Journal of Child and Adolescent Behavior
Open Access

Mental health; Community health

Introduction

Canada conducts approximately 230,000 child abuse investigations annually. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services (2018), approximately 7.8 million children are referred to child welfare services annually due to suspicions of abuse.

There is a strong writing on the relationship between youth misfortunes like sexual maltreatment, actual maltreatment, and openness to aggressive behaviour at home with many negative actual wellbeing and psychological well-being results. In addition, numerous studies have shown that adults who had contact with child welfare (CWCDC) as children are more likely to experience a variety of negative outcomes throughout their lives, including poor mental health, suicidal thoughts and actions, use of drugs, socioeconomic disadvantage, as well as involvement in the legal system. However, there is a significant gap in the existing literature because the long-term well-being of those who have contacted child welfare services and the factors that may promote well-being among this population have received less attention. The following is a brief summary of the research on CWCDC outcomes, protective factors, and risk factors.

The general population’s risk factors for CWCDC have been the subject of extensive research. The young age of the mother is one of these factors, being raised in a city, as well as difficulties faced by parents, such as substance abuse, mental illness, domestic violence, and involvement in the criminal justice system. A person’s race and ethnicity are also significant risk factors for CWCDC. According to Putnam-Hornstein et al., Black children in the United States are approximately twice as likely as white children to be referred to child welfare services and placed in foster care. Other risk factors for abuse that disproportionately affect Black families and communities, such as lower household income, a higher prevalence of young single mothers with little or no paternal support, and childhood illness, may exacerbate these differences. Similar patterns of racial disparity have also been found in Canada, where Black and Indigenous children make up a disproportionately large portion of the child welfare population.

According to Afifi et al., adults with higher household incomes and more education are less likely to have CWCDC. Additionally,a population-based California birth cohort study found that a higher maternal age, a healthy birth weight, and the absence of any birth abnormalities protected against CWCDC and experiencing maltreatment [1-5].

Discussion

There is a significant gap between the number of people who have been abused and those who actually receive assistance from welfare. According to a retrospective Canadian study, only one in every 13 people who experienced child abuse had any contact with child welfare services. 2015). When compared to those who have only experienced one type of adversity, those who have experienced physical abuse, sexual abuse, and exposure to parental domestic violence are more likely to have CWCDC. Additionally, women, more recent birth cohorts, and Canadian-born individuals have been found to have significantly higher CWCDC levels than foreign-born individuals.

When compared to the general population, children with contact with child welfare have a higher vulnerability to physical health issues. According to Hansen et al., for instance, low-income foster children have significantly more hearing, vision, and dental issues than lowincome children who live with their parents. In addition, a national study conducted in the United States found that children whose families were investigated by child welfare services were approximately twice as likely as their peers in the general population to have a chronic health condition. 50 percent of children in the welfare system had a special health care need or a chronic health condition, according to another national US study. According to Ringeisen et al., severe allergies, persistent ear infections, and eczema were the most common conditions.

People who have had contact with child welfare are more likely to suffer from aggression, emotion dysregulation, and behavioral issues in addition to negative physical outcomes. In addition, suicide attempts are significantly more common among children and adolescents in care than among those who are not. PTSD, anxiety disorders, depression, and substance use disorders are more prevalent in foster care children. The fact that many children in care who require mental health services do not receive them, either while they are in care or after they have left the child welfare system, is particularly concerning.

In spite of the difficulties associated with CWCDC, only a small amount of research has highlighted the population’s well-being. For instance, Accomazzo et al.’s study found that individual and interpersonal strengths protect children in the child welfare system from negative outcomes. Social support, such as relationships with adults who aren’t parents, has been shown to be crucial for building resilience in other studies, participation in community programs and religious activities. However, the majority of the existing research on well-being and contact with child welfare focuses on outcomes during childhood and adolescence. The long-term outcomes of adults with CWCDC are the focus of this study, which aims to expand research on this population’s well-being [6-10].

Conclusion

Through the lens of complete mental health (CMH), this study examines well-being. Keyes (2005) says that those in CMH are not only free of mental illness but also thrive psychologically. Keyes (2005) asserts that the absence of mental illness does not imply mental health; Some people recover from mental illness without entering a CMH state. Through the lens of CMH, recovery from adversity is the subject of a growing body of research by MacNeil and Fuller-Thomson.

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