613 results on '"Berrick, Jill"'
Search Results
2. Public Rights Orientations and Views on Long‐Term Care Options for Children in the Child Protection System: An Analysis of Representative Samples of Adults in California, USA and Norway
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Helland, Hege Stein, and Skivenes, Marit
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Policy and Administration ,Political Science ,Sociology ,Political Science & Public Administration ,Policy and administration ,Social work - Abstract
ABSTRACT: This study examines a representative sample of adults in California (USA) and Norway, and their attitudes toward adoption versus foster care in a child protection case. The results show that a majority of people favour adoption for a child who has been removed due to maltreatment and cannot be reunified with birth parents. The study examines if people's rights orientation, favouring children or adults, or favouring birth parents or adoptive parents, or their institutional context explain their preferences about long‐term care options. Data material consist of representative samples of the population in California (USA) and Norway (n = 2222), using a vignette survey design. Findings suggest that individuals with a child rights position favour adoption, but attitudes about birth parents' and adoptive parents' rights are not related to care option choices. Institutional context, anchored in policy feedback literature, partly explains the preference for adoption and the population's rights orientation. Further studies are necessary to confirm the role of rights attitudes and institutional context.
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- 2024
3. The stark implications of abolishing child welfare: An alternative path towards support and safety
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Garcia, Antonio R, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Jonson‐Reid, Melissa, Barth, Richard P, Gyourko, John R, Kohl, Patricia, Greeson, Johanna KP, Drake, Brett, and Cook, Victoria
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Social Work ,Human Society ,Pediatric ,Prevention ,Clinical Research ,abolish ,child welfare ,evidence-based practice ,policy reforms ,racial inequity ,upEND ,Psychology ,Law ,Social work ,Applied and developmental psychology - Abstract
Abstract: Scholars and advocates are at odds about how to achieve higher levels of child safety and permanency. Calls for change include the recent upEND focus on eradication of child welfare services to a radical refocusing of the present system towards prevention/early intervention. To clarify the implications of reform over abolition, we seek to portray a future in which the abolition of child welfare has occurred, in juxtaposition to maintaining four core elements of established child maltreatment programmes around the world: (1) receiving and responding to community signals about the risk to children; (2) assessment of need coupled with a proportionate response; (3) rights protections to ensure fairness when placement outside the family is required; and (4) procedures for accountability and quality improvement. For each of these functions, we outline abolitionist advocates' positions and implications for children and parents. Across these elements, we delineate how assigning these responsibilities to communities, as suggested by upEND, would likely (1) exaggerate racial and economic inequities and (2) create structural barriers that would increase harm to children. We suggest several evidence‐informed enhancements to practice, research and policy that would mitigate these inequities while also increasing safety and permanency.
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- 2024
4. A response to Evangelist et al., 2023
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Drake, Brett, Barth, Richard P, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Garcia, Antonio, Greeson, Johanna KP, Jonson-Reid, Melissa, Kim, Hyunil, Kohl, Patricia L, and Putnam-Hornstein, Emily
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Applied and Developmental Psychology ,Human Society ,Criminology ,Psychology ,Social Work ,Developmental & Child Psychology ,Social work ,Applied and developmental psychology - Published
- 2023
5. Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial of a Family-Based Mental Health Navigator Intervention for Youth in the Child Welfare System (Preprint)
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Tolou-Shams, Marina, Ramaiya, Megan, Lara Salas, Jannet, Ezimora, Ifunanya, Shumway, Martha, Duerr Berrick, Jill, Aguilera, Adrian, Borsari, Brian, Dauria, Emily, Friedling, Naomi, Holmes, Crystal, and Grandi, Adam
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Good Health and Well Being ,child welfare–involved youth ,community engagement ,digital health technology ,foster care ,implementation science ,navigator interventions ,randomized clinical trial ,Clinical Sciences ,Public Health and Health Services ,Health services and systems ,Public health - Abstract
BackgroundYouth in the child welfare system (child welfare-involved [CWI] youth) have high documented rates of mental health symptoms and experience significant disparities in mental health care services access and engagement. Adolescence is a developmental stage that confers increased likelihood of experiencing mental health symptoms and the emergence of disorders that can persist into adulthood. Despite a high documented need for evidence-based mental health services for CWI youth, coordination between child welfare and mental health service systems to increase access to care remains inadequate, and engagement in mental health services is low. Navigator models developed in the health care field to address challenges of service access, fragmentation, and continuity that affect the quality of care provide a promising approach to increase linkage to, and engagement in, mental health services for CWI youth. However, at present, there is no empirically supported mental health navigator model to address the unique and complex mental health needs of CWI youth and their families.ObjectiveUsing a randomized controlled trial, this study aims to develop and test a foster care family navigator (FCFN) model to improve mental health service outcomes for CWI adolescents (aged 12-17 years).MethodsThe navigator model leverages an in-person navigator and use of adjunctive digital health technology to engage with, and improve, care coordination, tracking, and monitoring of mental health service needs for CWI youth and families. In total, 80 caregiver-youth dyads will be randomized to receive either the FCFN intervention or standard of care (clinical case management services): 40 (50%) to FCFN and 40 (50%) to control. Qualitative exit interviews will inform the feasibility and acceptability of the services received during the 6-month period. The primary trial outcomes are mental health treatment initiation and engagement. Other pre- and postservice outcomes, such as proportion screened and time to screening, will also be evaluated. We hypothesize that youth receiving the FCFN intervention will have higher rates of mental health treatment initiation and engagement than youth receiving standard of care.ResultsWe propose enrollment of 80 dyads by March 2024, final data collection by September 2024, and the publication of main findings in March 2025. After final data analysis and writing of the results, the resulting manuscripts will be submitted to journals for dissemination.ConclusionsThis study will be the first to produce empirically driven conclusions and recommendations for implementing a family mental health navigation model for CWI youth with long-standing and unaddressed disparities in behavioral health services access. The study findings have potential to have large-scale trial applicability and be feasible and acceptable for eventual system implementation and adoption.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT04506437; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04506437.International registered report identifier (irrid)DERR1-10.2196/49999.
