Policies and programs designed to serve children and families are sometimes misaligned with developmental science research. Broad child neglect reporting laws, first adopted by the United States in 1974, have led to families being prosecuted by child protection authorities for allowing children to participate in everyday age-appropriate activities…

LGBTQ children are overrepresented in the foster care system in the United States. These children are also at higher risk for homelessness and suicide. While there are some legal protections for this population, more research and advocacy are needed to help these young people thrive despite their situations. An intersectional feminist perspective…

Seventy years after UNICEF was established, the organization's mission to promote the full attainment of the rights of all children is as urgent as ever. The UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2018-2021 is anchored in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and charts a course towards attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals and the realization of a…

In an effort to reform public child welfare systems across the nation, Title IV-E child welfare training programs were established over 2 decades ago. Participating students typically engage in a customized educational experience as part of their MSW program that prepares them to work in the field of child welfare upon graduation. This article…

It was only 30 years ago that the medical community began to develop an increased awareness of child sexual abuse, and the role of the medical provider in the evaluation of sexually abused children has evolved significantly. As clinicians worldwide develop a greater understanding of the impact of the sexual abuse evaluation on the child, the roles…

"Paterson Kids Count" is a statistical profile of the well-being of Paterson children in critical areas, such as poverty, health and nutrition. This second edition also documents the success of a data-driven, collective local effort in three key areas that were targeted for sustained advocacy and attention: (1) low school breakfast…

This study examined various predictor variables that were hypothesized to impact secondary traumatic stress in forensic interviewers (n = 257) from children's advocacy centers across the United States. Data were examined to investigate the relationship between organizational satisfaction, organizational buffers, and job support with secondary…

This study explored the single mothers perceptions of social support relative to raising a child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. It used a qualitative framework with grounded theory methods. Two well-researched stressors exist that affect the lives of single mothers of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder: parenting a child…

Reports such as this typically begin with a statistic designed to highlight a problem. The girls and boys to whom this edition of "The State of the World's Children" is dedicated are not problems. Rather, each is a sister, brother or friend who has a favourite dish, song or game; a daughter or son with dreams and the desire to fulfil…

This article provides a global scene for the scope of child domestic labour and explores the inter-woven relationship between the practice and slavery, as well as the consequences for this uniquely vulnerable group of child workers. In doing so, it seeks to dispel the myths that child domestic work is a safe form of employment for girls…

Outcomes for children and young people in their learning and in their lives often improve when they are actively involved in decision making. The increasing recognition of rights of children and young people to be heard, to have their views taken seriously and to be involved in decisions affecting their lives is expressed in national and…

Child trafficking activity often draws on formal administrative and legal resources. Formalisation implies considerable cooperation between public functionaries, lawyers and external actors. I argue that child rights advocates are forceful policy formulators who tend to ignore the public-external link because they focus on the external…

This paper discusses qualitative research into young people's views of independent children's advocacy services in Wales. We conducted focus groups and semi-structured individual interviews with over 80 children who had used advocacy or whose circumstances suggested them as potential users of advocacy. Our topics of enquiry were structured by…

Throughout the election year 2009, the Association for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) asked the question: What about the kids? This annual report discusses how ACNJ placed New Jersey's children first by: (1) Building its state-wide support base--ACNJ's Make Kids Count NJ E-Advocacy network engaged a distribution list of nearly six thousand members…

Calling for action on a wide range of children's issues, this guide of the National Association of Child Advocates (NACA) delineates the state legislative agendas of 41 of its members from 33 states. The reference guide is presented in three sections. Section 1 contains the legislative priorities by topic area in a chart format indicating the…