Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-p566r Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-27T03:21:27.189Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Challenges and Opportunities for Innovation in Child Abuse and Neglect Research within the Child Welfare System in Australia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 January 2018

Mohajer Abbass Hameed*
Affiliation:
Berry Street Victoria, Take Two Programme, Eaglemont, VIC, Australia
*
address for correspondence: Dr. Mohajer A. Hameed, PhD, Team Leader, Berry Street Victoria, Take Two Programme, 677 The Boulevard, Eaglemont, VIC 3084, Australia. E-mail: mhameed@berrystreet.org.au

Abstract

Child abuse and neglect is a preventable public health issue, yet a complex global phenomenon with considerable adverse impacts on children, families, health and social services, as well as the Australian community. Despite the widespread adverse impact of child abuse and neglect, the research in this field within Australian child welfare systems is relatively scarce. What is needed is to understand the various challenges, barriers and limitations that face child abuse and neglect researchers and impede methodologically rigorous research within child welfare systems in Australia. This paper provides a brief overview of the key methodological limitations, barriers and challenges, as well as the strengths of the research methods used in studying child abuse and neglect. This paper also explores the potential gains from adopting a national translational research framework. Innovative translation of research and knowledge into effective care system responses and evidence-based practices for children remains a pressing issue. Further advances in Australian research and the evidence base will require substantial investment in research and evaluation activities, with a new emphasis on translational research and active collaboration between researchers and practitioners. Finally, this paper concludes with key recommendations and directions for future Australian-based research with the ultimate goal of improving practices and policies.

Type
Opinion
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aarons, G. A., & Palinkas, L. A. (2007). Implementation of evidence-based practice in child welfare: Service provider perspectives. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 34(4), 411419.Google Scholar
Afifi, T. O., & MacMillan, H. L. (2011). Resilience following child maltreatment: A review of protective factors. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 56(5), 266272.Google Scholar
AlEissa, M. A., Fluke, J. D., Gerbaka, B., Goldbeck, L., Gray, J., Hunter, N., . . . Tonmyr, L. (2009). A commentary on national child maltreatment surveillance systems: Examples of progress. Child Abuse and Neglect, 33(11), 809814.Google Scholar
Ames, P., & Hiscox, M. (2016). Guide to developing behavioural interventions for randomised controlled trials: Nine guiding questions. Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, 1 National Circuit, Barton ACT 2600, Australia. Retrieved from https://www.pmc.gov.au/resource-centre/domestic-policy.Google Scholar
Appleton, J. V., & Stanley, N. (2008). Complexity and evidence in protecting children. Child Abuse Review, 17(4), 211214.Google Scholar
Atkins, P., & Frederico, M. (2017). Supporting implementation of innovative social work practice: What factors really matter? The British Journal of Social Work, 47(6), 17231744.Google Scholar
Babington, B. (2011). National framework for protecting Australia's children: Perspectives on progress and challenges. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Institute of Family Studies. Retrieved from https://aifs.gov.au/publications/family-matters/issue-89/national-framework-protecting-australias-children.Google Scholar
Badham, B., & Minds, Y. (2011). Talking about talking therapies: Thinking and planning about how to make good and accessible talking therapies available to children and young people. Retrieved from http://www.youngminds.org.uk.Google Scholar
Barber, J., & Delfabbro, P. (2005). Children's adjustment to long-term foster care. Children and Youth Services Review, 27(3), 329340.Google Scholar
Barber, J., Delfabbro, P., & Gilbertson, R. (2004). Children in foster care. New York: Routledge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barth, R. P. (2008). The move to evidence-based practice: How well does it fit child welfare services? Journal of Public Child Welfare, 2(2), 145171.Google Scholar
