Child age and caseworker attention in child protective services investigations.
Infants and toddlers are at increased risk for severe/fatal abuse, often at the hands of male perpetrators. This paper examined whether child maltreatment cases involving younger children receive more casework services, overall caseworker activity (e.g., home visits, phone contacts), and are more likely to be substantiated, particularly if a male perpetrator is involved. The randomly selected sample consisted of 293 child abuse and neglect reports in a large county in Western New York in 1993. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that younger children generally receive more overall services and caseworker activity, and that while age makes a significant contribution after the decision has been made to substantiate a case, it does not have the same effect on the initial decision of whether or not to substantiate. Gender of the perpetrator did not reliably predict caseworker attention.
Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo 14260, USA.
J B
JB
Freeman
M
M
Levine
H J
HJ
Doueck
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002669:Child Welfare; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002965:Classification; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D015276:Health Care Rationing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009518:New York; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D012947:Social Work / Q000379:methods*