Neglect is a common form of child maltreatment and is a frequently occurring reason for family separation to foster care. The Neglect and Prevention Policies Data aggregates policy information using data pulled from several sources such as federal agency legislation, implementation websites, and state-level neglect statutes. Presented as several linked data tables, this data package is designed to assist child welfare researchers with analyzing how states address neglect. Investigators: Tola Seng, MSW, University at Albany, State University of New York, New York Holly White-Wolfe, PhD Katharine Briar-Lawson, PhD, University at Albany, State University of New York, New York Kristcha De Guerre, PhD, Galen University

"Child Neglect: Cross Sector Service Paths & Outcomes" was the first phase of a project that is part of a competitive renewal (scheduled to end in 2008). Using administrative data drawn from education, health, juvenile corrections and social service agencies, this study compared cross sector service paths and outcomes of children in families receiving AFDC and reported to child welfare agencies (1993-1994) compared to a group of children matched by birth year and county of residence in families receiving AFDC, but not reported to child welfare agencies. Children were born 1982 through 1994 and were all under the age of 12 at the study onset. The total number of children in the sample is 10,187. Of the total sample, 5,087 of the children were in the Maltreatment/AFDC group and 5,100 children were in the AFDC Only group. The first phase study AIMS compared maltreated to non-maltreated children according to: (1) Cross-sector service use (sequence, frequency, co-occurrence & duration); (2) The relationship of service patterns to child and adolescent outcomes (e.g. mortality, foster care entry, entry into Special Education, etc.); (3) The association between certain caretaker level outcomes (e.g., permanent exit from AFDC) and child and adolescent outcomes. The AIMS were also examined according to type of maltreatment within the maltreated sample group. Key findings indicate that a report of maltreatment does contribute to the risk of special education entry, death, and entry into juvenile corrections above and beyond poverty. Overall, low-income children who also had maltreatment reports had higher rates of service use and negative outcomes across systems. The children in the maltreated group also entered more service systems on average than the low-income only group. A caretaker's permanent exit from a first spell on AFDC was associated with lower risk of certain negative outcomes like juvenile court petitions. This relationship was stronger for the low-income only group. In general, first reports of neglect, physical abuse or mixed type maltreatment were equally likely to result in later poor outcomes. However, children reported for neglect and mixed type(majority includes neglect) maltreatment were more likely to have recurrent reports of maltreatment and recurrent reports were associated with more negative outcomes. Investigators: Jonson-Reid, M., & Drake, B.

The State Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Policies Database, supported by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human services, compiles data on state definitions and policies related to the surveillance of child maltreatment incidence and associated risk and protective factors. The SCAN Policies Database is a resource for researchers, analysts, and others who are interested in examining differences in definitions and policies on child maltreatment across states. A primary use of these data is to allow researchers to link the analytic files to other data sources to address important questions about how variations in states’ definitions and policies are associated with the incidence of child maltreatment, the child welfare system response, and ultimately child safety and well-being. Other data sources that can be linked with the SCAN Policies Database include data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), state administrative data, and survey data. When data from the SCAN Policies Database are linked with other data sources, these data can be used to answer key research questions about how variations in definitions and policies are associated with key aspects of understanding the incidence of child abuse and neglect. The SCAN Policies Database includes state definitions and policies from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The data were collected from a review of statutes and state documentation between May 2019 - June 2020. Investigators: Elizabeth C. Weigensberg, PhD - Mathematica Nuzhat Islam, MS - Mathematica Jean Knab, PhD - Mathematica Mary A. Grider, MBA - Mathematica Jeremy Page, MA - Mathematica Sarah Bardin, BA - Mathematica

This study identifies factors that significantly increase or decrease the likelihood that a child maltreatment report will be substantiated once an investigation occurs. A specific concern of the study was to investigate the size and nature of the difference in substantiation rates for reports originating from professional sources mandated by law to report suspected cases of child maltreatment compared to reports from non-professional sources, such as relatives and neighbors. A representative sample of 796 sexual abuse, 198 physical abuse and 880 neglect reports were obtained from the New York State Child Abuse and Maltreatment Register. Types of data collected included background variables (e.g., sex and age of the subject child); the source of the report; actions that took place after the report was filed (e.g., court action), and the case determination. Investigators: Abstract

This study identifies factors that significantly increase or decrease the likelihood that a child maltreatment report will be substantiated once an investigation occurs. A specific concern of the study was to investigate the size and nature of the difference in substantiation rates for reports originating from professional sources mandated by law to report suspected cases of child maltreatment compared to reports from non-professional sources, such as relatives and neighbors. A representative sample of 796 sexual abuse, 198 physical abuse and 880 neglect reports were obtained from the New York State Child Abuse and Maltreatment Register. Types of data collected included background variables (e.g., sex and age of the subject child); the source of the report; actions that took place after the report was filed (e.g., court action), and the case determination. Investigators: Abstract