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- 2023
6. Public perceptions of child protection, children’s rights, and personal values: An assessment of two states
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Skivenes, Marit, and Roscoe, Joseph N
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Policy and Administration ,Political Science ,Human Society ,Pediatric ,Behavioral and Social Science ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,Child welfare policy ,Welfare state ,Children's rights ,Human values ,Government intervention ,Applied Economics ,Social Work ,Social work ,Sociology - Abstract
Although there is an expansive literature on public attitudes towards the welfare state, we know comparatively little about public attitudes toward child protection. Gauging public opinion about the state's role in protecting children is complicated by the contested ideas that underlie the field. Child protection lies at the nexus between competing values about state obligations to allow unfettered parental freedom or to permit constraints on some parental behaviors. At issue is also the notion of balancing the individual rights of the parties involved: parents and children. Similar to the larger welfare state literature, public attitudes about child protection may be shaped by core human values. This study includes representative samples of the public in Norway and California (n = 2148), countries that are commonly viewed as representative of social democratic and liberal welfare state regimes. Respondents reviewed a vignette portraying a child at risk of harm and were asked a series of questions to gauge whether and/or how the state might constrain the parent's behavior, questions pertaining to the rights of children, and their views about core human values. Findings indicate that residents of Norway were more likely to favor the values of security and equal rights, and Californians more likely to favor the value of self-direction. Contrary to the larger body of welfare state literature which suggests that human values help explain public attitudes about welfare provisions, in general, this study did not find that human values generally explained differences in country attitudes toward constrained parenting or toward children's rights. Findings offer an exploratory first step in expanding notions about child protection as nested in welfare states.
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- 2023
7. Racial/Ethnic Differences in Child Protective Services Reporting, Substantiation and Placement, With Comparison to Non-CPS Risks and Outcomes: 2005-2019.
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Drake, Brett, Jones, Dylan, Kim, Hyunil, Gyourko, John, Garcia, Antonio, Barth, Richard P, Font, Sarah A, Putnam-Hornstein, Emily, Duerr Berrick, Jill, Greeson, Johanna KP, Cook, Victoria, Kohl, Patricia L, and Jonson-Reid, Melissa
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Behavioral and Social Science ,Physical Injury - Accidents and Adverse Effects ,Child Abuse and Neglect Research ,Clinical Research ,Childhood Injury ,Prevention ,Violence Research ,Pediatric ,Good Health and Well Being ,child protective services ,child maltreatment ,epidemiology ,Social Work ,Psychology ,Family Studies - Abstract
We used National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System and Census data to examine Black-White and Hispanic-White disparities in reporting, substantiation, and out-of-home placement both descriptively from 2005-2019 and in multivariate models from 2007-2017. We also tracked contemporaneous social risk (e.g., child poverty) and child harm (e.g., infant mortality) disparities using non-child protective services (CPS) sources and compared them to CPS reporting rate disparities. Black-White CPS reporting disparities were lower than found in non-CPS risk and harm benchmarks. Consistent with the Hispanic paradox, Hispanic-White CPS reporting disparities were lower than risk disparities but similar to harm disparities. Descriptive and multivariate analyses of data from the past several years indicated that Black children were less likely to be substantiated or placed into out-of-home care following a report than White children. Hispanic children were slightly more likely to be substantiated or placed in out-of-home care than White children overall, but this difference disappeared in multivariate models. Available data provide no evidence that Black children were overreported relative to observed risks and harms reflected in non-CPS data. Reducing reporting rates among Black children will require addressing broader conditions associated with maltreatment.
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- 2023
8. A longitudinal investigation of infants and out-of-home care
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Magruder, Joseph and Berrick, Jill Duerr
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Pediatric ,Clinical Research ,Infants ,permanency ,child protection ,child welfare ,foster care ,concurrent planning - Abstract
Foster care placements for infants can be consequential. Research suggests that infants’ path through and beyond the care system is different than the experience for children of other age groups. Studying infants is important because of their unique needs for developmentally-sensitive care; because of the underpinnings of attachment theory; and because the long-term impacts of quality care can be pronounced. Prior research examining infants in care has typically focused on their first episode and the outcomes of that episode. This study offers a longitudinal examination of a population-based cohort of infants (n = 5789) born in 2001 who entered care during the first year of life and who were followed through multiple care episodes until age 18. Findings suggest that using single, first episode data overstates the proportion of children who successfully reunify and understates the proportion of children who are adopted, return to care, or live with guardians. This research also suggests that the experience of infants who enter care as neonates is different from that of infants who enter care after the first four weeks of life. The long-term outcome for neonates is much more likely to be adoption. Long-term foster care for all infants is an especially unlikely outcome.
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- 2023
9. Children’s rights and parents’ rights: Popular attitudes about when we privilege one over the other
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Skivenes, Marit, and Roscoe, Joseph N
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Behavioral and Social Science ,Basic Behavioral and Social Science ,Pediatric ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,child welfare policy ,children's rights ,parental rights ,welfare state ,Political Science ,Social Work - Abstract
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is a widely accepted human rights document and has relevance for child protection policy. This study employs an experimental design with representative samples from Norway and California (USA) to test public perceptions of children's rights in child protection. The countries have welfare states and child protection contexts that differ, and their histories contrast with regard to the UNCRC. Results show that increased severity of risk to a child does not correspond with increased weight on children’s rights. However, residents of Norway are more likely to embrace a children's rights orientation, and participants in California are more likely to accept a parents’ rights perspective. Demographics such as immigrant status and age account for some of these differences. The study contributes to the literature on children's rights and the role of the state in aligning public policy with public attitudes about children.
