Each year, U.S. child welfare agencies log more than 3 million reports of child abuse and neglect involving nearly 6 million children.
There are many types of services to address child abuse but very little scientific data about whether the services actually work, according to SMU psychologists Ernest Jouriles and Renee McDonald.
A new study by Jouriles, McDonald and six other psychologists sought to find out whether women who were reported previously for child abuse could improve their parenting after weekly in-home, intensive, hands-on training for up to 6 months by mental health service providers.
What the psychologists found in the federally funded study has important implications for helping children who live in violent families.