Barth, R. P. (2009). Preventing child abuse and neglect with parent training: Evidence and opportunities. The Future of Children, 19(2), 95118.Google Scholar
Barth, R. P., & Jonson-Reid, M. (2000). Outcomes after child welfare services: Implications for the design of performance measures. Children and Youth Services Review, 22(9), 763787.Google Scholar
Bath, H. (2015). Out of home care in Australia: Looking back and looking ahead. Children Australia, 40(4), 310315.Google Scholar
Beal, S. J., & Greiner, M. V. (2016). Children in nonparental care: Health and social risks. Pediatric Research, 79(1–2), 184190.Google Scholar
Berrick, J. D., Frasch, K., & Fox, A. (2000). Assessing children's experiences of out-of-home care: Methodological challenges and opportunities. Social Work Research, 24(2), 119127.Google Scholar
Berzenski, S. R., Yates, T. M., & Egeland, B. (2014). A multidimensional view of continuity in intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment. In Korbin, J.E. & Krugman, R.D. (Eds.), Handbook of child maltreatment (pp. 115129). Netherlands: Springer.Google Scholar
Besharov, D. J. (1981). Toward better research on child abuse and neglect: Making definitional issues an explicit methodological concern. Child Abuse and Neglect, 5(4), 383390.Google Scholar
Briere, J. (1992). Methodological issues in the study of sexual abuse effects. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 60(2), 196203.Google Scholar
Broadley, K., & Goddard, C. (2014). A public health approach to child protection: Why data matter. Children Australia, 40(1), 6977.Google Scholar
Broadley, K., Goddard, C., & Tucci, J. (2014). They count for nothing: Poor child protection statistics are a barrier to a child-centred national framework. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Childhood Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.childhood.org.au.Google Scholar
Broadley, K., Hunt, S., & Goddard, C. (2015). Response to Jennifer Lehmann's reflections on out-of-home care. Children Australia, 40(4), 286289.Google Scholar
Bromfield, L., & Osborn, A. L. (2007). ‘Getting the big picture’: A synopsis and critique of Australian out-of-home care research (Vol. 26). Melbourne: Australian Institute of Family Studies.Google Scholar
Bromfield, L., Higgins, D., Osborn, A., Panozzo, S., & Richardson, N. (2005). Out-of-home care in Australia: Messages from research. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Institute of Family Studies. Retrieved from https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/publications/out-home-care-australia.Google Scholar
Brook, E. L., Rosman, D. L., & Holman, C. A. J. (2008). Public good through data linkage: Measuring research outputs from the Western Australian Data Linkage System. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 32(1), 1923.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buckley, H., Tonmyr, L., Lewig, K., & Jack, S. (2014). Factors influencing the uptake of research evidence in child welfare: A synthesis of findings from Australia, Canada and Ireland. Child Abuse Review, 23(1), 516.Google Scholar
Camilo, C., Garrido, M. V., & Calheiros, M. M. (2016). Implicit measures of child abuse and neglect: A systematic review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 29, 4354.Google Scholar
Cashmore, J., & Ainsworth, F. (2004). Audit of Australian out-of-home care research. Sydney, Australia: Associations of Childrens Welfare Agencies. Retrieved from http://www.acwa.asn.au.Google Scholar
Cashmore, J., & Paxman, M. (1996). Longitudinal study of wards leaving care. Sydney: Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW. Retrieved from https://www.unsw.edu.au/schools/social-policy-research-centre.Google Scholar
Cashmore, J., Higgins, D. J., Bromfield, L. M., & Scott, D. A. (2006). Recent Australian child protection and out-of-home care research: What's been done–and what needs to be done? Children Australia, 31(2), 411.Google Scholar
Chipungu, S. S., & Bent-Goodley, T. B. (2004). Meeting the challenges of contemporary foster care. The Future of Children, 14(1), 7593.Google Scholar
COAG. (2009). Protecting children is everyone's business: National framework for protecting Australia's children 2009–2020. Canberra, Australia: Council of Australian Government: Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved from https://www.dss.gov.au/our-responsibilities/families-and-children/publications-articles.Google Scholar
