Mandated Reporting Laws and Child Maltreatment: The Evolution of a Flawed Policy Response

Worley, Natalie K.; Melton, Gary B.

doi:10.1007/978-94-007-4084-6_13

Cited by 7 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Nevertheless, mandated reporting is widely supported by child abuse experts (Mathews & Bross, ). At the same time, it is critiqued for underestimating the extent of CN&A (Melton, ; Worley & Melton, ), engaging in resource‐intensive and intrusive approaches (Hansen & Ainsworth, ) and individualising social problems (Einboden, ; Pelton, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond and around mandatory reporting in nursing practice: Interrupting a series of deferrals

2019

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Nurses are well positioned to contribute to child protection efforts but are underutilised. This paper describes a critical discursive analysis of nursing responses to child neglect and abuse (CN&A) in British Columbia, Canada. Legal and practice guidelines were analysed alongside nurse interview texts, offering a glimpse into how nurses prevent CN&A in their everyday practice with families. Results show how the primacy of mandatory reporting to child protection authorities coordinates a series of deferrals and how nurses engage with and interrupt these deferrals in everyday practice. Nurses' relational approaches are essential to gain access to the private sphere of the family to assess, plan, elicit cooperation with interventions and monitor the situation. They considered reporting to be one among many possible responses. This study highlights how nursing contributions to prevention are largely overlooked and points to the potential for a more significant role for nurses in a public health approach to child protection.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond and around mandatory reporting in nursing practice: Interrupting a series of deferrals

2019

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“…One involves underreporting, with many instances of neglect—and children who have experienced neglect—failing to be identified. The other involves overreporting or incorrectly claiming neglect when none exists (Worley & Melton, 2013). Both types of misidentification have profound implications for the health and safety of children and families and the ability of the child welfare system to respond effectively to children in need.…”

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confidence: 99%

Do laypersons conflate poverty and neglect?

Dickerson

Lavoie

Quas

2020

Law and Human Behavior

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Objective: Child neglect is often initially identified via adults who come into contact with children and report their suspicions to the authorities. Little is known about what behaviors laypersons view as constituting neglect and hence worth reporting. We examined laypersons’ perceptions of neglect and poverty, particularly how these factors independently and jointly shaped laypersons’ decisions about what warrants official reporting of neglect, and how laypersons’ socioeconomic background related to their decisions. Hypotheses: We anticipated that neglect would be correctly perceived as such, but that extreme poverty would also be perceived as neglect, with these latter perceptions being most pronounced among laypersons of higher socioeconomic background. Method: In 2 studies, adults read vignettes about a mother’s care of her daughter and rendered decisions about whether the mother’s behavior met the legal standard of neglect and should be reported. In Study 1 (N = 365, 55% female, mean age = 37.12 years), indicators of poverty and neglect were manipulated. In Study 2 (N = 474, 53% female, mean age = 38.25 years), only poverty (housing instability: homelessness vs. not) was manipulated. Results: Laypersons often conflated poverty and neglect, especially in circumstances of homelessness. Laypersons of lower socioeconomic background were less likely to perceive neglect in general and to report an obligation to make a referral (R2s ranged from 17–26%, odds ratios ranged from 2.24–3.08). Conclusions: Laypersons may overreport neglect in circumstances of poverty. Increasing public awareness of how to recognize and separate neglect from poverty may enhance identification of vulnerable children and families.

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Neglect: Should There Be Mandatory Reporting?

Goldson

2015

Mandatory Reporting Laws and the Identification of Severe Child Abuse and Neglect

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Mandated Reporting Laws and Child Maltreatment: The Evolution of a Flawed Policy Response

Cited by 7 publications

References 39 publications

Beyond and around mandatory reporting in nursing practice: Interrupting a series of deferrals

Beyond and around mandatory reporting in nursing practice: Interrupting a series of deferrals

Do laypersons conflate poverty and neglect?

Neglect: Should There Be Mandatory Reporting?

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