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- 2022
10. Safely Increasing Connection to Community-Based Services: A Study of Multidisciplinary Team Decision Making for Child Welfare Referrals
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Chambers, Jaclyn E, Roscoe, Joseph N, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Lery, Bridgette, and Thompson, Doug
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Social Work ,Human Society ,Clinical Research ,Clinical Trials and Supportive Activities ,Health Services ,Child ,Child Welfare ,Community Health Services ,Decision Making ,Humans ,Patient Care Team ,Referral and Consultation ,child welfare ,decision making ,community services ,Psychology ,Family Studies ,Criminology ,Social work ,Applied and developmental psychology - Abstract
Initial child welfare screening decisions, traditionally made by an individual worker, determine if a family will receive further intervention by child protective services. A multi-disciplinary team (MDT) decision-making approach for child welfare referrals aims to provide a more thorough assessment of needs and strengths and to connect families to appropriate community-based providers. This study examined 159 child welfare referrals handled by MDTs compared to 331 referrals handled via the traditional screening approach. The study used a pseudo randomization procedure to assign referrals to the study conditions: Referrals logged on 2.5 days of the week were assigned to the treatment group; all others were assigned to the comparison group. Referrals handled by an MDT were more than four times as likely as those not handled by an MDT to be referred to community-based organizations (OR = 4.32, p < .001). There were no statistically significant differences in families' engagement with community-based organizations or child welfare outcomes. MDTs are a promising step in the initial process of connecting families to services, although they did not affect this study's longer-term outcomes.
- Published
- 2022
11. Research to Consider While Effectively Re-Designing Child Welfare Services
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Barth, Richard P, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Garcia, Antonio R, Drake, Brett, Jonson-Reid, Melissa, Gyourko, John R, and Greeson, Johanna KP
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Health Services ,Clinical Research ,child welfare reform ,misconceptions ,social work research ,research-supported reform ,Social Work - Abstract
An intense appetite for reforming and transforming child welfare services in the United States is yielding many new initiatives. Vulnerable children and families who become involved with child welfare clearly deserve higher quality and more effective services. New policies, programs, and practices should be built on sound evidence. Reforms based on misunderstandings about what the current data show may ultimately harm families. This review highlights 10 commonly held misconceptions which we assert are inconsistent with the best available contemporary evidence. Implications for better alignment of evidence and reform are discussed.
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- 2022
12. Research to Consider while Effectively Re-Designing Child Welfare Services: A Response to Commentaries
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Drake, Brett, Barth, Richard P, Garcia, Antonio R, Jonson-Reid, Melissa, Gyourko, John R, and Greeson, Johanna KP
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Clinical Research ,Health Services ,Health and social care services research ,8.3 Policy ,ethics ,and research governance ,Child welfare ,Misconception ,Policy reform ,Social Work - Abstract
Barth et al. (2021) published an article in this journal identifying ten topics in the field of child welfare that are frequently discussed among professionals, advocates, and researchers in an effort to shape discussions of practice and policy reform. Concerned that these discussions are often poorly informed by the research evidence, Barth et al. intended to offer a corrective to these common, erroneous narratives. The Editor-in-Chief, Bruce Thyer, asked for suggestions for commentators and then invited some number of respondents to offer their perspectives on the original article. Here, we respond to each of the submitted papers, highlighting areas of agreement, and addressing other topics where we—sometimes sharply—disagree. We welcome an ongoing, fact-based, respectful dialogue to help shape child welfare reform. Efforts to improve the child welfare system are urgently needed; we stand by our view that large-scale practice and policy reform, in particular, must be guided by the best available research evidence.
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- 2022
13. Imagining a new future: elimination of child support obligations for child welfare-involved families
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Berrick, Jill Duerr
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Violence Research ,Pediatric ,Organizations/systems ,policy issues ,child maltreatment ,child protection - Abstract
As we imagine the next generation of public child welfare, efforts to identify and eliminate practices that are harmful to families must be pursued. This commentary uses available research evidence to argue against child support enforcement for child welfare-involved families. Although research on this topic is sparse, the evidence from the few available studies suggests that child support enforcement likely harms child welfare-involved families. It delays reunification, increases family financial precarity, is cost ineffective, and is anathema to the values of family support. Federal policies that require or encourage referral of child welfare-involved families to child support agencies should be eliminated to better promote family strengths and cohesion.
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- 2022
14. Parental Freedom in the Context of Risk to the Child: Citizens’ Views of Child Protection and the State in the US and Norway
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BERRICK, JILL D, SKIVENES, MARIT, and ROSCOE, JOSEPH N
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Pediatric ,Behavioral and Social Science ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,child protection ,comparative welfare states ,parental freedom ,negative liberty ,Policy and Administration ,Social Work ,Philosophy ,Political Science & Public Administration - Abstract
Child protection is considered an appropriate government responsibility, but interventions into the family are also some of the most consequential for states. This study examines the normative basis for limiting parents' freedom by exploring public attitudes about a child's safety in the context of increasing risk. Using a randomized survey, we test the causal relationship between levels of risk and parental restrictions on representative samples in Norway and CA, US (n = 2148) - different welfare state and child protection models. Findings suggest that the public supports restricting parental freedom under conditions of risk and that severity of risk is taken into consideration. A majority favour restricting parental freedom under conditions of risk to the child; a minority resist restricting freedom, regardless of risk, and about one-third to one-half of respondents favour temporarily suspending parents' rights by separating children to foster care. Residents of Norway are half as likely to support unrestricted parenting, regardless of risk, and are 1.5 as likely to endorse restricted parenting. Norwegians are also 20% less likely to support separating a child from his parent compared to US respondents. The study has implications for system design based on popular notions about parents' freedom and family privacy.
