Attributing responsibility for child maltreatment when domestic violence is present.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to examine factors that influence how child welfare workers attribute responsibility for child maltreatment and child safety in cases involving domestic violence.


METHODS
The study used a factorial survey approach, combining elements of survey research with an experimental design. Case vignettes were constructed by randomly assigning characteristics to vignettes believed to be related to assessments about responsibility for child maltreatment. Public child welfare workers were systematically sampled and asked to rate vignettes on male and female caregivers' responsibility for child maltreatment and concerns for safety.


RESULTS
The presence of domestic violence significantly affected workers' assessments of the attribution of responsibility and concern for child safety, more so than variables related to child maltreatment. Responsibility for exposing a child to domestic violence differed for males and females, with more factors explaining female responsibility. Substance use by either caregiver was significant in attributing responsibility for physical harm, not watching the child closely enough, and concern for child safety, but not for exposure to domestic violence.


CONCLUSIONS
Domestic violence appeared to heighten workers' assessments of responsibility for child maltreatment and concerns about child safety, taking precedence over the characteristics of the child maltreatment itself. Battering tends to work against the domestic violence victim in terms of the attribution of responsibility. A greater number of factors affect female responsibility for exposing a child to domestic violence than male responsibility, even though in every case the male was the designated domestic violence batterer.
Landsman
Miriam J
MJ
University of Iowa School of Social Work, 308 North Hall, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA.
Hartley
Carolyn Copps
CC
D000328:Adult; D000739:Anecdotes as Topic; D002649:Child Abuse; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003625:Data Collection; D017579:Domestic Violence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015146:Midwestern United States; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D012941:Social Responsibility; D012947:Social Work