Childhood is the period during which physical and mental development is extremely rapid from the first years of life. Furthermore, many basic factors affecting the future lives of individuals start to be shaped. The child's future life, psychological well-being, and quality of life are negatively affected by the exposure to unwanted situations by…

Research has demonstrated that federal Head Start centers, which provide preschool care to children from low-income families, have little or no long-term academic value for children. This "Backgrounder" adds to the evidence that Head Start has failed to achieve its objectives and should be sunset, not expanded, by demonstrating a…

Objectives: The commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC), including sex trafficking of minors, is considered a severe form of abuse and violence against minors. We use a public health lens to examine perceptions regarding the context and process of CSEC and sex trafficking of minors in the Boston area, the response of the health care…

By many measures, Philadelphia is on an upswing, with a growing population, an influx of new investment, and rising household incomes. Yet at the same time, a significant share of the city's residents are struggling. More than a quarter--about 400,000 people--live below the poverty line, which is about $19,700 a year for an adult with two children…

Two recent chapters in professional books have criticized children's advocacy centers for creating role conflict for mental health professionals because of their work with criminal justice and child protection professionals in children's advocacy centers as part of a coordinated response to child abuse. This article argues that these critiques…

This year's Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics' (Forum) report provides the Nation with carefully selected key national indicators of children's well-being and monitors changes in these indicators. The purposes of this report are to improve reporting of Federal data on children and families; make the most relevant data on the…

The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics' primary mission is to enhance data collection and reporting on children and families. "America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015" provides the Nation with a summary of national indicators of children's well-being and monitors changes in these indicators.…

The causes and contexts of food insecurity among children in the U.S. are poorly understood because the prevalence of food insecurity at the "child" level is low compared to the prevalence of "household" food insecurity. In addition, caregivers may be reluctant to admit their children may not be getting enough food due to shame…

This report is a compendium of indicators about the Nation's young people. This report, the 23rd produced by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics (Forum), presents 41 key indicators on important aspects of children's lives. These indicators are drawn from the most reliable Federal statistics, are easily understood by broad…

This data book presents findings of the Kids Count Project on current conditions faced by Oklahoma children age birth through 18. This second annual factbook organizes state and county data over a period of time to enable conditions for children in each county to be compared and ranked. The benchmark indicators studied include low birthweight…

Minnesota KIDS COUNT focuses on key risk indicators for children and describes the condition of children in each of Minnesota's 87 counties. According to this second annual report, another generation of children is at risk of growing up with decreasing resources, evidenced by increasing arrest rates for violent crimes and substantiated reports of…

This 1997 Minnesota Kids Count report examines child poverty and changing demographics in the state of Minnesota, and focuses on nine risk indicators for the years 1991 through 1995 in Minnesota's 87 counties. Following a discussion of myths and truths about poverty in Minnesota and a look at demographic changes in the state from 1990 to 1995,…

This statistical report examines findings on 15 indicators of children's well-being in Alaska: (1) percent of births with low birth weight; (2) infant mortality rate; (3) child poverty rate; (4) children in single parent families; (5) births to teenagers age 15 to 17; (6) teen (age 16 to 19) high school dropout rate; (7) teens not in school and…

This Kids Count data book examines trends in the well-being of Minnesota's children. The statistical portrait is based on 11 indicators of child well-being: (1) child poverty rate; (2) children receiving free or reduced-price school lunch; (3) children in families receiving food stamps; (4) births to teenage mothers; (5) low birth weight rates;…

This Kids Count report details county and statewide trends in the well-being of Oklahoma's children. The statistical report is based on eight indicators of child well being: (1) economic distress; (2) percent low birthweight infants; (3) infant mortality rate; (4) births to teens; (5) child abuse and neglect rates; (6) child and teen death rate;…