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- 2022
15. Child Protection Systems Across the World
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Duerr Berrick, Jill, Gilbert, Neil, Skivenes, Marit, Duerr Berrick, Jill, book editor, Gilbert, Neil, book editor, and Skivenes, Marit, book editor
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
16. Child Protection Systems: A Global Typology
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Duerr Berrick, Jill, Gilbert, Neil, Skivenes, Marit, Duerr Berrick, Jill, book editor, Gilbert, Neil, book editor, and Skivenes, Marit, book editor
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
17. Child Protection in the United States
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Lawson, Jennifer, Duerr Berrick, Jill, Duerr Berrick, Jill, book editor, Gilbert, Neil, book editor, and Skivenes, Marit, book editor
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
18. Safely Increasing Connection to Community-Based Services: A Study of Multidisciplinary Team Decision Making for Child Welfare Referrals.
- Author
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Chambers, Jaclyn E, Roscoe, Joseph N, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Lery, Bridgette, and Thompson, Doug
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child welfare ,community services ,decision making ,Family Studies ,Social Work ,Psychology - Abstract
Initial child welfare screening decisions, traditionally made by an individual worker, determine if a family will receive further intervention by child protective services. A multi-disciplinary team (MDT) decision-making approach for child welfare referrals aims to provide a more thorough assessment of needs and strengths and to connect families to appropriate community-based providers. This study examined 159 child welfare referrals handled by MDTs compared to 331 referrals handled via the traditional screening approach. The study used a pseudo randomization procedure to assign referrals to the study conditions: Referrals logged on 2.5 days of the week were assigned to the treatment group; all others were assigned to the comparison group. Referrals handled by an MDT were more than four times as likely as those not handled by an MDT to be referred to community-based organizations (OR = 4.32, p < .001). There were no statistically significant differences in families' engagement with community-based organizations or child welfare outcomes. MDTs are a promising step in the initial process of connecting families to services, although they did not affect this study's longer-term outcomes.
- Published
- 2021
19. Child Protection Systems
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Duerr Berrick, Jill, primary, Gilbert, Neil, additional, and Skivenes, Marit, additional
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
20. Public Policy toward the Removal of Children from the Family
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Duerr Berrick, Jill, primary
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
21. Outcomes following child welfare services: what are they and do they differ for black children?
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Barth, Richard P, Jonson-Reid, Melissa, Greeson, Johanna KP, Drake, Brett, Berrick, Jill Duerr, Garcia, Antonio R, Shaw, Terry V, and Gyourko, John R
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Health Services ,Pediatric ,Clinical Research ,outcomes ,child welfare services ,race ,foster care ,CPS - Abstract
Current calls to end structural racism in the US include proposals to abolish or radically transform child welfare services (CWS). While substantial research finds numerous poor outcomes following maltreatment, the efficacy and acceptability of CWS, particularly for children of color, has long sparked debate. This review summarizes the state of quantitative research across seven domains for children overall and by race with varying degrees of CWS contact. Current research with adequate comparisons provides no robust evidence to support the idea that children have worse outcomes from CWS involvement, but few studies focused on Black children. Implications for research and system change are discussed.
- Published
- 2020
22. Are child protection workers and judges in alignment with citizens when considering interventions into a family? A cross-country study of four jurisdictions
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Berrick, Jill, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Behavioral and Social Science ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,Applied Economics ,Social Work - Abstract
This paper examines whether and how the views of professional decision makers in public agencies and courts in four child protection jurisdictions align with the views of the public. Democratic states are built on the foundation that state polices are accountable to, and represent, the citizens’ will. The extent to which this is the case in child protection is largely unknown. This study draws on survey vignette data collected from three samples (citizens, child protection staff and judiciary decision makers) representing society at large, the child welfare agency, and judicial systems in four jurisdictions - England, Finland, Norway, and the U.S. (California). Findings from this study suggest that there is a high degree of similarity across countries in the public's views about children's need for services, and the poor outcomes that may result absent a service response. Views between child protection professionals and the public diverge the most when considering if the child is suffering from neglect and the use of intrusive state interventions. Child protection staff and judges’ perspectives within each country are in general alignment and show the impact of the established systems on considerations. Our results may have implications for the design of social policy in the area of child protection internationally.
- Published
- 2020
23. Children’s and parents’ involvement in care order proceedings: a cross-national comparison of judicial decision-makers’ views and experiences
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Berrick, Jill, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Pediatric ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,Law - Abstract
This paper presents the views of judicial decision-makers (n = 1794) in four child protection jurisdictions (England, Finland, Norway, and the USA (California)), about whether parents and children are provided with appropriate opportunities to participate in proceedings in their countries. Overall, the study found a high degree of agreement within and between the countries as regards the important conditions for parents’ and children´s involvement, although the four systems themselves are very different. There was less agreement about children’s involvement than parents’, and the court decision-makers from Norway and Finland were more likely to express doubts about this. Nevertheless, the main message from the judicial decision-makers is that they are relatively satisfied as to how parents’ and children´s involvement is handled in their countries. Whether or not this confidence is justified, the emphasis on achieving effective involvement of children and parents in court proceedings is likely to grow, with major implications for the workers, decision-makers and agencies involved.
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- 2019
24. Kinship Probate Guardianship: An Important Permanency Option for Children
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Hernández, Julia and Berrick, Jill Duerr
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Pediatric ,child welfare ,subjects of practice ,caregiving ,family systems and functioning ,kinship care ,probate guardianship ,Social Work - Abstract
A growing number of children are being raised by relatives under a variety of different care arrangements. Although the extant literature provides rough estimates of the number and characteristics of children living in most care arrangements, research on kinship probate guardianship is especially scarce. This article focuses on kinship probate guardianship in an effort to build the literature on this understudied population. It examines demographic information about caregivers and children pursuing kinship probate guardianship, the circumstances that necessitate children’s alternative care, and reasons for selecting this custodial arrangement. Findings suggest that children and caregivers who select into kinship probate guardianship have characteristics similar to those of children and caregivers in other types of kinship care. These children move into the homes of their relatives for a variety of reasons, primarily including parental desertion, detention, and drug use.
