How child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information: Findings from the National child welfare information study

Michael Long; Sharika Bhattacharya; Elizabeth Eaton; Dannele Ferreras; Christina Zdawczyk; Christine Leicht; Brian Deakins; Matthew McGuire

doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106255

How child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information: Findings from the National child welfare information study

Michael Long, Sharika Bhattacharya, Elizabeth Eaton, Dannele Ferreras, Christina Zdawczyk, Christine Leicht, Brian Deakins, Matthew McGuire

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Child Welfare Information Gateway, with funding from the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, conducted the National Child Welfare Information Study between January and May 2019 to better understand how child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information. Topics covered in the survey included the general level of access to child welfare information, proactive searches for child welfare information, receiving child welfare information, sharing child welfare information, training, using mobile technology to access child welfare information, and using social media to access and share child welfare information. The results, based on 3,313 responses, provide a valuable profile of how child welfare professionals interact with information as part of their work responsibilities. These findings will be useful to (1) technical assistance providers seeking to disseminate information to this audience, (2) people responsible for managing and directing child welfare organizations, and (3) other researchers who can use the data for additional exploration on these topics.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	106255
Journal	Children and Youth Services Review
Volume	130
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106255
State	Published - Nov 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Children’s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C.

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C. The study team is most appreciative of the state child welfare agency directors and staff, child welfare professionals working with Tribes, legal and judicial professionals, and students in social work programs who generously gave their time to complete the online survey and participate in focus group discussions to share how they access information and use technology in their work. We thank the members of our Technical Workgroup who provided structured feedback on the overall study design, target audiences, and instrument development. We are also grateful to each member of our four organizational stakeholder groups who provided specific input on instrument development, participant recruitment, data collection, and the sharing of findings. Finally, we remember our colleague, Nicole Dutch, who was instrumental in organizing the study team and oversaw the review of the research literature that helped inform the overall study design. Multiple individuals who provided guidance and input over the course of the study, including members of our Technical Workgroup and stakeholder groups, are acknowledged below. ? Gary Anderson, Michigan State University School of Social Work. ? Carl Ayers, Division of Family Services, Virginia Department of Social Services. ? Anita Barbee, University of Louisville School of Social Work. ? Maggie Bishop, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Colleen Caron, Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families. ? Melissa Carter, Emory University School of Law. ? Lindsay Crisostomo, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Alicia Davis, National Center for State Courts. ? Michelle Graef, Quality Improvement Center on Workforce Development (QIC-WD) ? Courtney Harrison, CLH Strategies and Solutions. ? Liliana Hernandez, Children's Bureau. ? Julia Hintze, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. ? Rebecca Huffman, Children's Bureau. ? Emily Iron Cloud-Koenen, Lakota Oyate Wakanyeja Owicakiyapi. ? Kary James, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Sarah Kastelic, National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) ? David Kelly, Children's Bureau. ? Malia Kim, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Nancy Lucero, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Larry Luskin, ICF. ? Art Martinez, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Ted Martinez, Children's Court Division, Second Judicial District Court. ? Aleta Meyer, Office of Planning Research and Evaluation (OPRE), Administration for Children and Families. ? Tom Oates, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Melissa Otero, AdoptUSKids. ? Sarah Pfund, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Laura Radel, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ? Katelyn Sedelmyer, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Brooke Shelley, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Joyce Shelton, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Roshanda Shoulders, Children's Bureau. ? Alicia Summers, Capacity Building Center for Courts. ? Daniel Trujillo, National Association of Counsel for Children. ? Raffaele Vitelli, National Association of Social Workers. ? Helena Wallin-Miller, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Maria Woolverton, OPRE, Administration for Children and Families.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors

Keywords

Child welfare
Information access
Information search
Information use
Mobile devices
Social media