Constantino, J. N. (2016). Child maltreatment prevention and the scope of child and adolescent psychiatry. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics, 25(2), 157165.Google Scholar
Day, A., & Francisco, A. (2013). Social and emotional wellbeing in Indigenous Australians: Identifying promising interventions. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 37(4), 350355.Google Scholar
Day, A., Nakata, M., & Miller, K. (2016). Programs to improve the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities. Australian Social Work, 69(3), 373380.Google Scholar
Delfabbro, P., & Barber, J. (2003). Before it's too late: Enhancing the early detection and prevention of long-term placement disruption. Children Australia, 28(2), 1418.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drake, B., & Jonson-Reid, M. (1999). Some thoughts on the increasing use of administrative data in child maltreatment research. Child Maltreatment, 4(4), 308315.Google Scholar
Fallon, B., Trocmé, N., Fluke, J., MacLaurin, B., Tonmyr, L., & Yuan, Y.-Y. (2010). Methodological challenges in measuring child maltreatment. Child Abuse and Neglect, 34(1), 7079.Google Scholar
Fargas-Malet, M., McSherry, D., Larkin, E., & Robinson, C. (2010). Research with children: Methodological issues and innovative techniques. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 8(2), 175192.Google Scholar
Fernandez, E. (2004). Facilitating resilient outcomes for children in care. Growing up in Care: A longitudinal study of children in care. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the Knowledge into Action Conference, ACWA. Sydney. August 2004.Google Scholar
Fratto, C. M. (2016). Trauma-informed care for youth in foster care. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 30(3), 439446.Google Scholar
Frederico, M., Long, M., McNamara, P., McPherson, L., & Rose, R. (2016). Improving outcomes for children in out-of-home care: The role of therapeutic foster care. Child and Family Social Work, 22(2), 10641074.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gilbertson, R., & Barber, J. G. (2002). Obstacles to involving children and young people in foster care research. Child and Family Social Work, 7(4), 253258.Google Scholar
Gunnar, M. R., Fisher, P. A., Dozier, M., Fox, N., Levine, S., Neal, C., . . . Vazquez, D. (2006). Bringing basic research on early experience and stress neurobiology to bear on preventive interventions for neglected and maltreated children. Development and Psychopathology, 18(3), 651677.Google Scholar
Hanson, R. F., Self-Brown, S., Rostad, W. L., & Jackson, M. C. (2016). The what, when, and why of implementation frameworks for evidence-based practices in child welfare and child mental health service systems. Child Abuse and Neglect, 53, 5163.Google Scholar
Haskett, M. E., Nears, K., Ward, C. S., & McPherson, A. V. (2006). Diversity in adjustment of maltreated children: Factors associated with resilient functioning. Clinical Psychology Review, 26(6), 796812.Google Scholar
Higgins, D., & Katz, I. (2008). Enhancing service systems for protecting children: Promoting child wellbeing and child protection reform in Australia. Family Matters, (80), 4350.Google Scholar
Hoft, M., & Haddad, L. (2017). Screening children for abuse and neglect: A review of the literature. Journal of Forensic Nursing, 13(1), 2634.Google Scholar
Holland, S. (2009). Listening to children in care: A review of methodological and theoretical approaches to understanding looked after children's perspectives. Children and Society, 23(3), 226235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holman, C. D. A. J., Bass, A. J., Rosman, D. L., Smith, M. B., Semmens, J. B., Glasson, E. J., . . . Stanley, F. J. (2008). A decade of data linkage in Western Australia: Strategic design, applications and benefits of the WA data linkage system. Australian Health Review, 32(4), 766777.Google Scholar
Jackson, A. (2010). Stability - The dilemmas of providing a secure base for children who are on very shaky ground. Children Australia, 35(2), 2128.Google Scholar
Jackson, A., Frederico, M., Tanti, C., & Black, C. (2009). Exploring outcomes in a therapeutic service response to the emotional and mental health needs of children who have experienced abuse and neglect in Victoria, Australia. Child and Family Social Work, 14(2), 198212.Google Scholar
Jackson, A., Waters, S., Meehan, T., Hunter, S.-A., & Corlett, L. (2013). Key messages – Making tracks: Trauma-informed practice guide for Aboriginal young people leaving care. Melbourne, Australia: Berry Street Victoria. Retrieved from http://www.berrystreet.org.au.Google Scholar
