Specialty Courts - Essay Example

Article Critique Summary The article is about a study on specialty courts. The study seeks to find out whether in comparison to general courts, specialty courts result in better outcomes with regard to children in foster care. The focus of the study is unified family courts and drug treatment courts (DTCs). It assessed the impact these courts had on how long children stayed in foster care and the placement they had when exiting from foster care. The study also assessed the impact time spent in foster care had on children’s performance in school. The outcomes of the study indicated that where there were unified family courts, children spent less time under foster care and showed improved performance at school. There was also a higher chance of reunification with primary care givers or parents for such children (Sloan, Gifford, Eldred, Acquah, and Blevins, 2013). However, Adult DTCs had different results. They demonstrated a lower chance of reunification. The motivation behind the study is the lack of or limited research into the issue of the role that courts play in the achievement of well-being of youth under foster care. Another reason behind the study is the lack of information relating academic performance to issues on foster care. Previous studies also show a limitation in terms of geographical scope. The authors of the study seek to find out the relationship between specialty courts, in particular unified family courts and DTCs, and the academic performance of children under foster care (Sloan et. al.2013). The aim was to recommend on the effectiveness of the unified family courts and the drug treatment courts in dealing with cases that involve children in foster care. Evaluation Goals Specialty courts have different goals depending on the category of specialty courts they are. There are therapeutic courts and nontherapeutic courts. The aim of therapeutic courts is the improvement of personal health in various areas such as treatment of mental health and substance problems. The courts also seek to try to increase court efficiency. As for nontherapeutic courts, their main objective is to increase court efficiency. Judges and court staff with special training would make this objective achievable, as they would decrease the time required to solve cases (Sloan et. al. 2013). Efficiency would in turn minimize uncertainty, disruptions and even stress associated with cases dragging on for long. The main aim of unified family courts is to have the management of all issues that pertain to a single family in one place. Such issues include divorce, equitable division of property, child custody and juvenile delinquency. The emphasis of these courts is on rehabilitation and safeguarding the interests of children. On the other hand, DTCs aim at treating people under crime charges and who have problems with drugs and alcohol. They aim at reducing the rates of rearrest for offences related to substance abuse. The authors planned to evaluate the specialty courts in two steps. First, they would assess how the presence of unified family courts and drug treatment courts in a North Carolina influenced the time children stayed under foster care and the placement they got when leaving foster care. The second step involved comparing the time spent in foster care against academic performance in school. The authors sampled data on foster care placement dating between 1997 and 2008 (Sloan et. al. 2013). Theoretical Perspectives Existing theory on specialty courts indicates an increase in specialty courts as a public response to societal issues that are complex. Such issues include neglect, child abuse and dependency, domestic violence, divorce and custody issues, criminal behavior due to substance use or mental illness as well as driving while intoxicated. According to the study, there are two main hypotheses. One is that specialty courts, particularly unified family courts, improve resolution of cases involving youth under foster care (Sloan et. al. 2013). The study suggests that such courts would have the effect of reducing the length of time one spends under temporary placement in the foster care program. They would also increase the chances of reunification with parents or primary caregivers. The second hypothesis is that improved school performance would result from the improved outcomes that youth in foster care would experience (Sloan et. al. 2013). Better school performance would result from a shorter stay in foster care and a more permanent and stable placement afterwards such as adoption or reunification with parents. The existing theory indicates the role the specialty courts play in solving family related issues. That is in line with the goals of the specialty courts program that seek to protect the welfare of children. The achievement of these goals leads to positive outcomes for children in foster care. The study ignored findings of previous studies that made comparisons between children in foster care with other children of similar age in the general population. The reason behind this is that these children were under different circumstances and therefore faced different challenges. A comparison between the two groups would therefore not be fair. The children under foster care tend to come from families with lower socioeconomic status. That in itself is already a risk factor when it comes to academic performance and would therefore disadvantage them. The theory builds the basis for the research. It guides the authors in their research. The data collection and analysis anchors on the existing theory with an aim to improve on findings of previous studies. Since the theory proposes a relationship between specialty courts and outcomes of foster children, the study seeks to assess this relationship. The authors use the theory to direct them on the data to collect and the methods to use in data collection. They use different sources to find data on specialty courts, placement of children under foster care, the time they spend in foster care, their exit from the program, the permanent placement they get as well as their performance in school at different stages of their placement. The theory also informs the choice of data analysis technique the authors use. Since they seek to find the relationship between different variables, they use least squares regression to determine this relationship. Existing findings from previous studies also influenced the sample size the authors used. Unlike previous studies that