Author Description

Already a comprehensive introduction to community and individual and group child and family welfare policies and practice in the United States, the Seventh Edition of Child Welfare and Family Services by Susan Whitelaw Downs, Ernestine Moore, Emily Jean McFadden, Susan Michaud, and Lela B. Costin continues to provide a strong historical context for understanding current programs, issues, and policy decisions with an expanded treatment of the legal framework of child welfare services and practice. New and updated information for child welfare and family service professionals include child well-being, outcomes, abuse and neglect prevention, and safety along with forensic interviewing, U.S. Supreme Court decisions, federal legislation including AFSA and TANF, statistical updates from the 2000 U.S. Census, and documentation for court. Other topics include child welfare in a global context, issues relating to immigration and refugees, cultural competence including services to gay/lesbian children and families, and the relation of substance abuse and domestic violence to child welfare. As in earlier editions, the book takes a comprehensive approach to child and family services and policies, covering preventive services, day care and child development programs, income security, juvenile justice, and advocacy as well as thorough treatment of protective services, kinship care, family preservation, and adoption. This readable yet all-inclusive book is a must for all child welfare and family service workers!