Working with Children: Assessment, Representation and Intervention

Prevalence rates for physical abuse vary depending upon whether the offender, that is, the parent, or the adult, who experienced physical abuse as a child, is asked about these acts. Parents report markedly lower rates than adults queried about their experiences as children. Moreover, the CTS has been used around the world, with literally scores of studies using it as a measure of interpersonal violence Straus, The CTS has been used to gather data about domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, and physical abuse experienced by respondents during childhood.

To assess for corporal punishment and child abuse, the Parent-Child CTS asks adult respondents to indicate tactics they have used to resolve conflicts with a child, methods ranging from appropriate, nonviolent strategies to violent and potentially lethal strategies. Methods that are considered abusive include the following: Briere and Elliott solicited information about physical and sexual abuse from a geographically stratified, random sample of 1, adults in the general population, and obtained a response rate of Of the respondents, Using a different methodology Goldberg and Freyd report similar results.

Using a broader definition that included non-contact behavior, David Finkelhor, a pioneer in the study of child sexual abuse, was the first researcher to alert professionals and the public to the pervasiveness of child sexual abuse. His initial research, which was both his doctoral dissertation and his first book Finkelhor, , was a study of students at six New England colleges and universities. Using a paper-and-pencil survey of undergraduate students, Finkelhor found that Her first article appeared in This study involved a representative sample of women in the San Francisco area and employed face-to-face interviews, using as interviewers matched for gender and age with the respondents.

Beginning in , annual national statistics have been gathered on reports of child physical abuse and neglect. National statistics demonstrate a dramatic increase in reports from , cases or 10 per 1, children in , to the late s when over 3 million children were reported or 47 per 1, children Faller, Rates of reports continue to increase each year. In , the most recent year for which data are available, there were 3. As reporting rates have increased, substantiation rates have decreased. In , of the 3. Of the screened-in reports, approximately one-fifth were substantiated, or , children.

Victims are approximately equally likely to be male or female. In addition, because there have been four such surveys, rates of maltreatment and substantiation can be compared over time.

NIS 4 involved counties in which there were child protection agencies. NIS includes two standards, a harm standard severe maltreatment and a broader endangerment standard. Because CAPTA definitions include both actual abuse and risk for abuse, both of these standards are relevant. NIS 4 estimated that 1. According to the endangerment standard, close to 3,, children were maltreated during — Sedlak et al. The first three NIS studies found no differences in patterns of maltreatment by race.

However, NIS 4 found that rates of sexual and physical abuse for African American children according to the harm standard were higher than those for White children Sedlak et al. Child Maltreatment reports that Although Child Maltreatment does not provide a breakdown of perpetrator relationship by type of maltreatment, practice indicates these unmarried partners are more likely to commit physical and sexual abuse than neglect.

In terms of offender gender, A child can be physically abused outside of the family, for example, in a school setting or in a recreational setting.

Under-identification of sexually abused children in national statistics poses a much larger problem. According to Child Maltreatment, , the proportion of children who were victims of sexual abuse was 8. In , the first year of aggregated reports, only 6, cases of sexual abuse were reported, a rate of. By , this figure had climbed to , cases, a rate of This number is 2. The first way that social workers can help physically and sexually abused children is by reporting cases to child protective services when there is reasonable cause to suspect or believe a child has been abused.

In almost all 50 U.

Social workers need not be certain of abuse to justify a report. Moreover, both federal and state statutes provide protections for persons who report in good faith and penalties for professionals who fail to report Child Welfare Information Gateway, a.

1. In This Article?
2. Kathleen Coulborn Faller.
3. Interventions for Physically and Sexually Abused Children - Encyclopedia of Social Work.
4. Browse by Content Type.
5. My Story Through Poetry: From Despair to Triumph!.
6. Mini wohnt in meinem Herzen: die Geschichte eines Frühchens (German Edition).

And child protection caseworkers are not allowed to reveal the identity of the reporting person during the course of the investigation. These are all legitimate concerns. That said, unless social workers are employed by the child welfare system, they are not in a position to provide child safety from abuse. Child protection workers are, as are law enforcement officials and the courts. Physical abuse indicators include the following: Non-accidental injury sites include the face, the neck, the upper arms, ears, genitals, and buttocks Reece, Similarly, bite marks and burns without plausible explanation are red flags Reece, Finally, if a child discloses physically abusive acts by a caregiver, regardless of the presence of physical signs, that disclosure should trigger a report.

Sexual abuse rarely results in physical findings Alexander, Research indicates that children rarely make false allegations of sexual abuse Faller, Sexual behavior needs to be evaluated in terms of the behaviors that are high probability for sexual abuse Child Sexual Behavior Inventory, ; Friedrich, Concerning behaviors include inviting others to engage in sexual activity, engaging in digital, anal, or vaginal penetration, and engaging in oral sexual acts.

