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Purpose: The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act requires child welfare agencies to have provisions in place to refer young children to early intervention services, yet the socioemotional health needs of children are often challenging to recognize and treat effectively. This study reviews the substantive and psychometric properties of screening instruments designed for children ages 10 and younger. Methods: Major social science databases, websites of national organizations, and the "Mental Measurements Yearbook" were used to identify instruments for review. Results: Twenty-four instruments met review criteria, and eight show above-average measurement properties and testing, tap children's strengths and concerns, and have evidence of validity with families similar to child welfare-involved families. Discussion: It is important to effectively screen for children showing concerns in early childhood, so that treatment and prevention can be prioritized. This study indicated several tools with adequate testing and with emerging evidence and applicability to child welfare. [This research was supported by a doctoral fellowship in child abuse and neglect awarded by the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children and Families.]

Head Start is a preschool program for families with low incomes and nearly 85% of child welfare-involved families are low-income, yet little is known about Head Start and child welfare collaboration. This study uses data from 28 Head Start directors to describe collaboration facilitators and barriers, and collaborative mechanisms in place. The mixed-methods study used data from a statewide survey and focus groups. Quantitative analysis used descriptive means and proportions. Qualitative analysis used a general inductive approach. Results show that nearly all Head Start programs prioritise enrollment for child welfare-involved children and know about foster care placement, but lack memoranda of understanding (50%), co-located staff (14%) and policies concerning joint service planning (9%). Directors report that Head Start staff need more support, including making referrals to child welfare. Cross-training, shared case planning, and streamlined processes could help move the organisations further along the developmental continuum of collaboration.

Using three waves of data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, this study examines differences in cognitive, academic, and affective well-being of youth first placed in nonkinship foster care (N=259) and youth first placed in group care (N=89). To compare nonrandomized groups, propensity score matching was used. Results from hierarchical linear modeling suggest that both groups of youth show improved behavior and below-average academics over time. (Contains 6 tables.)

Child welfare agencies are required to provide services that ensure that children receive adequate mental health care. This study provides a comprehensive view of the emotional and behavioral problems of children who are referred to child welfare services, using nationally representative data. Bivariate analyses compare rates by child demographics, and conditional probability tables present changes in clinical status. Results show that 62% of children have at least one clinical-level score over 3 years. Rates are highest at baseline. Posttraumatic stress most frequently improves, whereas thought, attention, and aggressive/ delinquent behavior problems are most persistent. Sexualized behavior is more common among White and Hispanic children, and boys are reported with more internalizing problems than do girls. Targeted services are needed for young children who experience posttraumatic stress, as is treatment for attention problems that accounts for both biological and environmental components. Distinguishing the effects of age, environment, and assessment methods on boys' internalizing problems is also critical. (Contains 5 tables.)

Objective: This study tests the hypothesis that information typically collected during a maltreatment investigation can be used to screen children for mental health problems. Method: Data are from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being. Cumulative risk scores were created for 3,022 children and compared to reports of clinical-level problems using standardized measures. Bivariate, multivariate, and sensitivity analyses were used. Results: Cumulative risk showed 73% sensitivity to identify children with mental health concerns and 52% specificity to identify children without such concerns. Comparatively, child welfare worker indications showed 48% sensitivity and 78% specificity. Conclusions: Investigative information could serve the dual purpose of screening children for mental health problems, having the potential for benefit and cost avoidance. (Contains 4 tables.)

This article presents propensity score matching as a method to implement randomized conditions to analyze service effects using nonexperimental data. Most social work research is challenged to implement randomized clinical trials, whereas administrative and survey data are often available and can provide valuable information about services received under naturalistic conditions. This article discusses the assumptions of this method and the analytic steps involved; and it presents three examples of the approach, demonstrating that it is possible to approximate the conditions of a randomized controlled trial, and when selection bias is reduced, investigators can have more confidence in their findings. (Contains 1 note.)

National estimates of characteristics of maltreated infants and report of an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) and an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) 54 months later are presented. The study was based on 1,196 infants from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being. Measures of neurodevelopment, language, and cognition were collected at baseline. In addition, measures of child behavior and social functioning were collected 54 months later. Caregiver mental health, substance abuse, domestic violence, home environment, and aspects of maltreatment were examined. Nearly one third were reported to have an IFSP. Descriptors of maltreatment were associated with having an IFSP. Approximately 54 months later, 20% were reported to have an IEP. IEP was not related to maltreatment but was related to being male or having a caregiver with cognitive impairment. Having a caregiver with mental illness reduced the likelihood of having an IEP. Findings highlight the need to reconsider criterion for Part C referral. (Contains 7 tables.)