focused on a single county, this study used data from the whole state of North Carolina. That gives results that are more creditable. The authors also used existing theory when selecting members of their sample. Given that earlier studies made comparisons between performance of children under foster care and children who have never been in foster care, this study compared the performance of the same participants but under different situations. Research Methods The principal research methods the authors of the study use in the evaluation are observational research and correlational research. The observational research involved observing whether the specialty courts were operational in different counties (Morling, 2011). It also involved observing when children were put into foster care, why they were put under foster care and the length of time they spent under foster care. Information on their exit from foster care and their permanent placement was also required for the observational research. Another element under observation was the academic performance of children under foster care and after exiting foster care. Since the study involves making observations on events that have already occurred in the past, it represents a retrospective cohort study (Riegelman, 2012). On the other hand, correlational research involved finding a correlation between different variables (Creswell, 2013). In this case, the variables were efficiency of the court system, time spent in foster care and academic performance. These variables affect each other from one to the other. The correlational research employed statistical methods such as least squares regression to determine the correlation between the variables. By solving the equation for each outcome, the authors were able to find the impact of efficiency in judicial decision-making on time taken in foster care and eventual effects on educational performance. The study involves archival research as it draws its data from archival records (Gravetter and Forzano, 2011). The source of data on foster care placements was the Client Service data warehouse. That is a data repository under the maintenance of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Information about the operation of specialty courts in different counties came from the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts website. The North Carolina Department of Instruction provided data on school outcomes for the children under foster care. In selecting the sample for the analysis, there were some unintended consequences. Although the source data comprised of 71,834 child placements, there were several omissions. The omissions were due to missing data. On hand, there was missing data on expenditures involving health and human services at the county level while on the other hand the omission was due to termination reasons. Cases of the foster care ending date proceeding the placement’s beginning date also accounted for some omissions. To avoid duplications that could potentially cause statistical complications, only one observation per child was considered. The observations were on each child’s first instance in the foster care system. Children joining private school or those moving from the state into another state were also not tracked. That also accounted for some omissions in the study. Of all the possible outcomes of the placement program, the study assessed only a few. Apart from academic performance, the program has other outcomes such as child behavior and readmission into foster care after permanent placement. There are also other outcomes in adults such as productivity in the labor market, reduced chances of crimes, as well as marital stability. All these outcomes need to be considered. The data for the study also came from one state. Different states have different situations. Therefore, they would differ in how they set up specialty courts. The structure and operation of these courts differs from one state to the other. Conclusion From the research, the authors conclude that due to unified family courts, children spend less time in foster care. That implies improved efficiency, which in turn enables the court system make savings as it uses fewer resources. Efficiency gains also have a positive impact on individuals as they have better outcomes as a result of efficient decision-making in the judicial system. As children spend less time in temporary placements, they record better educational outcomes. This conclusion is based on the results of the study, which indicate a relationship between unified family courts and time spent in foster care and the resulting academic performance. Although the results of the study indicate that unified family courts increase efficiency and reduce the length of temporary placements, they also have other problems they do not fully cover. Other studies indicate that there are more cases of return to foster care by children after permanent placement. Some children who have been reunited with their parents have also exhibited cases of dropping out of school, low grades, arrests and behavior problems. That may indicate a problem area in the unified family courts program. The results of the study would be of great use in arguments for the implementation of the specialty courts. Given the results indicate success in goal achievement by the unified family courts; it would form a formidable argument for the support of these courts. From the results, the authors recommend that legislative bodies take into consideration the positive outcomes of the specialty courts when making budget allocations. References Creswell, J.W. (2013). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, 4th Edition 4th Ed. California: Sage Publications. Gravetter, F.J. and Forzano, L.B., (2011). Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences (PSY 200 (300) Quantitative Methods in Psychology), 4th Ed. Belmont: Wordsworth Publishing. Morling, B. (2011). Research Methods in Psychology: Evaluating a World of Information 1st Ed. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc. (Correlational and Observational) Riegelman, R.K., (2012). Studying a Study and Testing a Test: Reading Evidence-based Health Research, 6th Ed. New York: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins. Sloan, F.A., Gifford, E.J., Eldred, L.M., Acquah, K.F. and Blevins, C.E., (2013). Do Specialty Courts Achieve Better Outcomes for Children in Foster Care Than General Courts? Evaluation Review, 37(1), 3-34. Read More