Capta policy analysis

Running head: PHYSICAL CHILD ABUSE 1

PHYSICAL CHILD ABUSE 3

Social Policy Analysis Final Version

Please submit your final version of your Social Policy Analysis assignment here.

I. Defining the Social Problem (revised version)

1. How is the problem defined and documented?

a. How many people are affected?

b. What causal theories have been given for this problem?

c. What is the evidence supporting these causal theories?

d. How are people affected (i.e., what are the consequences of the problem?

2. How have values and self-interest shaped the definition and documentation of the problem?

II. Background/Context of the Problem (revised version)

1. Identify at least 2 policies that have been developed to address this social problem.

2. How do historical policy approaches to this social problem shape current policy?

3. What was the cultural milieu at the time these approaches were taken? Is the current political and economic context the same or different?

4. What were the group interests, and who were the key players involved in developing these historical policies?

5. Is there any reason to think that historical approaches would work better or worse today?

6. Did this historical policy approach build on the strengths of the target population? Or, alternatively, was it predicated on a pathology or deficit view of the people to be helped?

7. How have definitions of the social problem and policy approaches changed over time?

III. Policy Analysis (revised version)

1. Policy goals

a. What are the stated goal(s) of the policy?

b. What are the achievable objective(s)?

c. What are the latent goal(s) of the policy?

d. Were client perspectives taken into consideration when formulating the goal(s) and objective(s)?

2. Benefits and services

a. What benefit and/or service does this policy provide?

b. Is the benefit or service designed to remove societal barriers that prevent people from meeting their needs?

c. Does the benefit and/or service focus primarily on correcting the behavior of the target population?

d. How much consumer choice is allowed?

e. Are the strengths and resources of the community taken into account?

f. Does the benefit or service alleviate the identified need and result in positive outcomes for your clients?

3. Eligibility rules

a. Who receives the benefit or service?

b. Is eligibility tied to employee contribution, attachment to the workforce, or means tested?

c. Do the eligibility rules create incentives for people to develop their capacity to meet their own needs?

d. Will positive steps results in a loss of benefits or services?

4. Service delivery system

a. How are services delivered (e.g., public vs. private, multiple locations/providers, etc.)

b. Is the service delivery system designed to build on assets that already exist in the community?

c. Does the delivery system offer clients choice?

d. Is the service delivery system staffed by workers who reflect the ethnic diversity found within the target population?

e. Are the services available to people of all ethnic backgrounds?

5. Financing

a. What is the source of funding (e.g., public, private, taxes, out-of-pocket)?

b. How are service providers reimbursed?

c. Can this service delivery system deliver services and/or benefits in a cost effective manner that achieves the desired outcomes for clients?

IV. Evaluation and Conclusion (new section added to revised sections)

1. Is the policy politically, socially, and economically feasible?

2. Are key social work values such as self-determination and social justice incorporated into the policy?

3. How is the policy evaluated? Are clients involved in the evaluation of the policy?

4. Based on the best information about effectiveness, are these policies and programs likely to reduce, increase, or leave the problem unchanged? Justify your response.

Physical Child Abuse PART I(Part one)

Washburn O Kelly

Dr. April Murphy

SWRK 530

February 15, 2019

Physical Child Abuse

Physical child abuse is the infliction of physical injury on a child through assault (Crosson-Tower, 2014). The physical injury is usually intentional and inflicted during discipline by a caregiver. Physical injury may be due to shaking, burning, kicking, beating, punching, or any other action that will lead to a child feeling some form of pain. Physical abuse of children affects the whole society as it interferes with the healthy development of a child both physically and emotionally. Therefore, a child will grow into adulthood remembering what happened. Some of the children may emulate their caregiver’s actions into adulthood leading to a continuous cycle of abuse. Statistically, child protection services receive an average of 3.6 million referrals of child abuse cases and the United States currently holds one of the worst records in child physical abuse cases in developed nations. Out of the 3.6 million referral cases, an average of 6.6 million children are involved and 3.2 million of these children are subject to an investigation report. Comment by April Murphy: Good definition – probably want to put the citation after this sentence Comment by April Murphy: You need a citation for this! Comment by April Murphy: Ok, but it sounds as if you are talking about physical abuse specifically – so I am looking for stats/prevalence data on physical abuse rather than child maltreatment as a whole.