Analyzed data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being regarding predictors of client satisfaction with child welfare workers. Found that caregiver reports of having fewer than two child welfare workers, having more recent contact, and receiving timely, responsive services were associated with higher perceived quality of relationships with child welfare workers. Child welfare workers' reports of caregiver cooperativeness were associated with higher caregiver-reported relationship quality. (Author/KB)

Child welfare agencies serve as gate keepers for children's mental health services (MHS). Yet, the impact of offered services on behavioral outcomes has not been well studied. Data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) were examined to measure caregivers' reported change in children's emotional-behavioral problems. Over 600 children in three age groups were matched and problem levels compared across 3 years. Although behavioral problems for the total group improved across time, scores for children who received MHS slightly worsened. Children who received MHS scored 1.4-3.7 points worse than children who did not receive MHS. Additionally, young Black, Hispanic, and other racially identified children had more problems than young White children, regardless of service. Higher behavior problem scores were noted for school-age children and adolescents. Although child welfare appears to rely on a cluster of MHS, including school-based counseling and private practitioner services, future service delivery should expand from improving access to achieving outcomes. DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-0025.2010.01039.x

Sexually abused children may have poor mental health because of their victimization as well as preexisting or co-occurring family problems. However, few studies consider psychopathology in relation to both abuse and other family experiences. This study uses data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) to create latent subgroups of 553 children investigated for sexual abuse. The study investigates children's psychological symptoms and child welfare service (CWS) patterns to understand how children's needs relate to mental health services. Analyses were conducted by child age: 3-7, 8-11, and 12-14. Factor mixture modeling and regression analyses were used. Results show meaningful subgroups of children that relate to different symptom patterns. Among 3- to 7-year-olds, behavioral symptoms are associated with caregiver domestic violence and mental illness. Among 8- to 11-year-olds, depressive symptoms are associated with severe abuse and multiple family problems, whereas posttraumatic stress is associated with chronic, unresolved abuse. Although many children received mental health services, services are not well matched to children's needs--the substantiation status of the abuse explains services. Implications for CWS and mental health services are discussed. Keywords: sexual abuse, NSCAW, latent profile analysis, child welfare services

Introduction: Evidence is lacking about how to integrate family and community voice into systems of care. This is particularly relevant in public health crises when reducing barriers to health care and resources is critical for everyone, but especially community members who typically experience more barriers to care. Addressing this gap, this study investigated the voice strategies used by systems of care to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: We conducted semi-structured interviews in three U.S. counties with agency leaders representing healthcare, public health, and early childhood partners in local systems of care (n = 15) and resource navigators who worked with families (n = 4). Results: We found that systems of care were better able to identify and respond to family priorities when they used diverse voice strategies, implemented among multiple agencies involved and at multiple time points. Family and community voice helped uncover blind spots in the crisis response, facilitating reaching more individuals in need. Flexibility in safety net service policies and protocols was critical to each organization in the system of care. Discussion: Systems of care that develop a multi-dimensional approach to voice strategies that can be readily mobilized in a public health crisis will be more apt to meet emerging needs. Questions remain about whether power sharing that occurred in the context of crisis translates into reform that builds out from family priorities. Common issues to meeting family needs that could be addressed prior to a crisis included outdated resource lists, confusing application processes, poorly translated materials, and insufficient broadband access. Public Significance Statement: Connecting decision makers with family voices and experiences can significantly enhance the capacity of community systems of care to mobilize strategies to address evolving concrete and social needs in the context of public health crises. Establishing these collaborative activities that include families and community members prior to (rather than during) crises is critical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) contribute to public health concerns, as they have been linked to chronic diseases in adulthood. From the seminal ACEs study in the mid-1990s (Felitti et al., 1998) to today, the Centers for Disease Control (2016) reports well over 50 studies that link ACEs to adult health conditions such as cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and mental illness. This preponderance of evidence has prompted widespread attention to the possibility that preventing and successfully treating ACE-associated traumatic stress would greatly reduce our country's incidence of chronic disease and the associated public health burden and cost (Danese et al., 2009). To illustrate, one study suggests that child abuse and neglect alone costs the United States $124 billion annually, with individual lifetime costs that are higher than or equal to the economic burden of diabetes and stroke (Fang, Brown, Florence, & Mercy, 2012). That child maltreatment is just one category of 10 total ACEs suggests that the total financial impact of ACEs in the United States is likely much greater and that some populations, such as children involved in child welfare, may be disproportionately affected by the negative effects of adverse childhood experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]