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CHILD MALTREATMENT: A NATIONAL SURVEY OF REPORTS AND FATALITIES

NCJ Number
147469
Journal
Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 9 Issue: 1 Dated: (March 1994) Pages: 75-94
Author(s)
K McCurdy; D Daro
Date Published
1994
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Representatives of child protective service agencies in the U.S. and Canada completed 50-item questionnaires to provide data on the scope of the child maltreatment problem in those countries.
Abstract
The data showed that child abuse is a significant, widespread, and growing child welfare problem. Large increases in caseload have been met with level or reduced funding of child protective service agencies in most States. The survey found that, in most States, little information is available on what happens to a child and the family after a report of abuse is substantiated. CPS agencies need to collect and disseminate better information on services to victims and families in order to assess the effectiveness of such interventions. Most reports, substantiated cases, and actual incidents of maltreatment involved child neglect; neglect also led to one- third of all child fatalities. This survey corroborated previous findings showing that young children are the most likely to die from child abuse and neglect. 4 tables and 28 references