Using administrative data in child protection research

Administrative data collected by government agencies represents a valuable resource for research in the field of child protection. Compared to survey data, administrative data can have a number of advantages such as large... [ view full abstract ]

Administrative data collected by government agencies represents a valuable resource for research in the field of child protection. Compared to survey data, administrative data can have a number of advantages such as large sample size, minimal loss to follow-up and reduced biases. Depending on the setting it can be used to describe who receives child protection services and the type of services provided, as well as social care outcomes relevant to service providers (e.g. placement stability and permanency of exits from care). Linkage within and between government agencies can further extend the usefulness of administrative data when exploring outcomes among maltreated children. This symposium will present examples of research from the USA, UK and Australia that utilise routinely-collected, administrative child protection data. These analyses of administrative data focus on outcomes such as educational attainment, mental health and stability of exits from care.