Currently, there are no specific theories that describe the cause of child abuse. However, causal theories and reasons for physical child abuse fall into four categories: individual-level, family, contextual, and macro-system factors. At the individual level, the childhood history of the parent factors in. At the family level, social isolation, intimate partner violence, and deficient parenting skills are a reason for physical abuse of a child. At the contextual level, the low socioeconomic status, unemployment, poverty and the features of the neighborhood are contributing factors for physical child abuse. The macro-system factors that lead to physical child abuse include social attitudes surrounding the abuse of children and the complex interaction of multiple risk factors. Support for these theories arises from the high number of child abuse cases that the child protection services receive every year. On average, a child abuse case is reported every ten minutes. Physical child abuse arises due to numerous reasons mostly associated with the experiences of the caregiver. Comment by April Murphy: I would argue that this is not the case Comment by April Murphy: Sentence structure Comment by April Murphy: Need sources to back this up Comment by April Murphy: What does this mean? Comment by April Murphy: Need evidence to support your claim Comment by April Murphy: ?

Physical child abuse leads to trauma and some injuries that may take longer to heal. Due to the force and level of violence, the child may undergo medical treatment to heal the injuries. The most significant impact is the psychological effect of physical abuse to the child. Most children who undergo physical abuse develop psychological issues into adulthood. Some of the cases that arise physical child abuse are due to the previous abuse experienced by the caregiver when he or she was young. Behavioral problems, physical disabilities, emotional disturbance, depression, alcohol, and drug abuse are consequences of physical abuse to the child (Jenny, 2011). The society must accommodate the physically abused child and help him or her to overcome it. Physical child abuse cases have a negative impact on the community since they lead to a continues cycle of abuse every time a child grows to become an adult and emulates the behavior of the caregiver which was experienced when he or she was young. Comment by April Murphy: Sentence structure

The definition of physical abuse of a child has changed over time. Some of the values that impact this definition include changes in the society which include human rights which prioritize the basic rights of every individual. Laws and legislation that protect the rights of children continuously get revised. Individual values and self-interests also impact the definition of this issue. Self-interest on the reason for discipline and the type of discipline have led to the definition of physical abuse to become more specific. Societal values also impact this definition based on the thoughts of the community. Comment by April Murphy: This is not sufficient and not backed up by evidence. Think about how child welfare has shifted from it is a family issue to the fact that the government should intervene – that is what this section should focus on

References

Crosson-Tower, C. (2014). Understanding child abuse and neglect. Boston: Pearson Education.

Jenny, C. (2011). Child abuse and neglect: Diagnosis, treatment, and evidence. St. Louis, Mo: Saunders/Elsevier.

Physical Child Abuse PART II

Washburn O Kelly

Dr. April Murphy

SWRK 530

March 10, 2019

Physical Child Abuse II

Child abuse can be addressed using the policy approach. One policy that has been developed to address physical child abuse in the United States include the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 (CAPTA). CAPTA has been amended several times and represents the government's commitment to protecting children from physical abuse (Klevens, Barnett, Florence, & Moore, 2015). It provides funding to key players in child welfare such as non-governmental organizations and public agencies for demonstration projects. Additionally, CAPTA focused its attention on the enhanced reporting and investigation of child abuse (Stahmer, Thorp Sutton, Fox, & Leslie, 2008). The second policy in the state of Mississippi is the Mississippi Law on Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation. This policy defines the various forms of child abuse and makes it mandatory to report child abuse under Section 43-21-353 of the Mississippi Code of 1972. The system places responsibility on different people such as physicians, nurses, social workers, family protection specialists, law enforcement officers, psychologists, or a child caregiver to report suspected child abuse immediately if they have a reasonable cause. The policy also outlines the reporting procedure and reports can be made via a toll-free 24-hour line throughout the state (Report Child Abuse/Neglect, n.d.). Additionally, penalties for failure to report child abuse are enforced according to the Mississippi Code of 1972.