- Published
- 2019
25. Public Rights Orientations and Views on Long‐Term Care Options for Children in the Child Protection System: An Analysis of Representative Samples of Adults in California, USA and Norway.
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Helland, Hege Stein, and Skivenes, Marit
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ATTITUDES toward adoption , *BIRTHPARENTS , *PARENT-child legal relationship , *CHILD welfare , *ADOPTION , *ADOPTIVE parents - Abstract
ABSTRACT This study examines a representative sample of adults in California (USA) and Norway, and their attitudes toward adoption versus foster care in a child protection case. The results show that a majority of people favour adoption for a child who has been removed due to maltreatment and cannot be reunified with birth parents. The study examines if people's rights orientation, favouring children or adults, or favouring birth parents or adoptive parents, or their institutional context explain their preferences about long‐term care options. Data material consist of representative samples of the population in California (USA) and Norway (n = 2222), using a vignette survey design. Findings suggest that individuals with a child rights position favour adoption, but attitudes about birth parents' and adoptive parents' rights are not related to care option choices. Institutional context, anchored in policy feedback literature, partly explains the preference for adoption and the population's rights orientation. Further studies are necessary to confirm the role of rights attitudes and institutional context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
26. Care order templates as institutional scripts in child protection: A cross-system analysis
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Child welfare ,Care order preparations ,Institutional scripts ,Discretion ,Cross-country comparisons ,Applied Economics ,Social Work - Abstract
This article compares blank care order application templates used in four countries (England, Finland, Norway, and USA (California)), treating them as a vital part of the ‘institutional scripts’ that shape practice, and embody state principles of child protection. The templates are used when child protection agencies apply to court for a care order, usually to remove a child from the family home. The templates prescribe and shape the type of information and analysis that is required justify such an extreme level of state intervention in family life. They are a mechanism and a manifestation of the principles and the legislation of each child welfare system, and are able to cast light on issues that might otherwise remain unseen or unnoticed in cross-country comparisons. The analysis of the documents compares the language and form of the four blank templates, their inter-textuality, their readership, and authors. The analysis highlights the discretionary space allocated to social workers across countries and the state frameworks within which child protection efforts are embedded.
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- 2018
27. International Perspectives on Child-responsive Courts
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Law and Legal Studies ,Public Law ,Pediatric ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,child friendly courts ,child participation ,child protection decisions ,cross-country comparisons ,Anthropology ,Law ,Social Work ,International and comparative law ,Law in context ,Applied ethics - Abstract
Child friendly justice and access to justice for children are explicit concerns for the European Union, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Council of Europe and the Child Rights International Network. This study examines court systems as child-responsive by eliciting the views of judicial decision makers on child protection cases (n = 1,479) in four legal systems (England, Finland, Norway and the usa (represented by California)), based on an online survey. In this paper, we asked judicial officials who have the authority to make care order decisions how they view the child-friendliness of the courts. We presented them with six statements representing standard features of child responsive courts. Findings show that there is considerable room for improving both structure and practice of the court proceedings, for example the use of child friendly language and child-sensitive time frames. There were variations across states, and some variation across type of decision maker. Implications for the development of education and training about the opportunities for children's engagement are considered.
- Published
- 2018
28. A Cross‐Country Comparison of Child Welfare Systems and Workers' Responses to Children Appearing to be at Risk or in Need of Help
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Berrick, Jill, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Pediatric ,Clinical Research ,Behavioral and Social Science ,child welfare systems ,decision-making ,eligibility assessment ,service provision ,Social Work - Abstract
This paper compares how frontline staff in four national child welfare systems and policy contexts – Finland, Norway, England and the USA (specifically, California) – respond to questions about a scenario of possible harm to children. The countries have different child welfare systems that we anticipated would be reflected in the workers' responses (n = 1027). The analysis shows differences and similarities between the systems, although often not in line with system expectations. There is also variation within the country samples. The study shows the complex interactions of individual and agency characteristics in addition to the role of proceduralised decision-making systems and professional discretion. ‘Compares how frontline staff in four national child welfare systems and policy contexts.. respond to.. a scenario of possible harm to children’. Key Practitioner Messages: Professional discretion differs. Proceduralised and high threshold systems result in less variation between workers' responses. System categories do not seem to capture the nuances of frontline decision-making.
- Published
- 2017
29. Social Workers and Independent Experts in Child Protection Decision Making: Messages from an Intercountry Comparative Study
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Dickens, Jonathan, Berrick, Jill, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
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Generic health relevance ,Child protection ,cross-national research ,decision making ,expertise ,social work and law ,Social Work ,Sociology ,Psychology - Abstract
This paper draws on an international comparative study of social work decision making in cases that are on the edge of care order proceedings, involving child protection workers from Finland, Norway, England and the USA (California). It focuses on workers’ responses in an online questionnaire to questions about the use of independent experts to inform their decisions about whether or not to take a case to court. All the countries try to avoid taking cases to court if possible, but the ways they do this vary considerably. The findings show the different meanings and implications that the request for an independent assessment has in the different systems. Workers’ views reflect the roles and tasks that independent experts have in the different countries; and these in turn reflect their distinctive child protection systems and wider child welfare approaches. The paper offers a starting point for reflection about one’s own system, and suggests that the well-known distinction between family support and child protection models should not be seen as a simple binary categorisation, but rather as a complex, contingent and contested continuum.
