Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 03:31, 26 August 2006

In the United States, the term child welfare is used to describe a set of government services designed to protect children and encourage family stability. These typically include investigation of alleged child abuse and neglect ("child protective services"); foster care; adoption services; and services aimed at supporting at-risk families so they can remain intact ("prevention services" or "family preservation services"). Though the Federal government sets rules which all States must follow and provides significant funding, it is the fifty states that have primary responsibility for establishing and operating child welfare systems.

Most children who come to the attention of child welfare social workers do so because of any of the following situations, which are often collectively termed child maltreatment:

• Neglect (including the failure to take adequate measures to protect a child from harm)
• Emotional abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Physical abuse

The Federal government's Administration for Children and Families reports that in 2004, approximately 3.5 million children were involved in investigations of alleged abuse or neglect, and an estimated 872,000 children were determined to have been abused or neglected. An estimated 1,490 children died that year because of abuse or neglect. As of September 30, 2004, there were 517,000 children in the United States in foster care.

Purpose of the Child Welfare System

The child welfare system generally operates to protect children. In the U.S. another purpose is to ensure a safe permanent home for children. The Adoption and Safe Families Act ASFA requires concurrent planning in all instances in which a child is removed from a home because of maltreatment. It also requires that a permanent placement be made or planned within fifteen months of removal. This is different that the Canadian and English child welfare systems in which the child can be mad a permanent Crown Ward and, therefore, not freed for adoption. In addition, in the U.S. child welfare system, when a child is freed for adoption, there are incentives to encourage families to adopt the child. For example, subsidies are provided until the child is eighteen in certain circumstances, such as an older child, special needs child, etc. The subsidy rate varies, depending on the needs of the child.

Effects of early maltreatment on children in child welfare

The National Adoption Center found that 52% of adoptable children (meaning those children in U.S. foster care freed for adoption) had symptoms of attachment disorder. A study by Dante Cicchetti found that 80% of abused and maltread infants exhibited attachment disorder symtoms (disorganized subtype). Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).

References

1. Carlson, V., Cicchetti, D., Barnett, D., & Braunwald, K. (1995). Finding order in disorganization: Lessons from research on maltreated infants’ attachments to their caregivers. In D. Cicchetti & V. Carlson (Eds), Child Maltreatment: Theory and research on the causes and consequences of child abuse and neglect (pp. 135-157). NY: Cambridge University Press.

See also

Adoption and Safe Families Act

Complex post-traumatic stress disorder

Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy

foster care

adoption

References

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm04 (accessed 8/4/06)

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/stats_research/afcars/tar/report11.htm (accessed 8/4/06)

This sociology-related article is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it.

• v
• t
• e

• Sociology stubs
• Social programs
• Social Work