Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Indicators of Well-Being Among Children in the United States Child Welfare System

  • Published:
Child Indicators Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The second National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW II) is a longitudinal study intended to answer a range of fundamental questions about the functioning, service needs, and service use of children who come in contact with the child welfare system. The study includes 5,873 children ranging in age from birth to 17.5 years old at the time of sampling. The current analysis summarizes the well-being of these children at NSCAW II baseline. Overall, children reported for maltreatment in 2008–2009 were at higher risk for poor health and negative developmental, behavioral/emotional, and cognitive outcomes than children in the general population. Overall, 32.2 % of children from birth to 5 years old had a score indicating developmental problems. Among school-aged children and adolescents, 10.3 % showed some risk of cognitive problems or low academic achievement and 41.6 % exhibited risk of emotional or behavioral problems. Child well-being outcomes differed by age and gender but not by substantiation status or type of maltreatment. Proactively providing needed services at an early age to all children in need in the CWS is urged, because early services may well preempt these children’s need for extensive future developmental, mental health, and educational services.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achenbach, T. M. (1991). Manual for the Child Behavior Checklist/4-18 and 1991 profile. Burlington: University of Vermont, Department of Psychiatry.

    Google Scholar 

  • Achenbach, T. M., & Rescorla, L. A. (2001). Manual for the ASEBA School-Age Forms and Profiles. Burlington: University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth & Families.

    Google Scholar 

  • Administration for Children and Families. (2012). Promoting Social and Emotional Well-Being for Children and Youth Receiving Child Welfare Services Retrieved April 23, 2012, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/laws_policies/policy/im/2012/im1204.pdf

  • Barnett, D., Manly, J. T., & Cicchetti, D. (1993). Defining child maltreatment: The interface between policy and child research. In D. V. Cicchetti & S. L. Toth (Eds.), Child abuse, child development, and social policy: Advances in applied developmental psychology, vol. 8. Norwood: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, L. T., Gurka, M. J., & Blackman, J. A. (2006). Emotional, developmental, and behavioral health of American children and their families: A report from the 2003 National Survey of Children’s Health. Pediatrics, 117, 1202–1212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blatt, S. D., & Saletsky, R. D. (1997). A comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to providing health care for children in out-of-home care. Child Welfare, 27(2), 331–347.

    Google Scholar 

  • Briere, J. (1996). Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children: Professional manual. Lutz: Psychological Assessment Resources.

    Google Scholar 

  • Casanueva, C. E., Cross, T. P., & Ringeisen, H. (2008). Developmental needs and individualized family service plans among infants and toddlers in the child welfare system. Child Maltreatment, 13, 245–258.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (1995). Disabilities among children aged less than or equal to 17 years–United States, 1991–1992. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 44, 609–623.

    Google Scholar 

  • Child Trends. (2010a). ADHD, from www.childtrendsdatabank.org/?q=node/247.

  • Child Trends. (2010b). Autism Spectrum Disorders from www.childtrendsdatabank.org/?q=node/342.

  • Child Trends. (2010c). Children with Limitations, from www.childtrendsdatabank.org/?q=node/73

  • Child Trends. (2010d). Children with Special Health Care Needs, from www.childtrendsdatabank.org/?q=node/332.

  • Dalaker, J. (2001). Poverty in the United States: 2000 Retrieved October 15, 2004, from http://ict.cas.psu.edu/resources/Census/PDF/C2K_Poverty_in_USA.pdf

  • Djedda, C., Facchin, P., Ranzato, C., & Romer, C. (2000). Child abuse: Current problems and key public health challenges. Social Science & Medicine, 51, 905–915.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duncan, G. J., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2000). Family poverty, welfare reform, and child development. Child Development, 71(1), 188–196. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Evans, G. W., & Schamberg, M. A. (2009). Childhood poverty, chronic stress, and adult working memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106(16), 6545–6549. doi:10.1073/pnas.0811910106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Family Life Development Center, College of Human Ecology. (2007). National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being restricted release, Waves 1-4 and Wave 5 follow-up Retrieved December 4, 2007, from http://ndacan.cornell.edu/NDACAN/Datasets/Abstracts/DatasetAbstract_127.html

  • Halfon, N., Mendonca, A., & Berkowitz, G. (1995). Health status of children in foster care. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 149, 386–392.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hauser-Cram, P., Warfield, M., Shonkoff, J., & Krauss, M. (2001). Children with disabilities: A longitudinal study of child development and parent well-being. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 66(3), Serial No.266.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hebbeler, K. M., Spiker, D., Bailey, D., Scarborough, A., Mallik, S., Simeonsson, R., . . . Nelson, L. (2007). Early intervention for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families: Participants, services and outcomes. Final report of the National Intervention Longitudinal Study Retrieved December 10, 2007, from http://www.sri.com/neils/reports.html

