Decision-making in child protective services: a comparison of selected risk-assessment systems

Abstract

The use of structured risk-assessment systems by child protective services has increased dramatically during the past ten years. Versions of the Illinois CANTS 17B, the Washington Assessment of Risk Matrix, and the Child at Risk Field System have been put into use in some form in 23 states [Berkowitz 1991]. Despite this widespread acceptance, workload pressures, uncertain reliability and validity of the instruments, and the need for a knowledgeable and well-trained casework staff have limited the models' usefulness once implemented.