The history of child protection services dated back to the 19th century when society began to have positive attitudes towards the role played by parents in childcare. Civic and religious leaders started contemplating on the alleviation of suffering for children who lived in abusive families (McGowan, 2017). Some organizations that were established to help child protection services included the New York Society for The Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC), created by Henry Bergh, and Children's Aid Society (CAS) founded by Charles Loring. Both NYSPCC and CAS were acts of voluntary services to the community and motivated by a deep commitment to the religious, charitable works as well as compassion for the less fortunate in the society.

Historical approaches to physical child abuse have positively shaped the current policy on the protection and welfare of the children. The approaches criminalized the social problem. It became a criminal offense for parents, caregivers, and foster parents to physically abuse a minor. For instance, in early 1870 a child by the name of Mary Ellen's underwent physical and emotional abuse by her foster parents, who were later arrested and convicted of assaulting and battering an 8-year-old orphan (Pecora, Whittaker, Barth, Maluccio, DePanfilis, & Plotnick, 2017). Secondly, its mandated professionals, such as doctors and teachers, to report suspected cases of child abuse to relevant authorities as well as other protective service agencies. According to the 1962 Journal of the American Medical Association, symptoms of physical child abuse were identified as being medically diagnosable. Lastly, the approaches enhanced efforts to eliminate physical child abuse in society by funding programs that aid individuals to identify and report suspected cases of physical child abuse. Besides, the funding will help the victims of physical abuse find shelter and other protective services in decent environments.

Additionally, the cultural setting at the time of enacting the policies depended on voluntary societies that began investigating complaints of child neglect, cruelty, abuse, and exploitation. Also, it relied on the attention of the media and public concerns. Today, child protection services and policies are handled differently. The government and voluntary agencies receiving state funding provide child protection services. The current political and economic context on child protection services is entirely different from the previous approach since the organization depended entirely on their funds to provide child protection services.

Furthermore, the Progressive Era Reformers had a broader set of interests on the children and helped shape the early child protection services. The goal was to protect the children from harm by the caregivers as well as removing the child from undesirable society (McGowan, 2017). Therefore, the laws restricting child labor demonstrated and enhanced changing expectations regarding society's responsibility for the well-being of the child. The historical approaches relied on the voluntary efforts while the current approach depends on the government interventions aimed at providing the needed funding, identification of child maltreatment, preserving the integrity of the family as well as finding a permanent home for children who cannot live with their families safely.

There is no reason to believe that historical approaches to physical child abuse would work better today. Despite child protection undergoing various transformations in the past years, understanding of physical child abuse has completely changed. It does include not only economic exploitation, cruelty, and neglect but also psychological, sexual as well as emotional abuse. Child protection services today has a good but often painful experience of the law and welfare. The current policies require welfare workers dealing with children to be people of high integrity, wisdom, patience, vision, the capability to perform assigned tasks, and the ability to abide by the statutory framework. Similarly, welfare workers should demonstrate love for the children as well as for justice.

Finally, the definition of the social problem has changed from merely describing the physical injuries inflicted on the victim to include social, psychological and emotional abuse that a child might be experiencing. They have changed over time indicating difficulty in finding clarity on plans to the social welfare of the children. In the US, child welfare services emerged out of public concern for child protection. The need to allow parents to raise their children as well as the growing urge to adopting out-of-home care instead of institutions made it a necessity. However, the government has been progressively involved in providing financial support for child welfare services and complying with the evolving US child welfare policy.

References

Klevens, J., Barnett, S. B. L., Florence, C., & Moore, D. (2015). Exploring policies for the reduction of child physical abuse and neglect. Child abuse & neglect, 40, 1-11.

McGowan, B. G. (2017). Family-based services and public policy: Context and implications. In Reaching high-risk families (pp. 65-88). Routledge.

Pecora, P., Whittaker, J., Barth, R., Maluccio, A. N., DePanfilis, D., & Plotnick, R. D. (2017). The child welfare challenge: Policy, practice, and research. Routledge.