  • Hussey, J. M., Marshall, J. M., English, D. J., Knight, E. D., Lau, A. S., Dubowitz, H., & Kotch, J. B. (2005). Defining maltreatment according to substantiation: Distinction without a difference? Child Abuse & Neglect, 29(5), 479–492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jee, S. H., Barth, R. P., Szilagyi, M. A., Szilagyi, P. G., Aida, M., & Davis, M. M. (2006). Factors associated with chronic conditions among children in foster care. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 17(2), 328–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kataoka, S. H., Zhang, L., & Wells, K. B. (2002). Unmet need for mental health care among U.S. children: Variation by ethnicity and insurance status. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 159(9), 1548–1555.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, A., & Kaufman, N. (1990). Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (K-BIT). Circle Pines: American Guidance Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, A. S., & Kaufman, N. L. (2004). Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children manual (2nd ed.). Circle Pines: American Guidance Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Berglund, P., Demler, O., Jin, R., Merikangas, K. R., & Walters, E. E. (2005). Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62(6), 593–768.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kovacs, M. (1992). The Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) manual. Toronto: Multi-Health Systems.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leiter, J., Myers, K. A., & Zingraff, M. T. (1994). Substantiated and unsubstantiated cases of child maltreatment: Do their consequences differ? Social Work Research, 18(2), 67–82.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leslie, L. K., Gordon, J. N., Ganger, W., & Gist, K. (2002). Developmental delay in young children in child welfare by initial placement type. Infant Mental Health Journal, 23(5), 496–516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leslie, L. K., Gordon, J. N., Meneken, L., Premji, K., Michelmore, K. L., & Ganger, W. (2005). The physical, developmental and mental health needs of young children in child welfare by initial placement type. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 26, 177–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meisels, S. J., & Shonkoff, J. P. (2000). Early childhood intervention: A continuing evolution. In J. P. Shonkoff & S. J. Meisels (Eds.), Handbook of early childhood intervention (2nd ed., pp. 3–34). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Merikangas, K. R., He, J. P., Brody, D., Fisher, P. W., Bourdon, K., & Koretz, D. S. (2010). Prevalence and treatment of mental disorders among US children in the 2001–2004 NHANES. Pediatrics, 125(1), 75–81. doi:10.1542/peds.2008-2598.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • National Educational Goals Panel. (1998). Ready schools. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Newborg, J. (2005). Battelle Developmental Inventory, Second Edition: Examiner’s manual. Itasca: Riverside.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nolin, M. J., Montaquila, J., Nicchitta, P., Hagedorn, M. C., & Chapman, C. (2004). National Household Education Surveys program: 2001 methodology report Retrieved December 10, 2007, from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2005/2005071_3.pdf

  • Robin, C. R., Combs-Orme, T., Risley-Curtiss, C., & Heisler, A. (1994). Assessing the health status of children entering foster care. Pediatrics, 93(4), 594–601.

    Google Scholar 

  • RTI International. (2002). SUDAAN User’s Manual, Release 8.0, vol. 2. Research Triangle Park: RTI International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shackelford, J. (2006). State and jurisdictional eligibility definitions for infants and toddlers with disabilities under IDEA (NECTAC Notes No. 21). Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina, FPG Child Development Institute, National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shonkoff, J., & Phillips, D. (Eds.). (2000a). From neurons to neighborhoods: The science of early childhood development. Washington: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shonkoff, J. P., & Phillips, D. A. (2000b). From neurons to neighborhoods: The science of early child development (2nd ed.). Washington: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, G. A., Colpe, L., & Greenspan, S. (2003). Measuring functional developmental delay in infants and young children: Prevalence rates from the NHIS-D. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, 17, 68–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sondik, E. J., Madans, J. H., Gentleman, J. F. (2010). Summary health statistics for U.S. children: National Health Interview Survey, 2009. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Statistics, 10(247).

  • Sparrow, S. S., Carter, A. S., & Cicchetti, D. V. (1993). Vineland Screener: Overview, reliability, validity, administration, and scoring. New Haven: Yale University Child Study Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stahmer, A. C., Leslie, L. K., Hurlburt, M., Barth, R. P., Webb, M. B., Landsverk, J., & Zhang, J. (2005). Developmental and behavioral needs and service use for young children in child welfare. Pediatrics, 116(4), 891–900.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, G. D. (2006). Gradients in the health status and developmental risks of young children: The combined influences of multiple social risk factors. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 10(2), 187–199.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. (2011a). The AFCARS Report: Preliminary Estimates for FY 2010 as of June 2011 (18), from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb

  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. (2011b). Child Maltreatment 2010.

  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau. (2008). The National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs Chartbook 2005–2006. Rockville: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vig, S., Chinitz, S., & Shulman, L. (2005). Young children in foster care—Multiple vulnerabilities and complex service needs. Infants and Young Children, 18(2), 147–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woodcock, R. W., McGrew, K. S., & Mather, N. (2001). Examiner’s manual: Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Cognitive Abilities. Itasca: Riverside.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization. (2006). Preventing child maltreatment: A guide to taking action and generating evidence Retrieved February 1, 2008, from http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2006/9241594365_eng.pdf

  • Zill, N., & Schoenborn, C. A. (1990). Developmental, learning, and emotional problems: Health of our nation’s children, United States 1988, vol. 190. Atlanta: National Center for Health Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zimmerman, I. L., Steiner, V. G., & Pond, R. E. (1992). PLS-3: Preschool Language Scale-3. San Antonio: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being was developed under contract to RTI International from the Administration of Children and Families of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Conclusions do not necessarily represent those of the Administration of Children and Families.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Rd., PO Box 12194, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709-2194, USA

    Cecilia Casanueva

  2. RTI International, Chicago, IL, USA

    Melissa Dolan & Keith Smith

  3. RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA

    Heather Ringeisen & Kathryn Dowd

Authors
  1. Cecilia Casanueva
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Melissa Dolan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Keith Smith
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Heather Ringeisen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Kathryn Dowd
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cecilia Casanueva.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Casanueva, C., Dolan, M., Smith, K. et al. Indicators of Well-Being Among Children in the United States Child Welfare System. Child Ind Res 5, 547–565 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-012-9148-4

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12187-012-9148-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation