Child Welfare-Research Collaborations on Evidence-Based Parent Training Programs for Children and Families in Child Welfare (Workshop 127)

National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) data regarding the need for mental service use in 6000+ children across the United States are reviewed together with new data from its sister study, Caring for Children in Child Welfare (CCCW), regarding the use of parent training strategies in different communities to address these needs. Workshop presenters describe three approaches to strengthening and sustaining collaborative efforts between child welfare agencies and researchers to implement evidence-based parent training programs and incorporate them within child welfare systems. The intent of the session is to increase understanding regarding the behavioral needs of children in child welfare, convey information on several evidence-based parent training programs, and provide practical strategies for considering the adoption of these types of programs in additional locales.

San Diego County partnered with the San Diego State University and the Oregon Social Learning Center to implement parent training for foster parents of children ages 5 to 11. The State of Oklahoma partnered with researchers in Florida who developed a Parent-Child Interaction Training to address the mental health needs of physically abused children. Oklahoma also has initiated a process to introduce Safe Care across the State, collaborating with researchers to examine agency factors that affect incorporating Safe Care at the local level.

Child welfare agencies investigate abuse and neglect allegations, provide services for at-risk parents and children in their home of origin, place children in foster care, and find permanent families for children as part of their mission to protect children at risk. A component of that mission involves addressing the behavioral needs of children.

Children active to child welfare, both those living within as well as outside of home care, exhibit problems that require mental health assessment and/or intervention at a considerably higher rate than in general community settings. Studies suggest that 50 to 75 percent of children entering foster care exhibit behavioral and social competency problems warranting mental health services. Several studies link externalizing behavior problems with placement instability and decisions about reunification.

Those children with externalizing problems or disruptive behavior disorders also are at high risk for ongoing behavioral problems that escalate in severity as the children grow. Evidence is mounting regarding the effectiveness of research-developed parent training programs for treating children with externalizing behavior problems and active to child welfare.

Laurel K. Leslie, M.D.
Gregory Aaron, Ph.D.
Joe Price, Ph.D.
Child and Adolescent Services Research Center
3020 Children's Way
MC5033
San Diego, CA 92123

Kathryn E. Simms, M.S.W.
Children and Family Services Division
Oklahoma Department of Health Services
P.O. Box 25352
Oklahoma City, OK 73125