual relationship between the parent and the social worker. Based on a historical analysis of policy documents on a Belgian child and family welfare service, this article offers a historical and sociopolitical contextualisation of the current debate on the parent–worker relationship. The analysis reveals that sociopolitical ideas about the responsibilities of the state, the community and the private family have induced a continuous reflection on which children and parents should be seen as the most appropriate clients for a particular service, as well as an ongoing development of diagnostic instruments to legitimise inclusion and exclusion of families within child and family social work. Consequences for parent–worker relationships in child and family social work are discussed, as well as some implications for future research on child and family social work practices.     

Individual and systemic/structural bias in child welfare decision making: Implications for children and families of color

The factors contributing to observed racial disproportionality and disparity in the child welfare system have been the subject of national discourse for decades. This qualitative study used focus groups to engage child welfare and collaborating system decision makers, community partners, and families in a subjective interpretive analysis of racial disproportionality and disparity that had been demonstrated by a previous quantitative analysis of Oregon's child welfare system. Thematic analysis yielded eleven themes from the participant focus groups, four of which clustered around individual and structural/systemic bias and are examined in this paper: visibility bias; cultural bias and insensitivity; personal influences on determination of minimally adequate care; and foster and adoptive parent recruitment and licensing practices. Participants offered recommendations to improve outcomes for children and families of color in light of these observations: increase awareness of bias, create checks and balances in decision-making, contract with and hire culturally and racially diverse professionals, and increase funding for training.     

Historical, Developmental, and Behavioral Factors Associated with Foster Care Challenges

Three agency-based studies explored the associations of traumatic child histories, as well as their developmental, health and behavioral problems with foster care challenges such as placement instability. The findings represent the convergent perspectives of child welfare workers and foster parents in small cities in Ontario. Alone and in aggregate, child and familial traumas and problems were very strong predictors of various foster care challenges. Foster parent training and other support needs are discussed.     

Peer Support Groups for Child Welfare–Involved Families

Studies on risk factors and circumstances related to child maltreatment have continuously emphasized the important role of social support. As a result, peer support groups have been gaining attention and recognition in recent years in the field of child maltreatment prevention. However, little is known about the benefits that child welfare–involved parents receive in peer support groups, as well as the distinctive service elements that make these groups successful. By examining child welfare–involved parents’ experiences participating in peer support groups, this study provided a better understanding of the perceived beneficial aspects of peer support groups, specific types of supports offered to and by peers, and unique characteristics of these groups.     

The impact of fathers on maltreated youths' mental health

Men are increasingly the heads of single parent households, yet are often excluded from child welfare research and practice. To better serve all families in the child welfare system, it is necessary to understand the impact of primary caregiving men on children's wellbeing. In this study we investigated the longitudinal effects of primary caregiving fathers' mental health and substance use on child mental health, and examined possible differences by child age and gender. Regression analyses were conducted with the sample of 322 youth living with a male primary caregiver at the first wave of data collection from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Wellbeing-II (NSCAW-II). We found that father depression at baseline consistently predicted child mental health outcomes three years later, even after accounting for demographics and baseline child mental health. Surprisingly, fathers' substance use did not predict child mental health, and interactions with child age and gender were not significant. Our findings are consistent with a small but growing literature suggesting that efforts to improve engagement of and attention to fathers within research, clinical and policy efforts are likely to be worthwhile.     

Visitations and Transfers After Divorce

Recent research reveals that divorce negatively impacts children's welfare as a consequence of the reduction in monetary and time contributions of the non-custodial parent. After divorce, the variables that link the absent parent to the child are visitations, child support transfers, and direct expenditures the non-custodial parent makes on the child. In our framework parents constitute a bilateral exchange economy where the mother is endowed with control over visitations and the father has control over financial resources. We use data from National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (5th follow up) to estimate the parameters of the model. We then use the estimates to simulate the effects of alternative endowment levels (such as joint custody) on the proportion of time spent with the non-custodial parent and the ex post parental income distribution. The results indicate that an endowment of equal time for both parents, reducing time under the mother's control implies a reduction in the child support transfers from the father, and, therefore, a loss in the mother's consumption levels. However, a more equally shared time with the children also increases the father's direct expenditures on the child, with the effect of allowing the mother to spend less on child goods and partially compensate her consumption loss.     

Forgotten children: A critical review of the reunification of American Indian children in the child welfare system

Reunification is the preferred permanency path experienced by children following out-of-home placement (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2011, 2012). Emerging literature suggests a number of child, parent, family, and child welfare case characteristics predict the likelihood of reunification. However, research on the reunification of American Indians in child welfare system is limited. Given the unique historical and cultural context of American Indian families, a need exists to better understand what contributes to achieving permanency through reunification for these families. To develop a better understanding of reunification research, this article provides a critical review of the literature on predictors of reunification that is inclusive of American Indians. A search of the literature resulted in the inclusion of 17 articles. Findings suggest that although awareness of the factors associated with reunification for American Indian families is helpful, without consistent inclusion of child, parent, family, and case-related variables across statistical analyses, limited conclusions can be drawn. It is significant to note that a level that is not currently considered in literature is the tribe or band and what is done to assist the child in reunification from the tribal level.     

Making visits better: the perspectives of parents,foster parents,and child welfare workers

Mothers of children recently placed in foster care, foster mothers, and child welfare workers participated in semistructured, clinical interviews focusing on the challenges of parent visitation with young children. Mothers described their feelings of grief, trauma, and rage about the forced separation from their children and stressed the importance of emotional expression and communication during visits. Child welfare workers described the complexities of supporting emotionally close parent-child interactions while monitoring and assessing parental behavior during visits. Foster mothers described the importance of preparing children for visits and the difficulties of supporting the children afterward. Implications of understanding mothers', foster mothers', and child welfare workers' perspectives on enhancing the quality of visits with young children are discussed.     

Meeting the parenting skills needs of neglectful families by training child welfare workers as educators

A training program was devised for selected child welfare workers to conduct parent groups in the Missouri Neglect Demonstration Project. Welfare workers were trained to conduct parent groups that focused on parenting skills, self-advocacy, and social and economic resources. In contrast to case manager referrals, the workshops provided education directly and helped parents to develop resources. One of the goals was to have staff and parents collaborate to improve referral services and resources. The importance of this type of program was demonstrated by a literature review of parent trainings which found that: (a) few programs specifically addressed child neglect; (b) outcome evaluations of programs were scarce; and (c) a national extension study supported topics chosen.