These concerning behaviors may be with self, other children, adults, or pets Faller, Advanced sexual knowledge may be a sign of sexual abuse in young children. Such knowledge includes knowledge about the mechanics of vaginal, oral, and anal intercourse. Of particular concern is sensori-motor knowledge, for example. Especially today, with the easy access to Internet materials about sexual activity, possible sources of sexual knowledge and sexual behaviors, other than sexual abuse, need to be assessed when considering a report.

Although social workers may play important roles in evaluating both physical and sexual abuse, they are more likely to have a central role in sexual abuse cases. In this section, differences between investigative and assessment roles and two strategies specific to gathering information about the likelihood of abuse and its effects will be described.

Social workers and other professionals employed as child protection and child welfare caseworkers are key professionals in investigation of allegations of physical and sexual abuse. In this endeavor, they work closely with other professionals Child Welfare Information Gateway, Typically, the other professionals are health care providers who conduct the physical examinations of children who may have been abused; and law enforcement professionals, whose role is to determine if a crime has been committed.

In addition, increasingly, Child Advocacy Centers are hiring social workers as forensic interviewers. Child Advocacy Centers provide a child-friendly environment where the child is interviewed by a skilled professional, and other professionals with investigatory and case management duties child protection workers, police, and prosecutors observe the interview or review a video of it. The usual goals of the child welfare investigative process are to determine if child abuse has occurred and, if so, whether the child is safe or there is future risk to the child.

In addition, if the case is substantiated, the investigation will lead to a case management plan for the child and the family Faller, in press. Social workers in voluntary agencies, in group practices, and in independent practice may work under contract with child welfare agencies or in other capacities on assessments.

Browse by Subject

Often physically and sexually children and their families are referred by the child welfare agency to professionals in the community for evaluations. As already noted, the majority of sexual abuse involves offenders who are not part of the family Bolen, In these circumstances, caregivers may seek assessments of sexually abused children, and law enforcement may refer children to assessment providers.

In conducting assessments, social workers and other professionals may address the questions of whether abuse has occurred and child safety, but they are more likely to address the psychological impact of the abuse on the child and make specific treatment recommendations Faller, in press. In addition, social workers and other mental health professionals may be asked by the child welfare system and the courts to assess parents, both offenders and non-offenders, whose children have been abused.

Customary social work assessment methods are appropriate for evaluating situations of physical and sexual abuse. In addition, there are best practices that are unique to investigation and assessment of child abuse. These are forensic interviews of children and the use of abuse-specific standardized measures. Whether social workers are child protection investigators or working in other capacities, the core of the evaluative process is interviewing the child.

There are numerous guidelines and protocols for conducting these interviews Faller, ; Newlin et al. Increasingly professionals who interview children about abuse are trained on several interview protocols and use strategies from them depending on the needs of the child Newlin et al. Although these interview structures vary in the number of phases of the interview, they have three core content areas: During the substantive phase, the professional inquiries about abuse using open-ended probes and questions and attempts to obtain a narrative account from the child Newlin et al.

Care is taken not to ask leading questions or use interpretation. These child interviews are intended primarily to determine the facts, but interviewers can also gather information about the impact of the abuse on the child. Use of standardized measures.

Social workers and other mental health professionals working in Child Advocacy Centers and engaging in assessments of physically and sexually abused children should use standardized measures, which can supplement the interview process and provide information on the impact of the abuse on the child. The CBCL has two versions, one for children 1. These are completed by the caregiver. There are also versions completed by the child and the teacher. Externalizing behaviors are especially common among children who have been physically abused Achenbach, The CSBI, as indicated by its title, is specific to indicators of sexual abuse.

The TSCC is a item inventory completed by children ages 8 and older.

Account Options

It contains items related to 1 anxiety, 2 depression, 3 posttraumatic stress, 4 sexual concerns, 5 dissociation, and 6 anger. Respondents rate items 0 not at all to 3 very often. It yields a Total Score as well as scores on the 6 subscales Briere, It is useful for gathering information about the effects of both sexual and physical abuse. Interventions employed by social workers may involve both case management and treatment. In contrast, because most sex offenders against children are extra-familial Bolen, , professionals can usually count on a non-offending caregiver in the intervention.

Case management strategies for physically and sexually abused children have the goals of child safety, permanency, and well-being Adoption and Safe Families Act ASFA , Both the child welfare system and the child protection court will be involved in case management decisions Child Welfare Information Gateway, When child protective services intervenes, if the child is not safe or cannot be made safe at home, the child is usually removed and placed with relatives or in foster care.

