Lawrence Berger, PhD¹, Jessica Kahn², and Jane Waldfogel, PhD². (1) School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1350 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53706, 609-258-6967, Lmberger@wise.edu, (2) School of Social Work, Columbia University, 622 W.113th Street, New York, NY 10025

Parental substance abuse is a significant factor for many families involved in the child welfare system. While current estimates suggest that 40 to 80 percent of child abuse and neglect cases involve substance abuse, the incidence of substance abuse among families reported to child protective services (CPS) has not been precisely estimated. Furthermore, existing research has made only limited progress toward linking substance abuse to specific types of child abuse and neglect, as well as to particular CPS findings and outcomes. We use data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW), the first national child welfare study to collect data directly from children and families, to explore these issues. First, we describe the incidence of parental substance abuse among families reported to CPS utilizing two distinct substance abuse indicators: caseworker assessments of substance abuse at the time of the CPS investigation, and the parent/caregiver’s score on the alcohol and drug dependence modules of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short-Form. We then compare and discuss differences in incidence rates using each measure. Second, we describe associations between substance abuse and particular types of child abuse and neglect. Third, we explore relationships between substance abuse and several CPS outcomes, including (1) the types of services offered to parents (including substance abuse treatment); (2) the types of services offered to children (including which “permanency plans” are in place); (3) whether the case is substantiated/indicated; and (4) whether the child is removed from the home.

Learning Objectives:

• At the end of the session, the participant should be able to describe recent measures of parental substance abuse among children under child protective services, discuss relationships between substance abuse and child abuse and neglect, and compare how outcomes vary with services, and situation.

Keywords: Substance Abuse,

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.