Alexander K, Zhou A, Wise S, Humphreys C. Why do mothers stay? Challenging attitudes in decision making about children at risk because of domestic violence.
CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2023;
146:106511. [PMID:
37879256 DOI:
10.1016/j.chiabu.2023.106511]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
This article reports findings from research commenced in 2019. Stage one assessed the attitudes and beliefs of child protection practitioners towards domestic violence. Stage two considered the impact of combining Structured Decision Making (SDM - the standard assessment approach) with Response Based Practice (RBP - a contemporary approach to understanding violence), on child protection decisions.
OBJECTIVE
To improve the child protection response to children who experience domestic violence. This article reports on stage three; considering the impact of practitioner attitudes and beliefs on child protection decisions and whether the combined assessment approach (SDM + RBP) moderated the impact of practitioner attitudes and beliefs.
PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING
1041 child protection practitioners participated in the research while attending one of 17 practice conferences across New South Wales, Australia.
METHODS
An innovative video vignette experiment with a between-subjects design was used, relying on professional actors to play the roles of practitioner and mother of the children reported. Participants watched a video interview of a safety assessment and completed a survey.
RESULTS
Practitioner attitudes and beliefs were not significantly correlated with assessments about the children's safety; but attitudes did impact decisions about the likelihood of the children being brought into care. Attitudes and beliefs moderated the impact of misinformed attitudes, to some extent.
CONCLUSIONS
The research confirms the value of the combined SDM + RBP approach to guide practitioners to a more holistic understanding of domestic violence. It also confirms that assessment approaches are only ever as good as the beliefs and attitudes of the people who apply them.
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