The authors, including Rhema Vaithianathan, review the literature and provide a context for predictive risk modelling in the current risk assessment paradigm in child protective services. They describe how predictive analytics or predictive risk modelling using linked administrative data may provide a useful complement to current approaches.

Citation:
Cuccaro-Alamin, S., Foust, R., Vaithianathan, R., & Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2017). Risk assessment and decision making in child protective services: Predictive risk modeling in context. Children and Youth Services Review, 79, 291-298.

Related Project(s):
Allegheny Family Screening Tool, Douglas County Decision Aide, California Child Welfare Proof of Concept

Tim Maloney (CSDA Director 2016-2019) and Zhaoyi Cao use individual-level administrative data to examine the extent and potential explanations for the relatively poorer academic performance of three ethnic minority groups in their first year of study at a New Zealand university. Substantial differences in course completion rates and letter grades are found for Māori, Pasifika, and Asian students relative to their European counterparts. These large and significant gaps persist in the face of alternative definitions of ethnicity and sample restrictions.

Citation:
Cao, Z. & Maloney, T. (2017). Decomposing ethnic differences in university academic achievement in New Zealand. Higher Education, 75(4), 565-587.

This report by authors including Rhema Vaithianathan and Tim Maloney (CSDA Co-Director 2016-2019) provides selected extensions to a 2016 quasi-experimental evaluation of the Family Start Home Visiting programme.  The extensions explore the efficacy of Family Start for additional sub-populations of participant families, and when delivered by sub-populations of providers.  Results indicate that Family Start was effective in reducing some measures of post-neonatal infant mortality across sub-groups studied, including teen and non-teen mothers, children in families with and without past contact with Child Youth and Family, and Maori children receiving Family Start from Maori and mainstream providers.

Citation:
Vaithianathan, R., Wilson, M., Maloney, T., & Baird, S. (2017) Family Start Impact Study Selected Extensions Wellington:  Ministry of Social Development.

Related Project:
Family Start Impact Evaluation

This methodology document traces the development and implementation of the Allegheny Family Screening Tool (AFST), a child welfare predictive risk-modelling tool built by a research team led by Rhema Vaithianathan. The AFST is intended to support call screening of child maltreatment referrals by Allegheny County Department of Human Services.  The methodology document includes an overview of existing practice, methodology and performance metrics of the model and details of the external validation and next steps for the model rebuild.

Citation:
Vaithianathan, R., Jiang, N., Maloney, T., Nand, P., & Putnam-Hornstein, E. (2017). Developing predictive risk models to support child maltreatment hotline screening decisions: Allegheny County methodology and implementation. Auckland: Centre for Social Data Analytics.

Related Project:
Allegheny Family Screening Tool, Douglas County Decision Aide

The age and marital status of parents explains racial disparities in Child Protective Service (CPS) involvement, according to a study co-authored by Tim Maloney (CSDA Co-Director 2016-2019) and Rhema Vaithianathan. In the study, birth records for all children born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, between 2008 and 2010 were linked to administrative service records.

Citation:
Maloney, T., Jiang, N., Putnam-Hornstein, E., Dalton, E., & Vaithianathan, R. (2017). Black–White differences in child maltreatment reports and foster care placements: A statistical decomposition using linked administrative data. Maternal and child health journal, 21(3), 414-420.

Related Project:
Allegheny Family Screening Tool

Researchers including Rhema Vaithianathan and Tim Maloney (CSDA Co-Director 2016-2019) and found New Zealand teenage mothers with access to Teen Parent Units (TPUs) had better educational outcomes than those with no access. This research was conducted through the linkage of social sector administrative data.

Citation:
Vaithianathan, R., Maloney, T., Wilson, M., Staneva, A., & Jiang, N. (2017). Impact of School-based Support on Educational Outcomes of Teen-mothers: Evidence from New Zealand's "Teen Parent Units". Wellington: Ministry of Social Development.

Related Project:
Teen Parent Units Impact Evaluation