Child Protective Services (CPS) caseworkers may need to use a more all-encompassing approach to improve how they respond to cases of chronic neglect.
Neglect accounts for more than 70% of cases reported nationally to Child Protective Services (CPS). CPS caseworkers may need to use a more all-encompassing approach to improve how they respond to cases of chronic neglect, suggests a new study by researchers at the University at Buffalo. While the typical CPS response often focuses on a single case, which might not appear to be a matter of egregious harm, previous reports may provide a more comprehensive assessment of the situation.
‘Child Protective Services caseworkers need to use a more all-encompassing approach to improve how they respond to cases of chronic neglect.’
"It's difficult to incorporate past allegations of neglect when you're looking at one incident that may not rise to a level of serious concern," says Annette Semanchin Jones, an assistant professor in the UB School of Social Work, who conducted the research with Patricia Logan-Greene, also an assistant professor of social work at UB.Their recently published study, which appears in the journal Children and Youth Services Review, suggests that a more holistic approach might improve how CPS responds to cases of chronic neglect. "For cases of chronic neglect, if workers look over time and consider past allegations more thoroughly they could see an accumulation of harm that is very concerning," says Semanchin Jones.
There is no uniform definition of neglect. Its meaning can change depending on state standards but, generally, neglect is defined as failing to provide children with adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, education and supervision based on their age and development. Chronic neglect, which also has different definitions from state to state, is recurring cases of neglect within a family, often across multiple developmental stages for children.
Despite its' prevalence, neglect is understudied and poorly understood from a research perspective, but Semanchin Jones says there is a growing body of literature that indicates how neglect, and chronic neglect in particular, can have serious consequences on a child's emotional regulation and cognitive development.
The UB study is among the first to examine cases of chronic neglect with a focus on CPS practices. The authors conducted a detailed case record review to examine CPS practices related to cases of chronic neglect, studying 38 families that had five or more neglect reports to CPS. The results found that all of the families had at least four significant stressors, including extreme poverty, parental substance abuse, parental mental health issues, child behavioral problems or domestic violence.
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They're dealing with multiple factors. The initial assessment needs to be comprehensive so case workers can respond appropriately," she says. Logan-Greene added, "Building on these findings, the jurisdiction that was the focus of the study has already made some adjustments to better respond to the needs of these families, including specialized CPS teams with additional training on these issues related to chronic neglect."
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