Intragenerational and Intergenerational Patterns of Child Protective Services and Criminal Legal System Contact

• In Event: Cycles of Impact: From Reporting to Response in Violence & Justice

Abstract

Background: Child protective services (CPS) and the criminal legal system (CLS) are two powerful public institutions shaping the lives of millions of families. Contact with either system is relatively common and a substantial share of individuals - particularly those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged - encounter both systems. Despite substantial overlap in risk factors and well-established intergenerational patterns, research on CPS and CLS has largely developed in parallel. 

Method: This study aims to examine intragenerational and intergenerational patterns of CPS and CLS contact. Using linked longitudinal administrative data, we follow 171,146 children born between 2000-2002 (Generation 2, hereafter G2) and their biological parents (Generation 1, hereafter G1) through 2021. The main predictor and outcome both comprised 4 mutually exclusive categories: no system contact, CPS only, CLS only, and both systems. The main predictor is G2 system exposure. G2 CPS exposure was identified by G2 alleged victimization (regardless of alleged perpetrator) or G1 alleged perpetration (regardless of alleged victim) in CPS records. G2 CLS exposure was identified based on G1 criminal case records. The outcome is G2 subsequent system involvement as an alleged perpetrator (hereafter G2-AP) in CPS records or alleged offender (hereafter G2-AO) in criminal case records. Given the categorical nature of the outcome, we leverage multinomial logistic regression wherein “no system involvement” is the reference category. 

Results: We find that 48% of G2 (n=82,127) had at least one system exposure: 12% were exposed to CPS only, 15% were exposed to CLS only, and 21% were exposed to both systems. Due to the relatively young age at the end of follow-up (ages 19-21 depending on birth year), subsequent system involvement as G2-AP (n=2,940) and G2-AO (n=9,935) was less common. Nevertheless, prior system exposure was ubiquitous among G2 who had subsequent involvement with both systems (93.4%), CPS only (85.9%), and CLS only (78.2%). Moreover, G2 exposed to both systems had the highest relative risk of subsequent involvement in any system (vs. no system involvement) and were 22.65 times more likely (95% CI [17.53, 29.26]) to become involved with both systems compared to G2 without prior system exposure. Single-system exposures were also associated with a substantial increase in relative risk of subsequent system involvement. Interestingly, G2 with CPS-only or CLS-only exposures did not differ in their relative risk of CLS-only involvement, which aligns with prior research indicating that the factors leading to CPS involvement often overlap with those increasing the risk of CLS involvement and suggests that shared underlying environmental and structural conditions (e.g., poverty and community violence) may be more predictive of system involvement than prior system exposure itself. G2 males also had a much higher relative risk of system involvement.

Implications: Our results provide compelling evidence that prior CPS and CLS exposures (whether independently or jointly) are strongly associated with an increased risk of subsequent system involvement during adolescence and early adulthood. Findings emphasize the need for upstream, multipronged interventions to reduce both cross-system and intergenerational system involvement.

Author

• Ann Swanson, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  Presenting Author