Report Child Abuse/Neglect. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mdcps.ms.gov/report-child-abuse-neglect/ Comment by Author: ?

Stahmer, A. C., Thorp Sutton, D., Fox, L., & Leslie, L. K. (2008). State part C agency practices and the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 28(2), 99-108.

Social Policy Analysis Part III

Washburn O Kelly

Western Kentucky University

Dr. April Murphy

April 26, 2019

Child Protection Policy- CAPTA and Child Services

The CAPTA was signed into law in 1974 by President Richard Nixon. The enactment of the policy was a reaction to different states’ views about child abuse. The goal of the policy was to address the problem of child maltreatment. The objective of the CAPTA was to provide funding for the identification, prevention, and treatment for children who suffered from abuse and neglect. The role of the CAPTA was to provide Federal funds to the state in order to support activities aimed at preventing and handling child maltreatment. There are two Federal grant programs that support the fight against child maltreatment: demonstration grants and basic grants. The policy plays an essential role in authorizing government research on issues concerning child treatment and maltreatment of the victims. This paper examines the goals of the policy, the benefits, the expected outcomes and eligibility of the policy. Also, the paper will highlight the funding and service delivery system of the policy.

Policy Goals

CAPTA was the first comprehensive legislation to address the issue of child abuse and prevention. Congress had three main goals in enacting the CAPTA. The first goal was to provide both Federal and State funding to improve the child protection system. This goal aims at creating a system which offers training and support to those who identify, respond, and prevent child maltreatment. The second goal is to expand data collection on child abuse to enable the program operation. The policy goals were put in place to give financial assistance for “demonstration programs for prevention, identification, and treatment of child abuse and neglect.” Moreover, through this policy, children can get representation in court proceedings. The third goal is to strengthen relations among child supporters and care providers who work to solve the challenges linked to child mistreatment such as family violence.

The goals of funding have based on two objectives. The first objective is the need to support research, projects, and research which can help prevent child abuse, and the importance of offering training to child protection workers which are vital for the legal rights of the children and family during an investigation. The second objective is confidentiality which is essential in child abuse proceedings. For the legal process to take effect, the reporter of cases of children abuse ought to feel secure in making their submission. Also, the victims should be protected from the ensuing abuse and the relatives also need to be guarded against the unnecessary public scrutiny.

Eligibility

According to the CAPTA policy, all children in the US are eligible for child protection services. Children usually get protection on legal rights and any form of maltreatment. The child prevention and abuse program protect children at risk of maltreatment. The States and Federal governments are eligible for funding through grants. The states also have standards which relate to cooperation and investigation among the law enforcers, court, and social service agencies. This implies that the CAPTA policy covers states if they meet the set legislative requirements.

Families benefit from the CAPTA policy. According to the amendment done on the Act, child protective service systems are not allowed to separate children from parents based on poverty (Ramey, 2018). In the past, many of these welfare investigations were carried out based on “neglect”. Unfortunately, these neglects were and still relevant due to the inability of loving parents to cater for the needs of the children; these are cases of poverty and not negligence.

Benefits and Services

Under the “Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act” (CAPTA), states should give trusted information about child mistreatment or neglect to the Federal and local government, any organization of this entity, which has required such data to perform its role under the law to cushion the children against neglect and abuse. Also, CAPTA requires the states to give out information about child fatalities which resulted from neglect or abuse to the public upon request. To this effect, CAPTA also allows states to have open court policies which aim at protecting the children and the families involved in hearing.

The Act authorizes states to research measures which can be put in place to reduce instances of child ill-treatment, and how to improve the treatment of the victims. This policy has so far reduced the cases of child fatalities, and it is believed that the prevention of child exploitation, death, and negligence and the promotion of the children general well-being depends of the continued support from the legislature, non-profit organization, and state agencies (Costin, Karger, & Stoesz, 2010). Second, the policy is expected to improve the general children protective system. The proper implementation of the policy will ensure the governments develop, implement and refine tools for risk assessment. Third, the policy led to the development and enhancement of the capacity of community-based programs in coordinating activities and initiatives to prevent child abuse.

