Policy Analysis Paper Leslie C. Tillman SW 4710 December 3, 2017 Professor Crepeau
Policy Analysis Paper
Describe the current social problem you are concerned with: There are many children in the world who’s only desire may be to be loved by their parents or caregiver. Instead the parents and/or caregivers are so consumed with the stresses of life these children oftentimes fall victim to an abusive cycle of child maltreatment. Child abuse/ neglect is said to have a lengthy history because for many centuries the laws failed to protect children from abuse. Dating all the way back to the common laws when children were the property of the father. It was not until 1874 that citizens formed the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children ( Howard, 2009). Child maltreatment is a public health concern as well as a very serious social problem. The current social problem that will be discussed throughout this paper is Child Maltreatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2017), “child maltreatment is a term that encompasses both abuse and neglect. It is behavior towards a child outside the norms of conduct and entails substantial risk of causing physical or emotional harm. There are four major types of child maltreatment that is recognized and those include: (1) physical abuse, (2) sexual abuse, (3) emotional (psychological) abuse, and (4) neglect (Fang, Brown, Florence & Mercy, 2012).This abuse and/or neglect happens to about 13% of U.S. children 18 years and or younger and most come from low-income and racial minority families (Maguire-Jack, Font, 2017, pg. 215). Those children who are victims of abuse will oftentimes by the time they become adolescents will become engaged in risky behaviors like substance abuse. However, the encouraging thing about child abuse and neglect is that they are largely preventable, and there are ways to minimize these burdens to both the child and the community (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2015) (NCSL). What are the policies in place to address this concern? There are many evidence-based policies and strategies in place to address this concern. States have adopted evidence-based strategies that aim to prevent child abuse and neglect before it happens. Some of these policies and strategies are considered foundational approaches such as: Early Childhood Home Visiting: This is a voluntary program that offers support and links families to services, such as parenting skills, provide nurses, social workers, and medical services. More than 20 states have enacted legislation since 2008 to address home visitation effectiveness, accountability and continuous quality improvement (NCSL). (2) Early Head Start: This is a federally funded program that offers low-income pregnant women and families with children under three years of age access to early learning and education in daycare settings (Henderikson, Blackman, 2015). There are also other things like Community Based Grants (SSBG), to fund activities that aim to prevent child abuse/neglect (NCSL, 2015). (3) Federal Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). CAPTA, has been providing funding since 1974 to states, tribes, tribal organizations, public agencies, and nonprofit organizations to help address child abuse/neglect issues (Henderikson, Blackman, 2015). (4) Infant-Safe-Haven Laws: This laws was first enacted in 1999, as an incentive for mothers in crisis to safely relinquish their babies to designated locations. These were places where the babies would be protected and cared for until a more permanent home could be found. This same law also shielded parents from criminal liability of child endangerment of neglect(Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2017). Are these policies dictated by local, state or federal statute – or combinations? The policies that have been enacted for child maltreatment come from a combination of local, state and federal levels. All states have enacted both laws and policies that dictate the roles and responsibilities of how the children of abuse should be handled, for instance, the laws and policies tell who the mandatory reporting person ought to be. On the federal level there are said to be primarily two sources that explains the laws at the federal level, one of which has previously been discussed, the CAPTA and the second is the Social Security Act. The laws discussed in the CAPTA has been amended several times since it was first enacted in 1974. Given that much of what guides responses to child maltreatment is defined by state law, the federal government influences those definitions and policies by providing resources, typically grants and technical assistance, to implement programs. As a result, CAPTA serves as a powerful force that broadly shapes legal and social responses to child maltreatment (Levesque, R. J. R. (2008). What is working; what is not working especially for at risk populations (your critique of the current policy)? Although child maltreatment prevention programs and services in the United States have made great strides toward preventing child abuse and neglect, there are still several million children who continue to be referred to child protective services (CPS) every year. Maltreatment reporting statistics from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) show that the number of children receiving an investigation or alternative response rose 9.0 percent from fiscal year (FY) 2011 to FY 2015. During this same period, substantiated child maltreatment cases rose almost 4 percent and fatalities rose almost 6 percent. This averages 24.2 per 1000 children (CWIG, 2017). One thing that I have found to be heartbreaking is that the data has shown that infant babies under the age of 1 years of age have experienced the highest victimization. As a family member of someone that has been lost due to child abuse/neglect I believe that there is more that needs to be done. How long has the current policy been in place? Who supports and who opposes the policy?
