Repositioning prevention in child protection using performance indicators

ABSTRACT

Performance indicators have both technical and value dimensions, capable of providing data for monitoring and reporting in addition to framing policy problems and their solutions. This paper considers the performance indicators proposed in a recent child protection inquiry in Australia that recommended ‘decreasing the numbers of children in the child protection system’ as a primary policy objective. The paper examines the context in which the indicators were set, the values and theories they endorse, and how they position stakeholders. The analysis shows how the indicators communicate that child protection services should be only for the most serious cases of child maltreatment, and the reach of statutory services should be curtailed. Children who have been maltreated or who are at risk of harm from abuse or neglect should be diverted from the child protection system (positioned as bad) to the family support system (positioned as good), and at the same time from the state to the nongovernment sector. The shifting relations between government, service providers, and families signified by the indicators can be seen in a broader international context of tightening the boundaries around child protection and concurrently advancing concepts of compliance within family support.     

Evaluation of Measurement Comparisons Using Generalized Least Squares: the Role of Participants’ Estimates of Systematic Error

We consider the evaluation of laboratory practice through the comparison of measurements made by participating metrology laboratories when the measurement procedures are considered to have both fixed effects (the residual error due to unrecognised sources of error) and random effects (drawn from a distribution of known variance after correction for all known systematic errors). We show that, when estimating the participant fixed effects, the random effects described can be ignored. We also derive the adjustment to the variance estimates of the participant fixed effects due to these random effects.     

The association between comorbidity and outcome in pathological gambling: a prospective follow-up of recent quitters

A naturalistic sample of pathological gamblers (N = 101) who recently quit gambling was followed prospectively for a year (follow-up rate 80%). Lifetime mood disorders were identified in 61% of participants and 73% and 48% had lifetime alcohol use and drug use disorders, respectively. Current prevalence rates, however, were much lower. Current mood disorders were found for 20% and 7% had a current alcohol disorder and 7% a current drug use disorder. Age of onset for substance use disorders was earlier than gambling disorders but mood disorders were equally likely to predate or follow gambling disorders. Lifetime mood disorder was associated with a longer time to achieve 3 months of stable abstinence. Participants who were currently in treatment or attending Gamblers Anonymous and the small number of participants with current alcohol disorders were also more likely to achieve abstinence earlier. The results underscore the importance of increasing our understanding of the role of comorbid disorders in the recovery process from gambling problems.     

Monetary incentives in support of academic achievement: results of a randomized field trial involving high-achieving, low-resource, ethnically diverse urban adolescents

Significant resources have been directed at understanding and alleviating the achievement gap in education. Most programs focused on this aim rely on a top-down approach, including funding for infrastructure improvement, curriculum development, class size, and teacher salaries. This article presents findings from a randomized field trial that evaluates a bottom-up approach in which high-achieving students of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds from poor families are given monetary incentives to maintain their academic standing. The evaluation was designed to explore the role of monetary incentives as a mechanism for promoting resiliency in the face of poverty-related challenge. Discussion of what motivates students to learn is framed as a function of normal cognitive and socioemotional development in challenging environments. Evaluation findings indicate that monetary incentives are effective in promoting academic success to different degrees and for different reasons depending on students' perception of the meaning of the incentive in relation to their emergent identity.     

Teaching examples for the design of experiments: geographical sensitivity and the self‐fulfilling prophecy

Many scientists believe that small experiments, guided by scientific intuition, are simpler and more efficient than design of experiments. This belief is strong and persists even in the face of data demonstrating that it is clearly wrong. In this paper, we present two powerful teaching examples illustrating the dangers of small experiments guided by scientific intuition. We describe two, simple, two‐dimensional spaces. These two spaces give rise to, and at the same time appear to generate supporting data for, scientific intuitions that are deeply flawed or wholly incorrect. We find these spaces useful in unfreezing scientific thinking and challenging the misplaced confidence in scientific intuition. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

After Atos Healthcare: is the Employment and Support Allowance fit for purpose and does the Work Capability Assessment have a future?

In June 2014 the BBC reported that it had seen a number of UK Department for Work and Pensions documents relating to the Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). These documents, which included six memos written by civil servants and government advisers, tell us very little that we did not know already; namely that the ESA is in crisis, and that waiting lists for assessment and appeals are unacceptable. However, what is significant is that these concerns are being raised within the Department for Work and Pensions itself. The underlying drift is that the question of whether the current model of ESA and Work Capability Assessment is sustainable is now firmly on the UK government’s radar.     

Perspectives of Young People in Care About their School-to-Work Transition

Abstract

Achieving in education and employment has long-term effects on quality of life. With below-average levels of educational attainment, many young people in care are ill-equipped for the transition from school to further education and work. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study that explored the school to work transition experiences of young people currently or previously in care, and their ideas about future employment. A range of personal and contextual factors that influence study and work goals were identified. Young people spoke about the importance of personal confidence and determination, supportive relationships, someone to believe in them and encourage them, opportunities to pursue their goals, avenues to gain information about how to get desired jobs, positive school experiences, and the need for stability in their lives. The study suggests widening the agenda for case planning, transition from care and after-care support, to include career planning and vocational assistance.