Child Maltreat. 2026 Mar 2:10775595261430083. doi: 10.1177/10775595261430083. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
School social workers (SSWers) play a central role in child abuse and neglect (CAN) reporting, yet few empirical studies have examined factors that influence SSWers’ reporting practices. Using data from a national survey of 455 SSWers, this study examined how training, bias awareness, and beliefs about child protective services (CPS) influence SSWers’ CAN reporting behavior. The role of individual-level and school-level demographic factors was also considered. Findings indicated that SSWers who were White (OR = 1.61, p = .034), OR = 0.77, p = .004), worked in a school serving higher proportions of low-income students (OR = 1.2, p = .002), and had higher levels of satisfaction with CPS (OR = 1.26, p = .013) and mandated reporting (OR = 0.74, p = .003) had significantly higher CAN reporting frequency. No statistically significant association was found between participants’ self-report that their prior mandated reporter (MR) trainings included some form of anti-bias content and participants’ awareness of their own biases. Results suggest individual-level factors impact reporting decisions; implications for research and training are addressed.
PMID:41766464 | DOI:10.1177/10775595261430083
