Factors that determine the quality of child protection investigations - a literature review

Introduction: In 2015 The Norwegian Directorate for Child and Family Affairs commissioned a four year research program that aims to identify factors that contribute to best practice in investigations and decision-making in... [ view full abstract ]

Introduction: In 2015 The Norwegian Directorate for Child and Family Affairs commissioned a four year research program that aims to identify factors that contribute to best practice in investigations and decision-making in cases reported to child welfare services in Norway. The fist part of the study consists of a research review that identifies factors that determine the quality of child protection investigations.

Methods: Search for relevant studies were carried out in major international research databases in Nordic publications of reports and evaluations related the use of The Assessment Framework in the Nordic countries. A search strategy was developed to identify relevant studies published in English, Norwegian, Swedish or Danish. Inclusion criteria are that the study contains analysis of either methods for child protections investigations or analysis of factors that impacts decisions to investigate and substantiate or dismiss a case reported to child welfare services. Studies identified through electronic searches are screened independently by two researches and inter-rater agreement was estimated using the Cohen’s Kappa statistic.

Theoretical framework for the analysis: The review categorizes studies and publications as either research based or based on user experience. Research based studies are defined as peer reviewed studies that present primary research data or peer reviewed scoping reviews and meta analysis. Studies based on user experience are non reviewed studies that contain the views and experiences of professionals or service users.

Results: The search and selection process is on-going at the congress abstract proposal deadline. The results will be presented at the conference. The results will be used by the Norwegian Directorate for Child and Family Affairs in in development of a national framework for child protection investigations in Norway and to issue guidance for assessment in cases of suspected child abuse or neglect.