The Intersection of Child Custody Disputes and Child Protection Investigations: Secondary Data Analysis of the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS-2008)

Abstract

Objectives: Identifying child custody dispute characteristics that are associated with child maltreatment investigations are important for improving child protection services. Our objectives were to explore the characteristics of child custody disputes within the context of child protection investigations and to determine the ways in which child maltreatment investigations involving child custody disputes differ from those investigations that do not involve such disputes. Methods: Data were from the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (collection 2008) from 112 child welfare sites across Canada. Results: Of the estimated 235,842 child maltreatment investigations in Canada in 2008, estimated 29,218 investigations involved child custody dispute cases (12.4%). Approximately 22.7% of child custody dispute investigations involved allegations of neglect, 16.7% involved an allegation of physical abuse 20.3% involved exposure to domestic violence, 9.7% involved emotional maltreatment, and 5.3% involved an allegation of sexual abuse. Implications: Child protection workers must not assume that maltreatment allegations are false or unfounded simply because a custody dispute is also present. More attention is needed to explore ways to engage with families involved in child custody disputes so that they can better cope with the complexities of family breakdown.