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106255

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title = "How child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information: Findings from the National child welfare information study",

abstract = "Child Welfare Information Gateway, with funding from the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, conducted the National Child Welfare Information Study between January and May 2019 to better understand how child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information. Topics covered in the survey included the general level of access to child welfare information, proactive searches for child welfare information, receiving child welfare information, sharing child welfare information, training, using mobile technology to access child welfare information, and using social media to access and share child welfare information. The results, based on 3,313 responses, provide a valuable profile of how child welfare professionals interact with information as part of their work responsibilities. These findings will be useful to (1) technical assistance providers seeking to disseminate information to this audience, (2) people responsible for managing and directing child welfare organizations, and (3) other researchers who can use the data for additional exploration on these topics.",

keywords = "Child welfare, Information access, Information search, Information use, Mobile devices, Social media",

author = "Michael Long and Sharika Bhattacharya and Elizabeth Eaton and Dannele Ferreras and Christina Zdawczyk and Christine Leicht and Brian Deakins and Matthew McGuire",

note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by the Children{\textquoteright}s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C. Funding Information: This work was supported by the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C. The study team is most appreciative of the state child welfare agency directors and staff, child welfare professionals working with Tribes, legal and judicial professionals, and students in social work programs who generously gave their time to complete the online survey and participate in focus group discussions to share how they access information and use technology in their work. We thank the members of our Technical Workgroup who provided structured feedback on the overall study design, target audiences, and instrument development. We are also grateful to each member of our four organizational stakeholder groups who provided specific input on instrument development, participant recruitment, data collection, and the sharing of findings. Finally, we remember our colleague, Nicole Dutch, who was instrumental in organizing the study team and oversaw the review of the research literature that helped inform the overall study design. Multiple individuals who provided guidance and input over the course of the study, including members of our Technical Workgroup and stakeholder groups, are acknowledged below. ? Gary Anderson, Michigan State University School of Social Work. ? Carl Ayers, Division of Family Services, Virginia Department of Social Services. ? Anita Barbee, University of Louisville School of Social Work. ? Maggie Bishop, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Colleen Caron, Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families. ? Melissa Carter, Emory University School of Law. ? Lindsay Crisostomo, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Alicia Davis, National Center for State Courts. ? Michelle Graef, Quality Improvement Center on Workforce Development (QIC-WD) ? Courtney Harrison, CLH Strategies and Solutions. ? Liliana Hernandez, Children's Bureau. ? Julia Hintze, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. ? Rebecca Huffman, Children's Bureau. ? Emily Iron Cloud-Koenen, Lakota Oyate Wakanyeja Owicakiyapi. ? Kary James, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Sarah Kastelic, National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) ? David Kelly, Children's Bureau. ? Malia Kim, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Nancy Lucero, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Larry Luskin, ICF. ? Art Martinez, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Ted Martinez, Children's Court Division, Second Judicial District Court. ? Aleta Meyer, Office of Planning Research and Evaluation (OPRE), Administration for Children and Families. ? Tom Oates, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Melissa Otero, AdoptUSKids. ? Sarah Pfund, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Laura Radel, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ? Katelyn Sedelmyer, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Brooke Shelley, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Joyce Shelton, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Roshanda Shoulders, Children's Bureau. ? Alicia Summers, Capacity Building Center for Courts. ? Daniel Trujillo, National Association of Counsel for Children. ? Raffaele Vitelli, National Association of Social Workers. ? Helena Wallin-Miller, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Maria Woolverton, OPRE, Administration for Children and Families. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 The Authors",

year = "2021",

month = nov,

doi = "10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106255",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "130",