Interview one advocate, legislator regarding their opinion of current policy.
References: https://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/childmaltreatment/index.html http://journals.sagepub.com.contentproxy.phoenix.edu/doi/pdf/10.1177/1077559517711806 Hendrikson, H. & Blackman, K. (2015). National Conference of State Legislatures Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2017). Infant Safe haven laws. Washington, DC. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children's Bureau. Levesque, R. J. R. (2008). Rethinking child maltreatment law: Returning to first principles. New York: Springer. Howard, M. (2009). New York Times: The Child Who Put A Face On Abuse. New York Fang, Xiangming., Brown, D. S., Florence, C. S. & Mercy, J. A. (2012, February). The economic burden of child maltreatment in the United States and implications for prevention. Child Abuse and Neglect, 36(2), 156-165.
Paper 2
Policy Alternative Paper(Competencies—3 & 5) Based on the social problem/policy identified for your analysis paper, use the information obtained to develop a new policy that might remedy the problem you identified with the current policy.
Assess and compare this policy with a similar policy of one other country
What is your policy alternative? Name it and describe where the change will need to occur (local, state, federal)?
Describe the feasibility of your alternative (Political, Economic and Administrative). Would this policy be feasible in the country identified in (b).
Describe how the policy meets your policy goals – e.g. social equality, redistribution of resources, social work values and ethics.
How will you work to implement your alternative? What are the forces that are for/against the policy and how will you use or sway each?
Describe your personal feelings about this policy alternative and how you view your role as a social worker in the change process.
Topic Student provides an organized and systematic way of looking at the strengths, weaknesses and services regulated and distributed in an effort to alleviate the conditions which individuals experience
15pts Student somewhat provide an organized and systematic way of looking at the strengths, weaknesses and services regulated and distributed in an effort to alleviate the conditions which individuals experience 13 pts Student does not provide an organized and systematic way of looking at the strengths, weaknesses and services regulated and distributed in an effort to alleviate the conditions which individuals experience
11 pts
Policy Alternative The method, results, and implications are all presented accurately; Refining the problem statement alternative solution likelihood of alternative to be achieved calculating cost benefit/feasibility ratio and connections to the research and position are clear and relevant. The underlying logic is explicit.
15 pts The method, results, and implications are all presented accurately; Refining the problem statement alternative solution likelihood of alternative to be achieved calculating cost benefit/feasibility ratio and connections to the research and position are somewhat unclear and somewhat irrelevant. The underlying logic is explicit. 13 pts The method, results, and implications needs improvement. There was no clear refining of the problem statement alternative solution likelihood of alternative to be achieved calculating cost benefit/feasibility ratio little connections to the research and position are somewhat unclear and somewhat irrelevant.
11 pts
Paper Structure
Organization/ Clarity Paper is coherently organized and the logic is easy to follow. There are no spelling or grammatical errors and terminology is clearly defined. Writing is clear and concise and persuasive. 5 pts Paper is generally well organized and most of the argument is easy to follow. There are only a few minor spelling or grammatical errors, or terms are not clearly defined. Writing is mostly clear but may lack conciseness. 4 pts Paper is poorly organized and difficult to read – does not flow logically from one part to another. There are several spelling and/or grammatical errors; technical terms are poorly defined. Writing lacks clarity and conciseness. 3 pts Create a free website Powered by here to edit.