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Home > Statistics & Research > Child Maltreatment Report 1997 > Section 1

 

 

The National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) is the primary source of national information on abused and neglected children known to State child protective services (CPS) agencies. The NCANDS design has been guided by the needs of the child welfare field and the availability of data in State information systems. This year, findings from the NCANDS are based on aggregate data from 49 States and case-level data from 16 States. This is the eighth consecutive year that information based on data collected through the NCANDS has been published.

This section discusses the NCANDS background, describes its two components, the Summary Data Component (SDC) and the Detailed Case Data Component (DCDC), and provides an overview of the report.

1.1 Development of the NCANDS
The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN)¹ established the NCANDS in response to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (Public Law 93-247), as amended, which called for the creation of a coordinated universal and case-specific national data collection and analysis program. In 1988, the NCCAN embarked on a collaborative effort with the States to collect and analyze annual child abuse and neglect data, on a voluntary basis, from CPS agencies in the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the territories, and the Armed Services. The first report consisted of 1990 data.

During the initial design phase, the State Advisory Group helped to identify data items and definitions that would present a national profile of child maltreatment. This group (appendix A) continues to play an important role in the implementation of the NCANDS.

The NCANDS has two components. The SDC collects aggregate data from each State through an annual survey. The DCDC collects automated, case-level data on an annual basis from those States with the capacity to provide such data. Technical assistance is provided to the States to assist them in preparing their submissions.

1.2 The Summary Data Component
Prior to 1996, the SDC collected information such as the number of reports alleging child abuse and neglect, the dispositions of these reports, the demographics of victims of maltreatment, the number of child fatalities resulting from maltreatment, the number of victims who received post investigative services, the number of victims who were placed in foster care and received court services, and the relationship of perpetrators to victims. Submission of data was voluntary.

In 1996, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act was amended to require that any State receiving the Basic State Grant work with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to provide specific data on child maltreatment to the extent practicable.² The legislation specified the following data elements:

1. The number of children who were reported to the State during the year as abused or neglected.
   
   
2. Of the number of children described in paragraph (1), the number with respect to whom such reports were--
   1. substantiated;
      
      
   2. unsubstantiated; or
      
      
   3. determined to be false.
   
   
   
3. Of the number of children described in paragraph (2)--
   1. the number that did not receive services during the year under the State program funded under this section or an equivalent State program;
      
      
   2. the number that received services during the year under the State program funded under this section or an equivalent State program; and
      
      
   3. the number that were removed from their families during the year by disposition of the case.
   
   
   
4. The number of families that received preventive services from the State during the year.
   
   
5. The number of deaths in the State during the year resulting from child abuse or neglect.
   
   
6. Of the number of children described in paragraph (5), the number of such children who were in foster care.
   
   
7. The number of child protective services workers responsible for the intake and screening of reports filed in the previous year.
   
   
8. The agency response time with respect to each such report with respect to initial investigation of reports of child abuse or neglect.
   
   
9. The response time with respect to the provision of services to families and children where an allegation of abuse or neglect has been made.
   
   
10. The number of child protective services workers responsible for intake, assessment, and investigation of child abuse and neglect reports relative to the number of reports investigated in the previous year.
    
    
11. The number of children reunited with their families or receiving family preservation services that, within five years, result in subsequent substantiated reports of child abuse and neglect, including the death of the child
    
    
12. The number of children for whom individuals were appointed by the court to represent the best interests of such children and the average number of out of court contacts between such individuals and children.

The Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) collaborated with the States to review these data elements. In a pilot test, the wording of the data elements, the definitions of the terms, and data collection methods were examined. After the pilot test was completed, the data elements were incorporated into the annual collection of child maltreatment data through the SDC, with the approval of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Some specific data elements were reworded for clarity. The 1997 SDC Survey was the first survey in which all of the data elements specified in the CAPTA amendments were included in the SDC.

The SDC Survey (appendix B) and Glossary were mailed to the States in the fall of 1998. Data were collected from 48 States and the District of Columbia. (Throughout the text, the term "States" is used to include the District of Columbia.)

Because much of the data had not been routinely collected by the State child welfare information systems, the initial response rate for some of the new items was low (see appendix C). Many State contacts reported that they would program their child welfare information systems to collect these data in the future. The most problematical data elements were the number of out-of-court contacts between court-appointed representatives and the child victims they represent, response time with respect to the initial investigation of child abuse or neglect, response time with respect to the provision of services, and the number of children reunited with their families or receiving family preservation services who, within 5 years, were victims of substantiated reports of child abuse and neglect.

The completed forms were reviewed for cross-item and historical consistency, and for substantive clarity. SDC data tables, included in this report (appendix D), consist of the 1997 SDC data by State. Supplementary data tables are also included (appendix E). These consist of additional tables that provide supporting data.

The contacts from each State provided additional information or clarification about their responses to specific data items. State comments on 1997 SDC data (appendix F) are provided in this report. These comments are critical to understanding each State’s responses to the survey.

1.3 The Detailed Case Data Component
The DCDC collects automated, case-level data on children who are the subjects of reports alleging child maltreatment. These data permit a more detailed analysis of abuse and neglect than is possible with only aggregate data. For example, while the SDC can report on ages of victims and types of maltreatment experienced, it cannot present the analysis of maltreatment by age. Because the DCDC collects data at the case level, this and similar analyses can be conducted.

DCDC data are collected using a uniform record layout that contains 19 data elements on reports of alleged maltreatment, including the demographic characteristics of the subjects of the reports. An additional 98 data elements are collected on each child determined to be a victim of maltreatment, including type(s) of maltreatment, disabilities, family problems, services provided, and characteristics of perpetrator(s). In the data presented in this report, a child is counted every time he or she is the subject of a substantiated or indicated report.³

Sixteen States (Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming) submitted 1997 data for the DCDC. Although these States are not a statistically representative sample of the United States, this volume of data contributes additional insight into child abuse and neglect. The child population in these 16 States is nearly one-third of the population in the United States younger than 18 years old. Data on more than 465,000 reports that included more than 816,000 children were collected. Nearly 25 percent of the reports received by CPS agencies nationwide are included in the 1997 DCDC database.

1.4 Overview of the Report
Sections 2 through 7 present the findings on child maltreatment based on 1997 data. Section 2 discusses preventive services. Section 3 examines the variables associated with the CPS intake and referral process, including the number of reports received, the number of reports screened out, the sources of reports, the number of CPS workers, the average response time to initial investigations, and the dispositions of such investigations. Section 4 describes the characteristics of abused and neglected children, including maltreatment types, age, sex, race, Hispanic ethnicity, and service history. Section 5 describes the provision of services to child victims and other children who were the subjects of reports. Section 6 discusses child fatalities, including information on services previously provided to such children. Section 7 describes perpetrators by relation to the child victims and provides additional information about perpetrators from DCDC data on sex and age of perpetrator and type of maltreatment.

¹ In Fiscal Year 1998, the NCCAN was reorganized and merged with the Children's Bureau. (back)
² Public Law 104-235, 104th Congress. (back)
³ Additional information on the DCDC may be found in U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth and Families. (1997). National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS): Detailed Case Data Component Guidelines and Procedures. Unpublished technical report. (back)