- Published
- 2017
30. Parents' involvement in care order decisions: a cross‐country study of front‐line practice
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Berrick, Jill, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Clinical Research ,Health Services ,Behavioral and Social Science ,Generic health relevance ,care orders ,child protection ,comparative child welfare ,decision-making ,vignettes ,Social Work ,Psychology ,Law - Abstract
This article examines parents' involvement in care order decision-making in four countries at one particular point in the care order process, namely, when the child protection worker discusses with the parents his or her considerations regarding child removal. The countries represent different child welfare systems with Norway and Finland categorized as ‘family service systems’ and the USA as a ‘child protection system’, with England somewhere in between. The focus is on whether the forms and intensity of involvement are different in these four countries and whether the system orientation towards family services or child protection influences practice in the social welfare agencies with parents. Involvement is studied in terms of providing information to parents, collecting information from parents and ensuring inclusion in the decision-making processes. A vignette method is employed in a survey with 768 responses from child protection workers in four countries. The findings do not show a consistent pattern of difference regarding parental involvement in care order preparations that align with the type of child welfare system in which staff work. The goal in each child welfare system is to include parents, but the precise ways in which it is carried out (or not) vary. Methodological suggestions are given for further studies.
- Published
- 2017
31. The stark implications of abolishing child welfare: An alternative path towards support and safety.
- Author
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Garcia, Antonio R., Berrick, Jill Duerr, Jonson‐Reid, Melissa, Barth, Richard P., Gyourko, John R., Kohl, Patricia, Greeson, Johanna K. P., Drake, Brett, and Cook, Victoria
- Subjects
- *
LEGAL status of children , *HEALTH services accessibility , *PARENTS , *PROFESSIONAL practice , *HEALTH policy , *CHILD abuse , *RESPONSIBILITY , *SOCIOECONOMIC factors , *CHILDREN'S accident prevention , *COMMUNITIES , *SOCIAL case work , *HEALTH care reform , *HUMAN rights , *NEEDS assessment , *QUALITY assurance , *EVIDENCE-based medicine , *SOCIAL support , *CUSTODY of children , *RACIAL inequality , *LABOR supply - Abstract
Scholars and advocates are at odds about how to achieve higher levels of child safety and permanency. Calls for change include the recent upEND focus on eradication of child welfare services to a radical refocusing of the present system towards prevention/early intervention. To clarify the implications of reform over abolition, we seek to portray a future in which the abolition of child welfare has occurred, in juxtaposition to maintaining four core elements of established child maltreatment programmes around the world: (1) receiving and responding to community signals about the risk to children; (2) assessment of need coupled with a proportionate response; (3) rights protections to ensure fairness when placement outside the family is required; and (4) procedures for accountability and quality improvement. For each of these functions, we outline abolitionist advocates' positions and implications for children and parents. Across these elements, we delineate how assigning these responsibilities to communities, as suggested by upEND, would likely (1) exaggerate racial and economic inequities and (2) create structural barriers that would increase harm to children. We suggest several evidence‐informed enhancements to practice, research and policy that would mitigate these inequities while also increasing safety and permanency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
32. Opportunity Ahead: Reimagining the Role of Child Support Engagement for Child Welfare-Involved Families
- Author
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Dygert, Meg, Mapa, Kati, and Berrick, Jill Duerr
- Subjects
United States. Department of Health and Human Services ,Medicine, Preventive ,Family ,Child support ,Child welfare ,Preventive health services ,Business ,Government ,Sociology and social work - Abstract
The American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) and its affinity group, the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators (NAPCWA), are committed to ensuring the well-being of children by providing [...]
- Published
- 2023
33. Time, Institutional Support, and Quality of Decision Making in Child Protection: A Cross-Country Analysis
- Author
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Berrick, Jill, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Child protection ,decision making ,support ,time pressure ,worker experiences - Abstract
This paper examines perceptions of time and institutional support for decision making and staff confidence in the ultimate decisions made—examining differences and similarities between and within the service-oriented Nordic countries (represented by Norway and Finland) and the risk-oriented Anglo-American countries (represented by England and California). The study identifies a high degree of work pressure across all the countries, lines of predominantly vertical institutional support and relatively high confidence in decisions. Finland stands out with higher perceived work pressure and with a horizontal support line, whereas England stands out with workers having a lower degree of confidence in their own and others’ decisions.
- Published
- 2016
34. Financial well-being in family-based foster care: Exploring variation in income supports for kin and non-kin caregivers in California
- Author
-
Berrick, Jill Duerr and Boyd, Reiko
- Subjects
Health Services ,Behavioral and Social Science ,Clinical Research ,kinship care ,foster care ,finance ,payment ,subsidy ,Applied Economics ,Social Work - Abstract
Kinship foster parents have the same responsibilities as nonrelative foster parents and are held to the same standards of rehabilitative care. Nonetheless, their rights to financial supports and their access to other services vary across states depending on the federal eligibility of the child, and/or the licensing criteria caregivers may or may not meet. We know little about the financial supports, well-being, or services of kinship caregivers receiving differential payment schemes and whether or not these financial supports and services make any difference. More fundamentally, in states that operate two- or more -tiered funding schemes for kinship foster parents, we currently cannot even estimate what proportion of kin caregivers receive more, less, or nothing from the government, even though all are entitled to something. Kin and non-kin caregivers in two California counties responded to a written survey focused on the financial wellbeing and income supports available to families. Sources of support were associated with the availability and utilization of other child welfare services for caregivers and for children.
- Published
- 2016
35. Corrigendum to “Children's involvement in care order decision-making: A cross country analysis” [Child Abuse & Neglect 49 (2015) 128–141]
- Author
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Social Work ,Human Society ,Good Health and Well Being ,Criminology ,Psychology ,Developmental & Child Psychology ,Social work ,Applied and developmental psychology - Abstract
The authors regret: On page 4, line number 47 it now reads “Ninety-eight (38%)…”, but is should read “One hundred and one (38%)…”. On page 4, line 48–50 it now reads “Of the total 1,020 informants …. 367 from Norway, 208 from Finland, 102 from England, and 84 from the US.”, but it should read “Of the total 1,027 informants …. 370 from Norway, 209 from Finland, 103 from England, and 90 from the US.” On page 6, table 1, there is an error in the title of the columns. It now is in the following order “Finland – Norway – England – US”, but the titles should have the following order “Finland – England – Norway – US”. The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.