journal = "Children and Youth Services Review",

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AU - Long, Michael

AU - Bhattacharya, Sharika

AU - Eaton, Elizabeth

AU - Ferreras, Dannele

AU - Zdawczyk, Christina

AU - Leicht, Christine

AU - Deakins, Brian

AU - McGuire, Matthew

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the Children’s Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C. Funding Information: This work was supported by the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under Contract No. HHSP233201600080C. The study team is most appreciative of the state child welfare agency directors and staff, child welfare professionals working with Tribes, legal and judicial professionals, and students in social work programs who generously gave their time to complete the online survey and participate in focus group discussions to share how they access information and use technology in their work. We thank the members of our Technical Workgroup who provided structured feedback on the overall study design, target audiences, and instrument development. We are also grateful to each member of our four organizational stakeholder groups who provided specific input on instrument development, participant recruitment, data collection, and the sharing of findings. Finally, we remember our colleague, Nicole Dutch, who was instrumental in organizing the study team and oversaw the review of the research literature that helped inform the overall study design. Multiple individuals who provided guidance and input over the course of the study, including members of our Technical Workgroup and stakeholder groups, are acknowledged below. ? Gary Anderson, Michigan State University School of Social Work. ? Carl Ayers, Division of Family Services, Virginia Department of Social Services. ? Anita Barbee, University of Louisville School of Social Work. ? Maggie Bishop, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Colleen Caron, Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families. ? Melissa Carter, Emory University School of Law. ? Lindsay Crisostomo, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Alicia Davis, National Center for State Courts. ? Michelle Graef, Quality Improvement Center on Workforce Development (QIC-WD) ? Courtney Harrison, CLH Strategies and Solutions. ? Liliana Hernandez, Children's Bureau. ? Julia Hintze, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. ? Rebecca Huffman, Children's Bureau. ? Emily Iron Cloud-Koenen, Lakota Oyate Wakanyeja Owicakiyapi. ? Kary James, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Sarah Kastelic, National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) ? David Kelly, Children's Bureau. ? Malia Kim, Capacity Building Center for States. ? Nancy Lucero, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Larry Luskin, ICF. ? Art Martinez, Capacity Building Center for Tribes. ? Ted Martinez, Children's Court Division, Second Judicial District Court. ? Aleta Meyer, Office of Planning Research and Evaluation (OPRE), Administration for Children and Families. ? Tom Oates, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Melissa Otero, AdoptUSKids. ? Sarah Pfund, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Laura Radel, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ? Katelyn Sedelmyer, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Brooke Shelley, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Joyce Shelton, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Roshanda Shoulders, Children's Bureau. ? Alicia Summers, Capacity Building Center for Courts. ? Daniel Trujillo, National Association of Counsel for Children. ? Raffaele Vitelli, National Association of Social Workers. ? Helena Wallin-Miller, Child Welfare Information Gateway. ? Maria Woolverton, OPRE, Administration for Children and Families. Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Authors

PY - 2021/11

Y1 - 2021/11

N2 - Child Welfare Information Gateway, with funding from the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, conducted the National Child Welfare Information Study between January and May 2019 to better understand how child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information. Topics covered in the survey included the general level of access to child welfare information, proactive searches for child welfare information, receiving child welfare information, sharing child welfare information, training, using mobile technology to access child welfare information, and using social media to access and share child welfare information. The results, based on 3,313 responses, provide a valuable profile of how child welfare professionals interact with information as part of their work responsibilities. These findings will be useful to (1) technical assistance providers seeking to disseminate information to this audience, (2) people responsible for managing and directing child welfare organizations, and (3) other researchers who can use the data for additional exploration on these topics.

AB - Child Welfare Information Gateway, with funding from the Children's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, conducted the National Child Welfare Information Study between January and May 2019 to better understand how child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information. Topics covered in the survey included the general level of access to child welfare information, proactive searches for child welfare information, receiving child welfare information, sharing child welfare information, training, using mobile technology to access child welfare information, and using social media to access and share child welfare information. The results, based on 3,313 responses, provide a valuable profile of how child welfare professionals interact with information as part of their work responsibilities. These findings will be useful to (1) technical assistance providers seeking to disseminate information to this audience, (2) people responsible for managing and directing child welfare organizations, and (3) other researchers who can use the data for additional exploration on these topics.

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How child welfare professionals search for, access, and share information: Findings from the National child welfare information study

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Publisher link

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