There are a lot of benefits in child abuse prevention policy. The benefits can be quantifiable or not because of some nonmonetary nature. For example, the CAPTA helps reduce family and child stress, improve the physical and mental health of the child, and improve educational achievement. When states adhere to the spirit of this policy, they achieve fewer incidents of child neglect and abuse and improve the social functioning of children (Costin, Karger, & Stoesz, 2010). CAPTA, the child abuse prevention program helps to reduce the cost of mental and health care, increase family earnings, and reduce costs of children welfare services.

Service Delivery System

CAPTA is associated with social work on a macro level. This is because the policy needs intensive and comprehensive approach through the efforts of local, state and federal government. Consequently, the system of service delivery is a multisector comprising of private agencies, religious and civic groups, professional bodies, individual volunteers, and governmental entities. These groups work in collaboration to strengthen families and ensure children are safe. All these groups play an essential role in meeting the Policy goals and objectives and account for the allocated funds. Moreover, the organizations give services to affected child and family; this includes foster care, employment assistance, housing assistance, residential treatment, domestic violence services, and parenting skills classes (Goldman & Salus, 2003).

The implementation of this policy needs people who have a relevant qualification in handling children vulnerable to abuse and neglect. Moreover, the service delivery requires cooperation from the appropriate agencies such as the Congress, the Child protective services, and nursing homes (Petersen, Joseph, & Feit, 2014). These agencies should work together in a coordinated way to develop precise identification, referrals, and response policies. The staff from these agencies should be trained to ensure consistent application of child protection policy.

The welfare system gets and investigates reports of child abuse; this is irrespective of child gender, race, religious affiliation, and social class. The system ensures that the affected families get the needed assistance again; this is done indiscriminately (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2011). If the situation demands the child to live with a foster family, then necessary arrangements are made. Later, the system works to ensure reunification or adoption for children under foster care.

Financing

Under the CAPTA, there are two forms of federal funding systems. The basic grants from the government are supposed to be used to support new assessment, prosecution, and prevention of child abuse. The federal government expects states to enact laws which to get the funding so that they can give services (Congressional Research Service, 2009). The discretionary taxes are used to fund the policy; this funding is used to facilitate the policy activities.

The funding for CAPTA state grand is to enable states to better their child support system. For example, in FY2009, the government allocated $26.5 million for child protection agencies (Congressional Research Service, 2009). For a state to get the funding, it must show the plan and assurance on how it will use the allocation, establish support citizen review group, and demonstrate the maximum extent of the practicability of the use. The funding for the child support projects should be used for:

· Investigation of reports on child abuse

· To develop and enhance capacity with a community for the deterrence of child mistreatment

· Develop, strengthen, and facilitate the training of the workforce. This improves the qualifications and skills of the people providing services to both the children and their families.

· The money allocated to states should be used for legal groundwork and representation. The process of petitioning and reacting to appeals needs substantial report and rightly trained people to represent the child victims in judicial proceedings.

References
Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2011). Understanding child welfare and the courts. Retrieved April 25, 2019, from Department ofHealth and Human Services, Children’sBureau: https://www. childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/cwandcourts.cfm

Congressional Research Service. (2009). The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA): Background, Programs, and Funding. Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service. Retrieved from https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20091104_R40899_52b107ff31f0e25899fbe35212a7435e09a9a385.pdf

Costin, L. B., Karger, H. J., & Stoesz, D. (2010). The Politics of Child Abuse in America. New York: Oxford University Press.

Goldman, J., & Salus, M. (2003). A coordinated response to child abuse and neglect: The foundation for practice. Retrieved April 25, 2019, from U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices: https://www. childwelfare.gov/pubs/usermanuals/foundation/index.cfm

Petersen, A., Joseph, J., & Feit, M. (2014). New Directions in Child Abuse and Neglect Research. Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. Retrieved April 25, 2019, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK195993/

Ramey, M. (2018). New CAPTA Bill Shifts Power to Parents. Retrieved April 25, 2019, from parental rights organization: https://parentalrights.org/amend-capta/

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