Because the child welfare system also supports family preservation, the presumptive goal, except in very serious cases such as severe or chronic injury and sexual abuse Adoption and Safe Families Act, , is that removal will be temporary, and the family will be reunified when it becomes safe to return the child. Mindful of the importance of stability for children, ASFA and state child welfare statutes place time limits for the amelioration of the circumstances leading to child placement. A permanency planning hearing usually is required if the child has been in care for a year Adoption and Safe Families Act, Depending upon case circumstances, the permanency goal for the child may be reunification with the family, termination of parental rights followed by a relative or non-relative adoption, or guardianship Adoption and Safe Families Act, ; Child Welfare Information, Gateway.

The APSAC guidelines advise parsimony in the number of services because families can be overwhelmed by requirements to participate in many services, setting priorities in terms of what problems need to be addressed, and targeting specific problems with treatments that work for those problems APSAC, Treatment for physically and sexually abused children is intended to address both the causes and the consequences of the abuse. Because in most instances of physical abuse and some instances of sexual abuse, the caregiver is the offender, treatment must also involve the abusive caregiver s.

Some sexually abused children also have sexual behavior problems Friedrich, Other fairly common effects are depression and self-blaming. In recent years, research has documented the concurrence of several traumas: One of the positive developments in the last 20 years is the emergence of evidence-based treatments for both physically and sexually abused children.

Thus, social workers and other professionals can help abused children and their families by employing evidence-based interventions. Since evidence-based treatments for physical and sexual abuse are rapidly developing, social workers and others providing treatment need not only to study these treatments, but also to engage in continuing education about these treatments.

All the evidence-based treatments described in this article are manualized. Many empirically supported treatments have established training programs and provide ongoing supervision to assure treatment integrity and to problem solve with therapists e. NCTSN identifies core components of these interventions as follows: These are generic components that focus on trauma, and most of the treatments supported by NCTSN can be used for a range of traumatic experiences.

A number of these treatments are specifically appropriate for physically and sexually abused children. All of the treatments recommended in this article can be used with diverse populations. Specific treatments for physical abuse.

• História natural da religião (Portuguese Edition).
• Refine your editions:.
• Hágase sus propios cosméticos (Color) (Libro Práctico nº 4) (Spanish Edition).
• The 2012 Guide Book or How to Make the End of the World Fun!.

Evidence-based treatments for physical abuse have cognitive-behavioral components and involve the parent and the child to improve parent-child interactions. Some of these treatments also address posttraumatic stress. PCIT is a 12—20 session treatment, and has been employed with children ages 2— The therapist observes the sessions from behind a one-way mirror and actively intervenes, coaching the parent through a bug-in-the-ear of the parent. During the second half of treatment, the parent is instructed and coached in a positive discipline program, including effective delivery of commands, positive parent responses for child compliance, and time-out for inappropriate behavior.

Working with Children: Assessment, Representation and Intervention

Behaviors are charted during treatment so that the parent receives fairly immediate feedback NCTSN, It addresses parental coercive discipline, child trauma, and child behavior problems. Finally, for the parent-child and family relationship, these components are 1 treatment orientation and engagement; 2 clarification sessions to establish responsibility for the abuse i. CPC- CBT is short term 16—20 minute sessions for children, ages 3—18, whose caregivers have engaged in physical abuse or coercive parenting.

The treatment has four phases: During Phase 2 or the coping skill-building phase, the therapist works collaboratively with the parent s to 1 develop adaptive coping skills, a cognitive coping, b anger management, c relaxation, d assertiveness, e self-care, and f problem solving; 2 assist parent s in remaining calm while interacting with their children; 3 develop nonviolent conflict resolution skills; 4 develop a variety of problem-solving skills related to child rearing; 5 develop a variety of non-coercive positive child behavior management skills; 6 learn the dynamics of their interactions with their children and what escalates anger and violence during these interactions and how to use skills to diffuse the situation; and 7 assist children in developing adaptive coping skills and self- management skills e.

Phase 3 or developing a family safety plan includes the following strategies: Phase 4 or the abuse clarification phase involves the following activities: Specific treatments for sexual abuse. Although research indicates that victims of sexual abuse are more likely to receive treatment than victims of other types of maltreatment, not all victims of sexual abuse are traumatized by the experience Berliner, , which highlights the importance of a careful assessment. The preferred treatments for sexual abuse are cognitive behavioral. Journal articles Billington T Psychological assessments of young people in family courts: Qualitative Research in Psychology.

To what extent can or should be the Discourse Unit work for practitioners?. Annual Review of Critical Psychology , 13, International Journal of Inclusive Education , 21 8 , Studies in Higher Education , 42 8 , Feeling, Thinking, Learning, and Neuroscientific Narratives. Qualitative Research in Psychology , 10 2 , Billington T 'When they're making breakfast they'll talk Narrative approaches in the evaluation of Nurture Groups.

Journal of Early Childhood Research , 10 3 , Billington T Working with children: The Psychology of Education Review , 33 2 , Billington T Working with autistic children and young people: Billington T Psychodynamic theories and the 'science of relationships' Bion: Educational and Child Psychology.