Associations between intensity of child welfare involvement and child development among young children in child welfare☆
Section snippets
Method
The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being (NSCAW), the first national longitudinal study of its kind, was designed to examine the experiences of children and families involved with CW. The NSCAW used a two stage national probability sampling strategy to select a total of 100 primary sampling units (PSUs) representing CW agencies, and then eligible children within those PSUs. PSUs were typically defined as geographic areas that encompass the population served by a single CW agency
Procedures
After sampling, study representatives contacted caregivers and asked permission to interview them about the children in their care and to assess the child directly. Baseline (BL; Wave 1 of NSCAW) interviews were conducted an average of 5.9 months (90% of interviews in the range of 2.5–10 months) after onset of the CW investigation to help assure that the immediate upheaval of changing placements or taking part in the investigation would be less likely to affect scores on the standardized
Sample characteristics
Table 1 presents information regarding children's age, gender, race/ethnicity, maltreatment history, caregiver education, prior CW involvement, HOME-SF scores and caregiver income stratified by intensity of CW involvement. For all tables standard deviations are used for standardized assessments to facilitate understanding of effect sizes. Standard deviations are also utilized for other continuously distributed variables utilized in multivariate models. Standard errors are presented for all
Discussion
As children come into contact with CW, important decisions are made regarding appropriate intensity of CW involvement. Developmental issues are an increasing policy concern in this population. Results from this nationally representative sample provide information regarding the relationship between intensity of CW involvement and patterns of developmental change in young children (ages 12–47 months) referred to CW. Main findings include: (1) few differences between intensity of CW involvement
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Mediating effects of early childhood programs and high quality home environments on the cognitive development of poor children involved in the child welfare system
2021, Children and Youth Services ReviewCitation Excerpt :The developmental risks associated with early childhood adversities have prompted many researchers to examine protective factors which reduce the effects of harmful experiences and enrich child development. Results of extensive research point to the potential mediating roles of early childhood education (ECE) programs (Anderson et al., 2003; Cuhna & Heckman, 2010; Heckman, 2008, 2011; Zhai, Waldfogel, & Brooks-Gunn, 2013) and high-quality home environments in reducing the harmful influence of early childhood adversities (Brooks-Gunn & Duncan, 1997; Center on the Developing Child, 2012; Collins, Maccoby, Steinberg, Hetherington, & Bornstein, 2000; Stahmer et al., 2009). Studies have shown that poverty is strongly related to the cognitive development of children, which in turn affects children’s educational outcomes, school completion, social-behavioral health, and socioeconomic status later in adulthood (Brooks-Gunn & Duncan, 1997; Kagan, 2009; Magnuson, 2013).
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The Caring for Children in Child Welfare project (CCCW) is a collaborative effort between the Child and Adolescent Services Research Center (CASRC) at Children's Hospital San Diego, the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh), the Columbus Children's Hospital, the Services Effectiveness Research Program at Duke University (Duke), and the Research Triangle Institute (RTI). The study is jointly funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (MH59672) and by the Administration on Children and Families (90PH0006). A complete description of the study and a list of key personnel are available at http://www.casrc.org/projects/CCCW/index.htm. It should be noted that this document also includes data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being (NSCAW), which was developed under contract to RTI from the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (ACYF/DHHS). The CCCW also maintains ongoing collaboration with the NSCAW Research Group. The information and opinions expressed herein reflect solely the position of the author(s). Nothing herein should be construed to indicate the support or endorsement of its content by ACYF/DHHS.