The NCANDS is a federally-sponsored national data collection effort created for the purpose of tracking the volume and nature of child maltreatment reporting each year within the United States. Units of Response: Report-Child Combination Type of Data: Administrative Tribal Data: Unavailable COVID-19 Data: No Periodicity: Annual SORN: Not Applicable Data Use Agreement: https://www.ndacan.acf.hhs.gov/datasets/request-restricted-data.cfm Data Use Agreement Location: https://www.ndacan.acf.hhs.gov/datasets/order_forms/termsofuseagreement.pdf Equity Indicators: Disability;Ethnicity;Gender Identity;Housing Status;Military;Race;Sex Granularity: Individual;State Spatial: United States Geocoding: FIPS Code;State

The ‘Predicting And Preventing Child Neglect In Teen Mothers’ project was designed to assess the impact of varying degrees and types of neglect and poor parenting on children’s development during the first 3 years of life, including changes in intelligence and behavior, language, social and emotional well-being, physical growth, and health status. This study included a broad array of assessments related to the construct of childhood neglect, and can be used to test the developmental associations among parenting characteristics, parenting behaviors and attitudes, and child development in multiple domains. Six hundred and eighty-two expectant mothers were recruited during pregnancy through primary care facilities in the communities of Birmingham, AL, Kansas City, KS, South Bend, IN, and Washington, D.C. Three different groups of first-time mothers were included in the sample: adolescents (n=396), low-ed adults (less than 2 years formal education beyond high school; n=169), and hi-ed adults (at least 2 years of formal education; n=117). The mothers’ ages at child birth ranged from 14.68 to 36.28, with an average of 17.49 for the adolescents, 25.48 for the low-ed adults, and 27.88 for the hi-ed adults. Approximately 65% of the sample were African-American, 19% were White/Non-Hispanic, 15% were Hispanic, 1% were multi-racial, and .5% were of an other race. The adolescent and low-ed adult samples were closely matched on race/ethnicity. Mothers were interviewed in their last trimester of pregnancy as well as when their children were 4, 6, 8, 12, 18, 24, 30, and 36-months old. Interviews at the prenatal, 6, 12, 24, and 36-month visits primarily focused on risks for poor parenting, such as maternal depression (Beck II), parenting stress (Parenting Stress Index – Short Form), and lack of social support; parenting beliefs and practices; as well as other demographic information. The 4, 8, 18, and 30-month visits occurred in the home and included both interviews and observations of parenting practices (Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment, Supplement to the HOME for Impoverished Families, and Landry Naturalistic Observation). After each of the home visits, mothers were given a cellular phone and interviewed multiple times concerning their daily parenting practices (Parent-Child Activities Interview). At the 12, 24, and 36-months visits, the children were also tested for intellectual (Bayley II) and language abilities (Pre-School Language Scales – IV), rated on their behavior by both their mother (Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment) and child tester (Bayely Behavioral Rating Scale II), and their height and weight were measured. Upon completing each assessment after the child’s birth, the interviewers also rated the child’s environment for risks of physical neglect. This study represents one of the first-ever prospective broad-based, multi-site investigations of child neglect among a diverse sample of adolescent mothers and will help to establish a foundation for future preventive interventions to reduce the incidence and impact of neglect and abuse on child development. This data set provides a broad range of risk and protective factors to better map the multiple and fluctuating social ecologies and life circumstances of teen mothers and their young children. This dataset contains data from pre-natal to 36-months. Please note: attachment codes, Parent-Child Activity interviews, short cell phone interviews are NOT included in this data collection. Investigators: John G. BorkowskiUniversity of Notre Dame Notre Dame, INJudy CartaUniversity of Kansas Kansas City, KSSteven F. WarrenUniversity of Kansas Lawrence, KSSharon L. RameyGeorgetown University NW Washington, DCCraig RameyGeorgetown University NW Washington, DCKristi GuestUniversity of Alabama - Birmingham Birmingham, ALBette KeltnerGeorgetown University NW Washington, DCRobin G. LanziGeorgetown University NW Washington, DCLorraine KlermanBrandeis University Wa

A list of the datasets that comprise National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) Findings.

Conducted by NCCAN and mandated by Congress, this study was the first large scale effort to assemble information, based on standardized definitions, about the scope and character of recognized child abuse and neglect in the United States. From findings obtained in a probability sample of 26 counties in 10 states, national estimates were derived from the numbers and characteristics of abused and neglected children who were: a) referred to CPS agencies and treatment, b) not referred to CPS but were known to other investigatory agencies which may handle abuse/neglect situations (e.g., police, court, public health departments, etc.), or c) were not known to any of the investigatory agencies but were identifiable from other community institutions, particularly schools and hospitals. Investigators: National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect

Other data sources that can be linked with the SCAN Policies Database include data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), state administrative data, and survey data. When data from the SCAN Policies Database are linked with other data sources, these data can be used to answer key research questions about how variations in definitions and policies are associated with key aspects of understanding the incidence of child abuse and neglect. Investigators: Elizabeth C. Weigensberg, PhD - Mathematica Nuzhat Islam, MS - Mathematica Milena Raketic, M.Ed - Mathematica Mary A. Grider, MBA - Mathematica Jeremy Page, MA - Mathematica