In October 1985, the Board of the National Committee for the Prevention of Child Abuse (NCPCA) adopted a goal and extablished a plan to reduce child abuse 20 percent by 1990. With data collected through March 1990, this document reports progress made toward realizing objectives articulated in the NCPCA's 5-year plan. After an overview in Section I, Section II delineates levels of violence toward children in terms of child abuse reports and fatalities, the role of substance abuse as a risk factor in violence toward children, and areas in which improvement has been made. Section III addresses issues in documenting the well-being of children and society, giving particular attention to describing selected measures in the areas of indicators of child well-being and broader trends impacting upon children. Section IV presents a profile of prevention services compiled from hospital service data, school district service data, and community service data. Section V describes changes in public opinion regarding child abuse, focusing on impacts of physical punishment and yelling and swearing, the public's involvement in prevention, and public support for prevention services. Section VI formulates a preliminary assessment providing reasons for optimism, reasons for concern, and implications for future planning. A total of 18 tables supplements the text. (RH)