- Published
- 2016
36. Developing consistent and transparent kinship care policy and practice: State mandated, mediated, and independent care
- Author
-
Berrick, Jill Duerr and Hernandez, Julia
- Subjects
Pediatric ,Kinship care ,Relative care ,Informal care ,Voluntary care ,Kinship diversion ,Legal guardianship ,Kinship adoption ,Voluntary placement agreement ,Applied Economics ,Social Work - Abstract
To date, the large majority of the research literature on kinship care in the United States has focused on the similarities and differences between children and caregivers in “public” or “formal” vs. “private” or “informal” care. Our understanding of children's living arrangements in the homes of their relatives, however, is becoming more nuanced and complex. The stark differences between public and private care are increasingly mediated by hybrid kinship models that may be government facilitated, but are not considered fully public in nature. This paper lays out a framework for understanding the multiple custodial options available to non-indigenous children in the United States who need alternative care from a related adult. We introduce a taxonomy in which care arrangements are characterized as state mandated, state mediated, or state independent. The variability in custodial arrangements raises questions about the routes by which children arrive to care, and the sorting process that shuttles children into arrangements that may offer more or fewer services and supports. Policies that promote consistency within care types are recommended. Practices that make more transparent access across models and a research agenda to fill gaps in knowledge are discussed.
- Published
- 2016
37. Adoption from care
- Author
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, primary
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
38. Adoption from care: policy and practice in the United States
- Author
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, primary
- Published
- 2021
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
39. A response to Evangelist et al., 2023
- Author
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Drake, Brett, primary, Barth, Richard P., additional, Berrick, Jill Duerr, additional, Garcia, Antonio, additional, Greeson, Johanna K.P., additional, Jonson-Reid, Melissa, additional, Kim, Hyunil, additional, Kohl, Patricia L., additional, and Putnam-Hornstein, Emily, additional
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
40. Children's involvement in care order decision-making: A cross-country analysis
- Author
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Berrick, Jill Duerr, Dickens, Jonathan, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Pediatric ,Adult ,Age Factors ,Attitude of Health Personnel ,California ,Child ,Child Welfare ,Child ,Preschool ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Decision Making ,England ,Female ,Finland ,Humans ,Male ,Middle Aged ,Norway ,Patient Participation ,Social Workers ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,Children's involvement ,Child protection ,Cross-country analysis ,Decision-making ,Criminology ,Social Work ,Psychology ,Developmental & Child Psychology - Abstract
This international comparative paper examines how child protection workers in four countries, England, Finland, Norway, USA (CA), involve children in decision making regarding involuntary child removal. The analysis is based on 772 workers' responses to a vignette describing preparations for care order proceedings. We examine children's involvement along three dimensions including information given to the child, information gathered from the child, and opportunities for their perspectives and interests to be considered. Results show that child protection workers weigh children's involvement differently based upon age. Staff in the four countries were more likely to talk with an older child, to provide information, to gather information, and to include in relevant decision making if the child were 11 compared to five in our vignette. Although the Nordic countries and England provide policy guidance regarding children's role in child protection decision making, we did not see consistently higher indicators of children's involvement from the respondents in these countries. Using child protection system frames to analyze the findings did not produce consistent differences between the family service systems and child protection systems included in this study. Findings highlight the wide range in practices concerning children's involvement in decision making, and the wide space for professional discretion in implementing practice with children at the local level.
- Published
- 2015
41. Building an Evidence-Driven Child Welfare Workforce: A University–Agency Partnership
- Author
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Lery, Bridgette, Wiegmann, Wendy, and Berrick, Jill Duerr
- Subjects
Clinical Research ,Health Services ,Curriculum and Pedagogy ,Social Work - Abstract
The federal government increasingly expects child welfare systems to be more responsive to the needs of their local populations, connect strategies to results, and use continuous quality improvement (CQI) to accomplish these goals. A method for improving decision making, CQI relies on an inflow of high-quality data, up-to-date research evidence, and a robust organizational structure and climate that supports the deliberate use of evidence for decision making. This article describes an effort to build and support these essential system components through one public-private child welfare agency-university partnership.
- Published
- 2015
42. The formalized framework for decision-making in child protection care orders: A cross-country analysis
- Author
-
Berrick, Jill D, Peckover, Sue, Pösö, Tarja, and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Pediatric ,Peace ,Justice and Strong Institutions ,Child protection ,comparative country analysis ,decision-making ,discretion ,involuntary care orders ,Policy and Administration ,Sociology ,Political Science & Public Administration - Abstract
Care orders within the child protection system are some of the most invasive interventions a state can make. This article examines the discretionary space governments set out for child protection workers when they prepare care orders. We analyse the formalized framework for these decisions in England, Finland, Norway and the United States. We focus on knowledge, timelines, how children and parents are involved and accountability. We find that Norway and Finland have highly de-regulated systems with wide discretionary space, whereas England and the United States are highly regulated systems with narrow discretionary space. The United States differentiates itself with relatively little parent and/or child involvement in decision-making. England and Finland do not have defined deadlines for terminating the process, and Norway has few directives on what information to collect. Such differences will influence the quality of decisions as well as the principles of the rule of law.
