IU Indianapolis ScholarWorks :: Browsing by Author "Victor, Bryan G."

Browsing by Author "Victor, Bryan G."

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Child Protective Service Referrals Involving Exposure to Domestic Violence: Prevalence, Associated Maltreatment Types, and Likelihood of Formal Case Openings
(Sage, 2019-08) Victor, Bryan G.; Henry, Colleen; Gilbert, Terri Ticknor; Ryan, Joseph P.; Perron, Brian E.; School of Social Work
Childhood exposure to domestic violence (CEDV) is widely understood as potentially harmful to children. Accordingly, many child welfare systems in the United States construe CEDV as maltreatment when the exposure results in harm or threatened harm to the child. The purpose of the current study was to investigate substantiated child welfare referrals directly related to CEDV to better understand the prevalence and patterns of CEDV-related maltreatment and how child welfare workers respond under the “harm or threatened harm” standard. Data were drawn from 23,704 substantiated referrals between 2009 and 2013 in a large Midwestern child welfare system. Approximately 20% of substantiated referrals were CEDV related. A plurality of CEDV-related referrals included both a male caregiver and female caregiver who were co-substantiated for maltreatment. The most common maltreatment types substantiated for these referrals were neglect based rather than abuse based, and just under a quarter (23%) of CEDV-related referrals were formally opened for services. Referrals involving co-occurring substance abuse were most likely to be opened for services based on predicted probabilities derived from multilevel modeling. Implications for policy and practice are considered.
Child Protective Services Guidelines for Substantiating Exposure to Domestic Violence as Maltreatment and Assigning Caregiver Responsibility: Policy Analysis and Recommendations
(Sage, 2021-11) Victor, Bryan G.; Rousson, Ashley N.; Henry, Colleen; Dalvi, Haresh B.; Mariscal, E. Susana; School of Social Work
The purpose of this study was to examine the range of policy approaches used by child welfare systems in the United States to guide workers in classifying and substantiating child exposure to domestic violence (CEDV) as an actionable form of maltreatment. To that end, we conducted a qualitative document analysis of child protective services (CPS) policy manuals from all state-administered child welfare systems in the U.S. ( N = 41). Our findings indicate that a majority of state-administered systems (71%) have adopted policy requiring workers to demonstrate that children have endured harm or the threat of harm before substantiating CEDV-related maltreatment. Many state systems (51%) also include policy directives that require workers to identify a primary aggressor during CPS investigations involving CEDV, while far fewer (37%) provide language that potentially exonerates survivors of domestic violence from being held accountable for failure to protect on the basis of their own victimization. Based on our findings and identification of policy exemplars, we offer a recommended set of quality policy indicators for states to consider in the formulation of their policy guidelines for substantiating children’s exposure to domestic violence that promotes the safety and wellbeing of both children and adult survivors of domestic violence.
Child Safety Forward Indiana Impact Profile
(2023-03-15) Mariscal, E. Susana; Victor, Bryan G.; Smith, Jamie
Child Safety Forward Indiana (CSF IN) improved the quality of the child fatality review (CFR) process, provided evidence for child fatality policy changes, and developed a data-informed statewide infant safe sleep campaign, which has already started to translate in decreased SUID rates, so that all children can reach their full potential.
Child Saftey Forward Indiana: Final Report
(2023-07) Mariscal, E. Susana; Victor, Bryan G.; Smith, Jamie K.; Elliott, Jenna M.; Commodore-Mensah, Miriam; Lown, Mallory; Chase, Kacie; Ashby, Pam; Liang, Sophia; Houston, Allie; Martin, Gretchen
This report is the culmination of an in-depth evaluation of the Child Safety Forward – Indiana (CSF) project carried out from October 2019 through June 2023. Here we detail the findings from 127 child fatality reviews conducted during the project period, along with documentation of the multiple ways that the CSF Indiana team has secured improvements to the child fatality review process in the State (See Appendix 2). We also provide a set of recommendations based on the evaluation that is intended to further enhance the capacity of Indiana communities to prevent child fatalities due to external injury (See Overview of findings). We hope that the report is useful to community members, prevention workers, and policymakers working hard each day to keep children safe.
Community- and Systems-level Factors that Contribute to Foster Care Entry: Perspectives from Child-Serving Professionals
(Taylor & Francis, 2023-06-12) Mariscal, E. Susana; Victor, Bryan G.; Elliot, Jenna M.; Smith, Jamie K.; Ashirifi, Gifty D.; Commodore-Mensah, Miriam M.
Discussions around reasons for foster care entry primarily focus on family-level service needs. However, families exist within social environments that can either increase or reduce risk for foster care entry. This qualitative study draws on interviews (n = 27), focus groups (n = 7), and open-ended survey responses (n = 548) from child-serving professionals in Indiana to identify community- and systems-level factors contributing to entry. Through qualitative coding we identified eight themes at the community- and systems-levels that direct attention toward modifiable dimensions of the social environment that can serve as targets for policy and practice reform.
Detecting substance-related problems in narrative investigation summaries of child abuse and neglect using text mining and machine learning
(Elsevier, 2019-12) Perron, Brian E.; Victor, Bryan G.; Bushman, Gregory; Moore, Andrew; Ryan, Joseph P.; Lu, Alex Jiahong; Piellusch, Emily K.; School of Social Work