Jacob, J., Edbrooke-Childs, J., Law, D., & Wolpert, M. (2017). Measuring what matters to patients: Using goal content to inform measure choice and development. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 22(2), 170186.Google Scholar
James, M. (2000). Child abuse and neglect: Part II-practical intervention and prevention activities. Trends Issues Crime Criminal Justice, 173, 16.Google Scholar
Johnson, B., & Turner, L. A. (2003). Data collection strategies in mixed methods research. In Tashakkori, A. & Teddlie, C. (Eds.), Handbook of mixed methods in social and behavioral research (pp. 297319). USA: Sage Publications, Inc.Google Scholar
Kaufman, J., & Charney, D. (2001). Effects of early stress on brain structure and function: Implications for understanding the relationship between child maltreatment and depression. Development and Psychopathology, 13(3), 451471.Google Scholar
Kemp, S. P., Marcenko, M. O., Lyons, S. J., & Kruzich, J. M. (2014). Strength-based practice and parental engagement in child welfare services: An empirical examination. Children and Youth Services Review, 47, 2735.Google Scholar
Klag, S., Fox, T., Martin, G., Eadie, K., Bergh, W., Keegan, F., . . . Raeburn, N. (2016). Evolve therapeutic services: A 5-year outcome study of children and young people in out-of-home care with complex and extreme behavioural and mental health problems. Children and Youth Services Review, 69, 268274.Google Scholar
Lane, W. G. (2014). Prevention of child maltreatment. Pediatric Clinics of North America, 61(5), 873888.Google Scholar
Lehmann, J. (2015). Reflections on out-of-home care. Children Australia, 40(4), 280285.Google Scholar
MacMillan, H. L., Jamieson, E., Wathen, C. N., Boyle, M. H., Walsh, C. A., Omura, J., . . . Lodenquai, G. (2007). Development of a policy‐relevant child maltreatment research strategy. Milbank Quarterly, 85(2), 337374.Google Scholar
MacMillan, H. L., Wathen, C. N., Barlow, J., Fergusson, D. M., Leventhal, J. M., & Taussig, H. N. (2009). Interventions to prevent child maltreatment and associated impairment. The Lancet, 373(9659), 250266.Google Scholar
Mbagaya, C., Oburu, P., & Bakermans‐Kranenburg, M. J. (2013). Child physical abuse and neglect in Kenya, Zambia and the Netherlands: A cross‐cultural comparison of prevalence, psychopathological sequelae and mediation by PTSS. International Journal of Psychology, 48(2), 95107.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McCarthy, M. M., Taylor, P., Norman, R. E., Pezzullo, L., Tucci, J., & Goddard, C. (2016). The lifetime economic and social costs of child maltreatment in Australia. Children and Youth Services Review, 71, 217226.Google Scholar
McDowall, J. J. (2013). Experiencing out-of-home care in Australia: The views of children and young people (CREATE Report Card 2013). Sydney: CREATE Foundation. Retrieved from http://create.org.au/wp-content.Google Scholar
McGee, R. A., Wolfe, D. A., Yuen, S. A., Wilson, S. K., & Carnochan, J. (1995). The measurement of maltreatment: A comparison of approaches. Child Abuse and Neglect, 19(2), 233249.Google Scholar
Mirick, R. G. (2014). Engagement in child protective services: The role of substance abuse, intimate partner violence and race. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 31(3), 267279.Google Scholar
Moore, T., Beatson, R., Rushton, S., Powers, R., Deery, A., Arefadib, N., & West, S. (2016). Supporting the roadmap for reform: Evidence-informed practice. The Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne. Retrieved from http://www.rch.org.au/ccch.Google Scholar
Newton, D., Day, A., Gillies, C., & Fernandez, E. (2015). A review of evidence‐based evaluation of measures for assessing social and emotional well‐being in Indigenous Australians. Australian Psychologist, 50(1), 4050.Google Scholar
Norman, S., Dean, S., Hansford, L., & Ford, T. (2014). Clinical practitioner's attitudes towards the use of routine outcome monitoring within child and adolescent mental health services: A qualitative study of two child and adolescent mental health services. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 19(4), 576595.Google Scholar
O'Donnell, M., Maclean, M., Sims, S., Brownell, M., Ekuma, O., & Gilbert, R. (2016). Entering out-of-home care during childhood: Cumulative incidence study in Canada and Australia. Child Abuse and Neglect, 59, 7887.Google Scholar
Paxman, M., Tully, L., Burke, S., & Watson, J. (2014). Pathways of care: Longitudinal study on children and young people in out-of-home care in New South Wales. Family Matters, (94), 114.Google Scholar
