The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy
Fetal exposure laws mandate child welfare system referral for infants exposed to substances. Though these laws are relatively common, examinations of the consequences of child welfare system involvement for infants exposed to substances are less frequent. The purpose of this paper was to examine the...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2025-04-01
|
| Series: | Child Protection and Practice |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000130 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1825206847904153600 |
|---|---|
| author | Abigail Novak Colleen K. Gutman Vitoria De Francisco Lopes Brian B. Boutwell |
| author_facet | Abigail Novak Colleen K. Gutman Vitoria De Francisco Lopes Brian B. Boutwell |
| author_sort | Abigail Novak |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Fetal exposure laws mandate child welfare system referral for infants exposed to substances. Though these laws are relatively common, examinations of the consequences of child welfare system involvement for infants exposed to substances are less frequent. The purpose of this paper was to examine the impact of out-of-home placement at 18 and 36 months for substance-exposed infants. Using the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being II (NSCAWII)'s sample of infants (<1 year) referred to the child welfare system for substance exposure (Feb 2008–April 2009), we used propensity score weighting to assess the association between out-of-home placement in infancy and measures of child attachment, behaviors, and social and cognitive development at 18 and 36 months. Our results indicate out-of-home placement for substance-exposed infants may increase risk of negative developmental outcomes compared to keeping infants in their homes, and suggest social workers and practitioners should be cognizant of alternatives to out-of-home placement when evaluating cases of infant substance exposure. Our results also suggest policies that structure decision-making regarding testing and placement may ultimately help improve child outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-199230d91523457c9a9da6463836fbe7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2950-1938 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Child Protection and Practice |
| spelling | doaj-art-199230d91523457c9a9da6463836fbe72025-02-07T04:48:37ZengElsevierChild Protection and Practice2950-19382025-04-014100106The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policyAbigail Novak0Colleen K. Gutman1Vitoria De Francisco Lopes2Brian B. Boutwell3Department of Criminal Justice & Legal Studies, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USA; Corresponding author.Departments of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, FL, USADepartment of Criminal Justice & Legal Studies, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USADepartment of Criminal Justice & Legal Studies, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USA; University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USAFetal exposure laws mandate child welfare system referral for infants exposed to substances. Though these laws are relatively common, examinations of the consequences of child welfare system involvement for infants exposed to substances are less frequent. The purpose of this paper was to examine the impact of out-of-home placement at 18 and 36 months for substance-exposed infants. Using the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being II (NSCAWII)'s sample of infants (<1 year) referred to the child welfare system for substance exposure (Feb 2008–April 2009), we used propensity score weighting to assess the association between out-of-home placement in infancy and measures of child attachment, behaviors, and social and cognitive development at 18 and 36 months. Our results indicate out-of-home placement for substance-exposed infants may increase risk of negative developmental outcomes compared to keeping infants in their homes, and suggest social workers and practitioners should be cognizant of alternatives to out-of-home placement when evaluating cases of infant substance exposure. Our results also suggest policies that structure decision-making regarding testing and placement may ultimately help improve child outcomes.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000130Child welfareSubstance exposureChild abuse |
| spellingShingle | Abigail Novak Colleen K. Gutman Vitoria De Francisco Lopes Brian B. Boutwell The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy Child Protection and Practice Child welfare Substance exposure Child abuse |
| title | The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy |
| title_full | The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy |
| title_fullStr | The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy |
| title_full_unstemmed | The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy |
| title_short | The intersection of infant substance exposure, foster care placement & child welfare policy |
| title_sort | intersection of infant substance exposure foster care placement amp child welfare policy |
| topic | Child welfare Substance exposure Child abuse |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950193825000130 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT abigailnovak theintersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT colleenkgutman theintersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT vitoriadefranciscolopes theintersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT brianbboutwell theintersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT abigailnovak intersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT colleenkgutman intersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT vitoriadefranciscolopes intersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy AT brianbboutwell intersectionofinfantsubstanceexposurefostercareplacementampchildwelfarepolicy |