Failure and Success in Child Protection - Case Study Example

Introduction The world is undergoing fast socio-economic changes mainly due to rapid technological advancement and globalization. The wide ranging impact of these factors is particularly worrisome when they start producing negative impact on the social fabric of the society creating problems which are increasing detrimental to the welfare of the society at large. Few of the area where they seem to have made a significant impact are drug addiction, increasing dropout rates in school going children, increasing cases of child abuse etc. The impact of these factors on children has become serious issue that must be tackled at the earliest. The paper would be critically looking at the ‘Child Protection Agency’ to find how successful it has been in tackling the challenges of the time. Historical aspect The welfare of the children has long been considered as the sole concern of the parents and the family with little intervention from the government. In the olden times, the corporal punishment inflicted on children was taken as justified actions of the father or parents and there was huge exploitation of children in the cases of inheritance, property cases and custodian rights. In the later 19th century, the English Common Law was introduced to include the inheritance and property cases and later expanded to take into account the wider interests of the children through Custody of Infants Act. The American colonies of 18th century followed the English Laws and especially emphasized two aspects of children related policies: ‘the common law rules of family government; and the traditions and child-care practices of the Elizabethan Poor Laws of 1601’ (Thomas, p. 299). In 1875, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (SPCC) was founded in New York. It was dominated by the white population and targeted black families that resulted in huge number of black children separated from their family. In 1909, the White House acknowledged that ‘home life is the highest and finest product of civilization. It is the great molding force of mind and of character’(Tanenhaus, p. 550). Thus, the 20th century say dramatic shift in the outlook of children’s protection that was shifted from the family and private child protection services to government sponsored agencies with tremendous changes in the overall perspective to the children’s welfare. In 1912, Children’s Bureau was established to manage children’s welfare of the federal government. Social Security Act in 1958 made it a state subject and mandated funding of the child protection efforts (Laird & Michael, 2006). In 1974, ‘Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act’ (P.L. 93-247) was incorporated that prompted federal funding and state research and services in the area of maltreatment of the children (Pecora et al., 1992). In 1980, the Congress introduced comprehensive federal child protective services act, better known as the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980. It focused on economic incentive to decrease the number of foster care homes while maintaining the goals of 1909 White House conference. In 1997, further reforms were enacted in the 1980 Act and Adoption and Safe Families Act was passed to provide the children with secured family environment. Vision statement Child Protection Services is primarily state and local government agency that works within the guidelines of the federal government and funding. Through the CPS, the government envisions to provide the children with secured family environment that encourages loving care and sense of belonging. Mission statement The mission statements of the CPS are designed to meet the needs and requirements of the children through well planned strategy which would help fulfil the long term vision of the government. The welfare of the children is intrinsic part of development and strategic goals of the government. Wilkerson asserts that ‘the state has the authority to act in the best interests of and for the protection of children’ (Wilkerson, 1973). Hence, the CPS’s mission statements are important and sincere declaration of its objectives and aims. The following statements comprise of CPS’s mission: 1. Provide the state and the local government with funding for research and services in the area that facilitate children’s welfare. 2. Anticipate children’s changing needs and provide multiple services from single window wherever possible. 3. Help provide the children with facilitating environment of loving family and reduce child abuse through stringent laws and deterrent measures. 4. Provide children with social support through social workers and other agencies like schools that are constantly in contact with the children. 5. Encourage voluntary agencies and public to become proactive participants in looking at the interests of the children. Critical analysis of ethical effectiveness Children’s welfare is crucial for the overall development process of a nation. The increasing cases of child abuse have significantly impacted the general growth and development of the children resulting in increased cases of drug addiction, hyperactivity, drop-out cases etc. The various overt and covert implications of the child abuse in school going children have necessitated the inclusion of innovative strategies by the government, social workers and teachers to meet the challenges of identifying children of the disturbed family. The abused children often have persistent conduct disorder, defiance and affective disorders like depressions, anxiety, learning disability and communication. The children experiencing abuse of any sort, find it difficult to excel academically with serious repercussions on their vocational skills and social and emotional development, affecting their relationship with others. The implications of the child abuse on the academic performance of the children are wide ranging and may include a host of associated problems that require collective mechanism of the various elements like the cooperation of the parents and teachers with special training and awareness of the cause and affects of the ill-treatment of the children. The role of CPS in prevention of the exploitation of the children and facilitating intervention mechanisms greatly promote the just cause. The wider goals and objectives of CPS are key factors for the ethical effectiveness of Child Protective Services. Indeed, some of the recent cases of the CPS have come under controversy, especially