Pecora, P. J., Whittaker, J. K., Maluccio, A. N., & Barth, R. P. (2012). The child welfare challenge: Policy, practice, and research (3rd ed.). USA: AldineTransaction.Google Scholar
Perry, B. D. (2009). Examining child maltreatment through a neurodevelopmental lens: Clinical applications of the neurosequential model of therapeutics. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 14(4), 240255.Google Scholar
Petersen, A. C., Joseph, J., & Feit, M. D. (Eds.). (2014). New directions in child abuse and neglect research. Washington, DC: National Research Council, National Academies Press.Google Scholar
Putnam-Hornstein, E., Needell, B., & Rhodes, A. E. (2013). Understanding risk and protective factors for child maltreatment: The value of integrated, population-based data. Child Abuse and Neglect, 37(2), 116119.Google Scholar
Putnam-Hornstein, E., Needell, B., King, B., & Johnson-Motoyama, M. (2013). Racial and ethnic disparities: A population-based examination of risk factors for involvement with child protective services. Child Abuse and Neglect, 37(1), 3346.Google Scholar
Roos, L. L., Menec, V., & Currie, R. (2004). Policy analysis in an information-rich environment. Social Science and Medicine, 58(11), 22312241.Google Scholar
Sammut, J. (2014). Still damaging and disturbing: Australian child protection data and the need for national adoption targets. NSW, Australia: The Centre for Independent Studies. Retrieved from https://www.cis.org.au/product.Google Scholar
Simon, R., Cotton, S., Moeller-Saxone, K., Mihalopoulos, C., Magnus, A., Harvey, C., . . . McGorry, P. (2017). Placement instability among young people removed from their original family and the likely mental health implications. Shanghai Archives of Psychiatry, 29(2), 85.Google Scholar
Socolar, R. R., Runyan, D. K., & Amaya-Jackson, L. (1995). Methodological and ethical issues related to studying child maltreatment. Journal of Family Issues, 16(5), 565586.Google Scholar
Spreen, M., & Bogaerts, S. (2015). B-graph sampling to estimate the size of a hidden population. Journal of Official Statistics, 31(4), 723736.Google Scholar
Taylor, P., Moore, P., Pezzullo, L., Tucci, J., Goddard, C., & De Bortoli, L. (2008). The cost of abuse in Australia. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Childhood Foundation. Retrieved from https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/publications.Google Scholar
Teicher, M. H., & Samson, J. A. (2016). Annual research review: Enduring neurobiological effects of childhood abuse and neglect. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 57(3), 241266.Google Scholar
Thomason, M. E., & Marusak, H. A. (2017). Toward understanding the impact of trauma on the early developing human brain. Neuroscience, 342, 5567.Google Scholar
Toth, S. L., & Cicchetti, D. (2011). Frontiers in translational research on trauma. Development and Psychopathology, 23(2), 353355.Google Scholar
Toth, S. L., & Gravener, J. (2012). Bridging research and practice: Relational interventions for maltreated children. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 17(3), 131138.Google Scholar
Webb, S. A. (2001). Some considerations on the validity of evidence-based practice in social work. British Journal of Social Work, 31(1), 5779.Google Scholar
Weber, S., Jud, A., & Landolt, M. A. (2016). Quality of life in maltreated children and adult survivors of child maltreatment: A systematic review. Quality of Life Research, 25(2), 237255.Google Scholar
Widom, C. S. (2013). Translational research on child neglect: Progress and future needs. Child Maltreatment, 18(1), 37.Google Scholar
Widom, C. S., Czaja, S. J., & DuMont, K. A. (2015). Intergenerational transmission of child abuse and neglect: Real or detection bias? Science, 347(6229), 14801485.Google Scholar
Withington, T., Duplock, R., Burton, J., Eivers, A., & Lonne, B. (2017). Exploring children's perspectives of engagement with their carers using factor analysis. Child Abuse and Neglect, 63, 4150.Google Scholar
Wolpert, M., Fugard, A. J., Deighton, J., & Görzig, A. (2012). Routine outcomes monitoring as part of children and young people's improving access to psychological therapies (CYP IAPT)–Improving care or unhelpful burden? Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 17(3), 129130.Google Scholar
Woolf, S. H. (2008). The meaning of translational research and why it matters. Journal of the American Medical Association, 299(2), 211213.Google Scholar