- Published
- 2015
43. Protecting Children from Maltreatment in the United States
- Author
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Duerr Berrick, Jill
- Subjects
Maltreatment ,foster care ,permanency ,prevention ,Cultural Studies - Abstract
The U.S., known as a western industrialized country with a residual welfare state, has developed a system to respond to extreme family difficulties by focusing narrowly on children’s safety and risk of harm from parents or other caregivers. In contrast to many European nations, eligibility for family services is highly restricted and prevention services are typically short-term. For children who are ultimately separated from their parents to secure their safety, the U.S. welfare system places a high priority on returning children home as quickly as possible; and for those children whose reunification is forestalled, alternative opportunities for a permanent home are pursued. This paper suggests that a family system with broader eligibility and more saturated prevention services might benefit many more children and families than those currently assisted in the U.S. today.
- Published
- 2015
44. Experiences of youth who transition to adulthood out of care: Developing a theoretical framework
- Author
-
Lee, Chris and Berrick, Jill Duerr
- Subjects
Aging ,Pediatric ,Transition to adulthood ,Emerging adulthood ,Aging out of foster care ,Youth ,Identity capital ,Applied Economics ,Social Work - Abstract
Adverse adulthood outcomes are well documented among youth who age out of foster care. However, not all youth who age out of care experience deleterious adult outcomes, despite struggling with similar challenges during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Childhood maltreatment, which places youth at greater risk for later maladaptive functioning and psychopathology, may partially explain poor adjustment outcomes in adulthood. Similarly, a history of unstable placements and residing in institutional congregate care settings may also contribute to hardship during this time. However, none of these factors help to explain how some young people aging out of care manage to achieve stability while transitioning into adulthood. This article reviews the literature through the lens of the identity capital framework, and discusses the applicability of this framework to the experiences of youth aging out of foster care. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.
- Published
- 2014
45. Responding to carers’ needs
- Author
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Duerr Berrick, Jill, primary
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
46. A Family-Based Mental Health Navigator Intervention for Youth in the Child Welfare System: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial
- Author
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Tolou-Shams, Marina, primary, Ramaiya, Megan, additional, Lara Salas, Jannet, additional, Ezimora, Ifunanya, additional, Shumway, Martha, additional, Duerr Berrick, Jill, additional, Aguilera, Adrian, additional, Borsari, Brian, additional, Dauria, Emily, additional, Friedling, Naomi, additional, Holmes, Crystal, additional, and Grandi, Adam, additional
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
47. Foster Care and Adoption: How Proposition 10 Commissions Can Help California's Most Vulnerable Young Children. Building Community Systems for Young Children.
- Author
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California Univ., Los Angeles. Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities., Berrick, Jill Duerr, and Edelstein, Susan B.
- Abstract
As part of a series of reports designed to support the implementation of Proposition 10: The California Children and Families Act and to provide comprehensive and authoritative information on critical issues concerning young children and families in California, this report examines the current situation for children who have been maltreated by their parents and who are served by the child welfare system. The report provides background information on the current design of the state's child welfare system and data on the numbers of children affected by maltreatment. The report also describes how young children are disproportionately affected by child maltreatment and how their unique vulnerabilities are exposed and often exacerbated by the system. Some of the problems currently affecting child welfare are described, and a series of innovative program approaches are offered that suggest alternative service designs that are now being implemented for young children. The report asserts that Proposition 10 commissioners have the opportunity to offer both financial assistance as well as a fresh perspective on the developmental needs of young children and the factors associated with healthy development, and thus can have a positive impact on truly disadvantaged children. Finally, the report argues that by focusing on preventive services for vulnerable families, catalyzing coordination among existing service systems, and targeting service delivery to the critical transition points in children's lives, the developmental trajectory of many youngsters may be improved considerably. The report's two appendices list useful organizations and experts and identify child welfare funding sources in California. (Contains 111 references.) (KB)
- Published
- 2001
48. Preventing and responding to errors in US child protection
- Author
-
Berrick, Jill Duerr, primary and Chambers, Jaclyn, additional
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
49. Fostering in the welfare states of the US and Norway
- Author
-
Berrick, Jill Duerr and Skivenes, Marit
- Subjects
Clinical Research ,Disputed aetiology and other ,child welfare system ,cross-country ,foster children ,Norway ,USA ,welfare state ,Policy and Administration ,Sociology ,Political Science & Public Administration - Abstract
This paper aims to explore the differences between Norwegian and US welfare state ideologies, and if or how they are reflected in the respective foster care systems and in the daily practices of foster parents. Our analysis combines a review of policy documents and legal regulations, with interviews in a sample of 141 exemplary foster parents (87 from the US and 54 from Norway). The paper identifies clear differences in how these two states take responsibility and provide services for families in general and foster parents in particular, examining distinct differences in the conditions foster parents have for exercising their parenting tasks. The findings from the interviews show how the conditions play out in real life for foster parents and foster children in relation to recruitment of caregivers, time and resources available to children, and how caregivers negotiate and advocate for children's needs. © The Author(s) 2013.
- Published
- 2013
50. Establishing CASA as an Evidence-Based Practice
- Author
-
Lawson, Jennifer and Berrick, Jill Duerr
- Subjects
Criminology ,Human Society ,Clinical Research ,Comparative Effectiveness Research ,Child ,Child Abuse ,Child Advocacy ,Child Welfare ,Evidence-Based Practice ,Feasibility Studies ,Foster Home Care ,Humans ,Organizations ,Nonprofit ,Research Design ,Social Work ,Treatment Outcome ,United States ,Volunteers ,CASA ,Court Appointed Special Advocates ,child welfare ,foster care - Abstract
In this article the authors examine the evidentiary status of the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) program through a review of current research findings and a critical analysis of the study methodologies used to produce those findings. Due to the equivocal research findings and widespread methodological weaknesses (most notably selection bias) in the literature base, it is determined that there is not currently enough evidence to establish CASA as an evidence-based practice. In spite of the challenges to the feasibility of such research, a future research agenda is suggested that calls for the execution of large randomized controlled trials in order to produce findings that will inform a deeper understanding of CASA effectiveness in improving child outcomes.
- Published
- 2013
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