with regard to overlooking the concerns of the parents. In Santosky v. Kramer case in 1982, the Court held that it is mandatory for the state to provide convincing evidence that the child needs to be separated from the parents (case, 1982). This showed that the various state and local agencies did come short of working in the absolute interest of the children. Many such cases are still prevalent where the CPS has gone overboard with its protection agenda and overlooked the wider interests of the child and the mothers, especially the battered women of domestic violence, who were deprived of their children at the behest of the social workers. Recommendations The government provides the basic guiding principles and policy parameters of development process in the various core areas but people must also take up the cudgels to get involved into the process along with the government, if the country is to achieve the distinction of sustainable development that percolates down to the people that cuts across regional, racial and cultural divide. The children are the future of the nation and their welfare should be of paramount importance not only to the nation but to the people at large. The overt and covert behavioural pattern among the children, defined by the confrontational anti social behaviour and the concealed or covert anti social behaviour, have pronounced influence on the society and are largely contributed to their relationship with their peers specially their parents and siblings. Stealing and frequent aggressive outbursts in the children are common features for this category of children. These types of children are more susceptible to criminal acts of omission and commission in their later life also. To improve the effectiveness of CPS, few of the recommendations/ suggestions are enumerated as below: The CPS needs to introduce more effective and just measures of providing child protection services through promotion of committees that would oversee the working of CPS and related agencies. The supervisory body would ensure effective implementation of the goals of the CPS by the social workers, advocates of the child as well as that of parents especially the battered mothers. To prevent abuse in the foster homes, the government must ensure transparency and free access to the voluntary agencies. Stricter measures of accountability and responsible code of conduct from the various child protection agencies must become intrinsic part of child protection services. Easier and more friendly adoption laws must be introduced so that people are encouraged to adopt children. There should be regular counselling and training sessions for the child protection officials, social workers, teachers and public so that wider awareness is created for the cause and consequences of the abuse children. More support needs to be extended to the families to resolve the differences and conflicts and provide the children with secured family environment. Single window system should be introduced where the wide ranging cases can be resolved without resorting to discriminate practices and multiple response modalities. The child protection cases need to be expedited with clear and concise verdict to promote children’s welfare. Future prospects and its ethical impact on criminal justice system Child protection services are integral part of government intervention that helps maintain the basic welfare of the children and provide guidelines to the society for the same. One of the worst repercussions of abuse of this group of children is their foray into the area of crime. Drug addicts and school dropouts are increasingly getting involved in criminal activities that have become a serious concern for the law enforcement agencies. The discontent of the youngsters and the government’s inability to understand the demands of the changing time has become the bane of the general public. It is therefore, very important to evolve effective mechanism that would facilitate better understanding of the problems and help develop successful remedial methods that would promote social inclusion. The widespread ethical considerations of the child protection services on the various inter-related factors and issues are crucial for the successful implementation of its goals. The social problems have direct impact on the policing and the law. The growing numbers of juvenile delinquents are not merely law and order problem but the wider implications of such cases pose serious threat to the future of the state itself. The domestic violence and lack of social support to the families are few of the key factors of child abuse and resulting anti-social behaviour of the children. Since the government alone cannot solve the problems, the role of statutory and non statutory bodies becomes crucial. The involvement non statutory bodies, both at the planning and implementation stage, have become essential. Their collaborative efforts are required for formulating effective strategies and policies to deal with the problems. The proactive participation of the general public in the implementation of the government’s strategies became a reality through the sincere efforts of non statutory agencies. It is imperative that all the agencies must come together to promote a system which would prevent the youth from going in these direction while at the same time facilitate their rehabilitation. Reference Laird, David and Jennifer Michael. (2006). ‘Budgeting Child Welfare: How will millions cut from the federal budget affect the child welfare system?’ Published in: Child Welfare League of America, Childrens Voice, Vol. 15, No. 4 (July/August 2006). Available from: [Accessed 9 July 2009]. Pecora, Peter J., James K. Whittaker, Anthony N. Maluccio, with Richard P. Barth and Robert D. Plotnick (1992). The Child Welfare Challenge: Policy, Practice, and Research. NY:Aldine de Gruyter. Tanenhaus, David S. 2001. "Growing Up Dependent: Family Preservation in Early Twentieth-Century Chicago." Law and History Review 19:547 - 582. Thomas, Mason P. 1972. "Child Abuse and Neglect Part I: Historical Overview, Legal Matrix, and Social Perceptions." North Carolina Law Review 50:293 - 349. Scott, Brenda. (1994). Out of Control. Whos Watching Our Child Protection Agencies? Huntington House Publishers. Santosky v. Kramer. (1982). Available from: [Accessed 9 July 2009]. Wilkerson, A. (Ed.). (1973). Emergent Concepts in Law & Society. Rights of Children. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Read More