Javonda Williams

Is There a Place for Extended Assessments For Evaluating Concerns about Child Sexual Abuse? Perceptions of 1,294 Child Maltreatment Professionals

This article reports the findings from an online survey of child maltreatment professionals about the appropriateness of extended assessments when maltreatment concerns cannot be resolved in a single interview. Respondents practiced in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 3 territories, and reported mean years of experience about 15 years. The overwhelming majority of respondents saw the need for extended assessments and endorsed a wide range of child and context characteristics appropriate for extended assessments, the most common being cases where children denied abuse despite persuasive evidence to the contrary, cases with multiple types of maltreatment, cases with preschool age children, and cases with children with disabilities. On average about a fourth of the children seen in their work would benefit from an extended assessment. More than one fourth of respondents actually conducted extended assessments. Respondents however identified barriers and drawbacks to extended assessments, including lack of funding, lack of training, and concerns about contaminating the childs account.

Missing the Mark: The Image of the Social Work Profession in an African-American Community

This exploratory study used a project-developed questionnaire to examine the perceptions of members of an African-American community (N = 102) regarding the social work profession and its commitment to issues pertinent to African-Americans. The results suggested that while the African-American respondents felt that social workers could be a source of help, a considerable amount of the respondents reported that they did not see social workers as being helpful or sensitive to the needs of African-Americans. The results of this study have implications for social work practitioners and educators.

Techniques Employed by Forensic Interviewers Conducting Extended Assessments: Results from a Multi-Site Study

This study employs multi-site data from extended assessments of 137 children suspected of sexual abuse to examine what interview techniques evaluators use and what techniques yield information related to sexual abuse. Frequently used techniques were general assessment activities; touching education; nonleading, abuse-focused questions; and prevention education. Infrequently used techniques were anatomical dolls, standard anatomical drawings, and narrative elaboration. Techniques with higher yields of confirmatory details about sexual abuse were anatomical dolls, cognitive interviews, and narrative elaboration. Lower yield techniques were general assessment activities, touch education, hand-drawn anatomical drawings, and prevention education. Techniques associated with a rating of sexual abuse likely were the use of anatomcal dolls and anatomical drawings.

Perceptions of the Value of Extended Assessments to Resolve Allegations of Sexual Abuse: It's the Performance that Counts

ABSTRACT Recently, child welfare researchers and professionals have turned their attention to strategies for resolving challenging allegations of sexual abuse. An extended assessment, usually 4–6 child interviews by a single interviewer, is one such strategy. Using data from an online survey of 932 child maltreatment professionals about the utility of extended assessments, a mixed methods study examined differences in views of professionals who had actually conducted extended assessments and those who had not. Respondents possessing extended assessment experience perceived fewer barriers and viewed a smaller number of types of cases as appropriate for extended assessments. Respondents who had conducted extended assessments were more likely to see extended assessments as beneficial to legal cases whereas those who had not were more likely to see them as a detriment to legal cases. Respondents identified several practical issues that need attention: standards and guidelines related to extended assessments, the need for training and supervision, and clearer definitions of the practice. Practice implications include recognition of a niche for experienced, graduate credentialed practitioners who can conduct extended assessments, forming a rung on a professional development ladder. Findings highlight a need to understand the circumstances under which extended assessments help or hinder child wellbeing and prosecutions.

Say it Loud: The Obama Effect and Racial/Ethnic Identification of Adolescents

The current study examined how self-reported racial/ethnic identification of adolescents living in poverty may be related to significant societal events and seminal public figures. Data from a multiple cohort longitudinal study, conducted in Mobile, Alabama between 1998 and 2011, were used to examine the impact of Barack Obamas nomination and presidency on racial/ethnic identification. The results show that significantly more adolescents changed their self-reported racial/ethnic identification from White or Mixed-Race to Black or Mixed Race after the election than before. These results suggest that a distant public figure can serve as a role model with observable effects for adolescents.

Mentoring up-cycled: creating a community-based intervention for sexually abused adolescents

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to detail a project that created a community-based mentoring intervention for sexually abused children and adolescents. The project features the use of family and community strengths, trauma sensitivity, current research and ecological theory to develop a curriculum for training mentors. Design/methodology/approach – This study used Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) methods to create a community-based intervention designed for sexually abused children and adolescents. This model supports the building and maintenance of the often fluid and relationship-driven processes that are characteristic of CBPR. The stages included: identification of research questions; assessment of community strengths, assets and challenges; defining priorities; developing research and data collection methodologies; collecting and analysing data; interpretation of findings; dissemination of findings; and applying findings to address action. Findings – The results include a recommen...