Ronald Hughes, Judith Rycus, and their colleagues have produced a seminal review of differential response (DR) programs implemented across the nation. Their review questions nearly every aspect of the DR movement, beginning with the concept on which all DR programs are based and ending with serious concerns about the quality of evaluations…

Ronald Hughes and his colleagues have written a groundbreaking article on child welfare's use of differential response. Their research addresses the matter from a "lessons learned" and "ways to improve" approach. Our comments focused on three key issues: (1) the importance of evidence-based practice; (2) the recognition…

In their critique of differential response (DR), Hughes and colleagues raise a number of important issues that are central to broader efforts at the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) including the need for greater reliance on evidence-based practice in child welfare, more rigorous evaluation methodologies, and a robust set of…

Hughes, Rycus, Saunders-Adams, Hughes, and Hughes's article represents an important effort to critically examine the foundation of thought and empirical evidence associated with the rise in prominence of differential response (DR) within child welfare systems throughout the United States. The insights and criticisms offered are an important…

This is a response to the document by Hughes et al. in this issue that offers a critique of the status of differential response (DR). We find the document to be helpful in intent, but do not find that it reflects scientifically sound methods, and contains many mischaracterizations of the status, impetus, research, and evaluation of DR to date. We…

This article is a response to "Issues in Differential Response", a review of the current evidence pertaining to differential response (DR) programs in child protective services (CPS). In my view, the Hughes, Rycus, Saunders-Adams, Hughes, and Hughes article suffers from several weaknesses. First, DR programs are critiqued as if they were…

The Hughes et al. paper is critiqued generally and in specific areas. The weak nature of the authors' empirical work is discussed along with their enigmatic writing and vague and incorrect use of references, and their simultaneous use of sweeping statements of opinion and narrow analytical focus. This review examines the authors' errors…

This article is an invited commentary and analysis of the authors' completed systematic evaluation of Child Protective Services (CPS) differential response (DR) models. I write this commentary based on 25 years of public child welfare experience followed by 13 years as a social work professor and researcher. In their review of DR, the…

This reaction article highlights areas of agreement and disagreement with the study conducted by Hughes, Rycus, Saunders-Adams, Hughes, and Hughes on the current state of research and practice in differential response (DR). Overall, we agree with several of the arguments put forth by Hughes et al. regarding the limitations of DR research and the…

In this article, the authors responded to nine commentaries by 17 contributors to their article, "Issues in Differential Response." The authors found that a majority of the respondents agreed with the major conclusions of "Issues in Differential Response." However, there were varying degrees of disagreement regarding the…

According to these authors, it is correct to assume that mental health professionals, including psychologists, may not have adequate literature that provides an evidence-informed basis for making decisions about a parent's contact with a child whom he/she has sexually molested. Indeed, there are several sources of information that may negatively…

This commentary discusses the decisions of child protective service (CPS) investigators to substantiate mothers for failure-to-protect (FTP) in child sexual abuse cases. Four areas are identified in which the scientific literature remains inadequate to fully inform child maltreatment researchers, CPS practitioners and child welfare policymakers on…

Coohey's paper is a valuable investigation of the substantiation of mothers for failure to protect their children from child sexual abuse (CSA). Drawing on concerns regarding the possible inconsistency of decisions to substantiate, Coohey sought to determine the factors relied on by CPS investigators in the decision-making process. Multivariate…

Presents practical suggestions for managing a protective service agency for children when one of its staff members is accused of sexually abusing a child in residential care. The agency must balance the tasks of protecting the child, supporting the staff, and maintaining the integrity and reputation of the agency. (GLR)

Three years after the release of its original report (1990), the U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect reports that the child protection emergency has clearly deepened in all parts of the nation. Reports of child abuse and neglect have continued to climb; an inordinate number of children continue to die at the hands of caretakers; and…