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February 2013Vol. 14, No. 1Differential Response in CPS

The American Humane Association's new issue of Protecting Children focuses on differential response in child protective services and features the work of three research and demonstration (R&D) sites funded by the National Quality Improvement Center on Differential Response in Child Protective Services (QIC-DR). The projects received grants to implement and evaluate QIC-DR and American Humane's joint initiative in expanding the knowledge and evidence about DR methods. The R&D sites, located in Colorado, Illinois, and Ohio, are charged with answering the following questions:

  • Are children whose families participate in the noninvestigation pathway as safe as or safer than children whose families participate in the investigation pathway?
  • How is the noninvestigation pathway different from the investigation pathway in terms of family engagement, caseworker practice, and services provided?
  • What are the cost and funding implications to the child protection agency of the implementation and maintenance of a differential response approach?

Articles in the issue cover the R&D sites' individual efforts and experiences. Project staff from the Illinois R&D site share lessons learned during the first 2 years of project planning and development. The article on Ohio's SOAR project focuses on practice, examples of successes, and implementation challenges. Project staff from Colorado's site detail the screening and assignment process in specific counties that are implementing differential response.

Access the complete issue of Protecting Children: Differential Response in Child Protective Services: Research and Practice Advancements here:

http://www.ucdenver.edu/academics/colleges/medicalschool/departments/pediatrics/subs/can/DR/qicdr/General%20Resources/General%20Resources/docs/protecting-children-2012.pdf (9 MB)