Home
Resource
An exploration of predictors of quality in forensic psychological evaluations in the field of child welfare
PDF
PDF format is widely accepted and good for printing.
Plug-in required
PDF-1(5.82 MB)
Citation & Export
View Usage Statistics
Staff View

Citation & Export
Hide

Simple citation

An exploration of predictors of quality in forensic psychological evaluations in the field of child welfare. Retrieved from https://doi.org/doi:10.7282/t3-q4j7-zx43

Export

Click here for information about Citation Management Tools at Rutgers.

Statistics
Hide

Description

TitleAn exploration of predictors of quality in forensic psychological evaluations in the field of child welfare
NamePeterson, N. Andrew (chair); Harrison, Nancy (internal member); Rutgers University; Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology
Date Created2020
Other Date2020-08 (degree)
SubjectForensic evaluations, School Psychology
Extent1 online resource (ix, 140 pages)
DescriptionDespite the growing knowledge base about best practices in forensic evaluations in general, there is a current lack of literature focused on high-quality forensic evaluations in the field of child welfare. As child welfare evaluations have an impact on particularly vulnerable populations, it is paramount for measures of quality within these evaluations to be defined, examined, and measured. The purpose of this study was to contribute to the developing literature regarding forensic evaluations in child welfare by describing factors that lead to high-quality psychological evaluations and high-quality recommendations. This study examined a sample of 895 forensic evaluations in child welfare as a secondary data analysis of data that were originally collected by the New Jersey Coordination Center for Child Abuse and Neglect (NJCC). The concept of quality in this dissertation was defined as an evaluation that adheres to the objectives of New Jersey’s Department of Children and Families’ (DCF) Guidelines for Expert Evaluations in Child Abuse/Neglect Proceedings (2012). The variables in this study were measured by the Quality Improvement (QI) Tool, an instrument designed by the NJCC that supports forensic evaluation training, peer review, and supervision. A series of logistic regression models were analyzed with the following predictor variables: the presence of a diagnostic assessment, the integration of culture, and the clarity of the referral question. Subject age category and gender were also included in the analyses. It was found that the presence of a diagnostic assessment, integration of culture, the clarity of the referral question, and subject age category were all significant predictors of overall quality. Additionally, it was found that variable interaction terms were not significant predictors of overall quality. Results also showed that the presence of a diagnostic assessment and subject age category were significant predictors of quality of recommendations. Again, it was found that the variable interaction terms were not significant predictors of quality of recommendations. Implications for clinical practice are discussed, along with recommendations for future research.
NotePsy.D.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references
Genretheses, ETD doctoral
Persistent URLhttps://doi.org/doi:10.7282/t3-q4j7-zx43
LanguageEnglish
CollectionGraduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work.
Version 8.5.5
Rutgers University Libraries - Copyright ©2024