Background State child welfare agencies collect, store, and manage vast amounts of data. However, they often do not have the right data, or the data is problematic or difficult to inform strategies to improve services and system processes. Considerable resources are required to read and code these text data. Data science and text mining offer potentially efficient and cost-effective strategies for maximizing the value of these data. Objective The current study tests the feasibility of using text mining for extracting information from unstructured text to better understand substance-related problems among families investigated for abuse or neglect. Method A state child welfare agency provided written summaries from investigations of child abuse and neglect. Expert human reviewers coded 2956 investigation summaries based on whether the caseworker observed a substance-related problem. These coded documents were used to develop, train, and validate computer models that could perform the coding on an automated basis. Results A set of computer models achieved greater than 90% accuracy when judged against expert human reviewers. Fleiss kappa estimates among computer models and expert human reviewers exceeded .80, indicating that expert human reviewer ratings are exchangeable with the computer models. Conclusion These results provide compelling evidence that text mining procedures can be a cost-effective and efficient solution for extracting meaningful insights from unstructured text data. Additional research is necessary to understand how to extract the actionable insights from these under-utilized stores of data in child welfare.
If I knew then what I know now: Highlighting Project Lessons Learned
(2023-05-25) Mariscal, E. Susana; Victor, Bryan G.; Ames, Janie; Chandler, Christina
"If I knew then, what I know now" includes an overview of Strengthening Indiana Families strategies, challenges and achievements and highlights lessons learned through the implementation of our macro, mezzo, and micro system approaches. It was presented at the Community Collaborations to Strengthen and Preserve Families Annual Grantee Meeting in Baltimore, MD, May 25. 2023
Learning to Thrive in a Binary World: Understanding the Gendered Experiences of Nonbinary Individuals and Ways to Bolster Wellbeing
(2021-08) Kinney, M. Killian; Victor, Bryan G.; Fortenberry, J. Dennis; Thigpen, Jeffry W.; Wahler, Elizabeth A.
Traditionally, gender has been viewed through an essentialist lens with fixed biology-based traits or polarized gender norms between women and men. As awareness of gender diversity grows, increasingly more people identify as nonbinary – or not exclusively a man or woman. Despite a growing literature on the experiences of binary transgender individuals, little has been explored regarding experiences unique to nonbinary individuals. The research that does include nonbinary individuals focuses primarily on adverse risks and outcomes. As such, a dearth of empirical research exists to understand the unique experiences of nonbinary people and how they relate to wellbeing. A qualitative participatory action study using PhotoVoice was conducted virtually to address the identified gaps in the literature on nonbinary individuals concerning gendered experiences and wellbeing. Prevailing theories of wellbeing informed the study along with minority stress theory and the resilience literature to account for environmental factors of oppression and individual and community resilience. A sample of 17 nonbinary adults in the Midwestern United States was recruited using convenience sampling and participated in online group discussions and individual interviews. The findings were reported in sections corresponding with the three study aims: 1) Explore core dimensions of wellbeing as defined by nonbinary individuals, 2) Identify promotive and corrosive factors of that wellbeing, and 3) Provide recommendations to bolster nonbinary wellbeing. The findings provided a thorough description of how nonbinary individuals perceive their wellbeing concerning their gender and as part of a marginalized population. Thematic analysis identified nine wellbeing themes for how participants conceptualized their wellbeing (e.g., Exploring gender identity and expression, Being connected to community, etc.), seven themes of promotive and corrosive factors of wellbeing (e.g., Positive, accurate, and nuanced representation, Coping skills to manage minority stressors, etc.), and three themes of recommendations (e.g., personal, interpersonal, and professional) with eighteen strategies to bolster wellbeing among nonbinary individuals and communities. The significance of the findings to social work was discussed, including practice application and advocacy. This study contributes to PhotoVoice methodology, wellbeing literature, and trans literature.
Prevalence and context of firearms-related problems in child protective service investigations
(Elsevier, 2020-09) Sokol, Rebeccah L.; Victor, Bryan G.; Piellusch, Emily K.; Nielsen, Sophia B.; Ryan, Joseph P.; Perron, Brian E.; School of Social Work
Background: Despite the significance of firearm safety, we need additional data to understand the prevalence and context surrounding firearm-related problems within the child welfare system. Objective: Estimate proportion of cases reporting a firearm-related problem during case initiation and the contexts in which these problems exist. Sample and setting: 75,809 caseworker-written investigation summaries that represented all substantiated referrals of maltreatment in Michigan from 2015 to 2017. Methods: We developed an expert dictionary of firearm-related terms to search investigation summaries. We retrieved summaries that contained any of the terms to confirm whether a firearm was present (construct accurate) and whether it posed a threat to the child. Finally, we coded summaries that contained firearm-related problems to identify contexts in which problems exist. Results: Of the 75,809 substantiated cases, the dictionary flagged 2397 cases that used a firearm term (3.2 %), with a construct accuracy rate of 96 %. Among construct accurate cases, 79 % contained a firearm-related problem. The most common intent for a firearm-related problem was violence against a person (45 %). The co-occurrence of domestic violence and/or substance use with a firearm-related problem was high (41 % and 48 %, respectively). 49 % of summaries that contained a firearm-related problem did not provide information regarding storage. Conclusion: When caseworkers document a firearm within investigative summaries, a firearm-related risk to the child likely exists. Improved documentation of firearms and storage practices among investigated families may better identify families needing firearm-related services.
Strengthening Indiana Families Impact Profile
(2023) Mariscal, E. Susana; Victor, Bryan G.
Strengthening Indiana Families (SIF) improved family support, resilience, and wellbeing, and decreased risk factors for foster care entry through the implementation of Family Resource Centers (FRC) and cross-system collaboration, which may ultimately translate in decreased child maltreatment and foster care entry so that all children can fulfill their promise.

Browsing by Author "Victor, Bryan G."

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