Family-Centered Practice in Florida: Family Court Actions and Perceptions
Falconer, M.K., Lederman, C.S., Pecora, P., Thompson, C.K., & DiLorenzo, P. (2012). Family-centered practice in Florida: Family court actions and perceptions. Juvenile & Family Court Journal, 63(3), 1-19.
Family and dependency courts can become valuable partners in efforts to stem the tide of child maltreatment using a family-centered strategy. Florida's response to a 2008 federal Child and Family Services Review included a commitment to implement family-centered practice in child protection services and the courts that hear these cases. Evidence of this implementation was documented in a formative evaluation conducted in 2010 and 2011. Findings based on interviews with dependency judges, Children's Legal Services attorneys, and Guardian ad Litem volunteers provide useful insights on how these practices were perceived and implemented.
Winds of Change Public Awareness Campaign Evaluation
W. Douglas Evans, Mary Kay Falconer, Munziba Khan & Christie Ferris (2011): Efficacy of Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Messages in the Florida Winds of Change Campaign, Journal of Health Communication, DOI:10.1080/10810730.2011.626502
Public awareness campaigns have been included in universal, community wide, and programmatic approaches aimed at preventing child abuse and neglect. More evaluation of campaign effects is needed to identify their place on the continuum of evidence-based programs. This article reports on an efficacy study of the Florida Winds of Change campaign using a randomized experimental design. Investigators conducted an online survey of a web-based panel of Florida residents with children 18 years of age or younger living in the home. Six outcomes were measured at baseline and a 30-day follow-up.
The article may be purchased at the following link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2011.626502
Validity in an evaluation of Healthy Families Florida--A program to prevent child abuse and neglect
Falconer, M.K., Clark, M.H., & Parris, D. (2011). Validity in an evaluation of Healthy Families Florida--A program to prevent child abuse and neglect. Children and Youth Services Review, 33, 66-77.
This article presents how threats to validity can be identified and addressed in an evaluation of Healthy Families Florida, a flagship home visiting program for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. The evaluation was conducted between 1999 and 2003. Because of the reliance on a quasi-experimental design with several comparison groups, statistical techniques were applied to minimize threats to internal validity (selection bias). The statistical techniques were traditional covariate analyses and propensity score adjustments. The findings provided additional evidence regarding the effectiveness of the home visiting program in preventing child abuse and neglect. Construct validity in the measurement of the occurrence of child maltreatment was discussed and concerns regarding external validity were highlighted. Recommendations are also presented for evaluations using quasi-experimental designs that are relevant to issues addressed in the article.
Evaluation of Support Groups for Child Abuse Prevention: Outcomes of Four State Evaluations
Mary Kay Falconer, Mary E. Haskett, Linda McDaniels, Thelma Dirkes, and Edward C. Siegel. Evaluation of Support Groups for Child Abuse Prevention: Outcomes of Four State Evaluations. Social Work with Groups: A Journal of Community and Clinical Practice. Vol. 31 (2), 2008.
Parent support groups have grown in popularity as a strategy for preventing child maltreatment, but there have been few evaluations of these groups. The purpose of this paper is twofold. One goal is to identify some of the major challenges in the evaluation of parent support groups and to provide strategies for minimizing these potential difficulties. The second goal is to illustrate successful evaluations of parent support groups (i.e., the Circle of Parents® program) in four states. Three of these states used a retrospective pretest method. Outcomes indicated positive performance across all domains of functioning, as measured by a self-report questionnaire. Strengths and limitations of the evaluations are discussed, and recommendations for future evaluations are provided.
Building Resiliency in Families with Young Children Exposed to Violence: The Safe Start Initiative Pilot Study
Sandra Ortega, Antoine Beauchemin, and Reyhan Burcee Kaniskan, Building Resiliency in Families with Young Children Exposed to Violence: The Safe Start Initiative Pilot Study, Best Practices in Mental Health, Vol. 4, No. 1, Winter, 2008, pp. 48-64
This study investigated the relationship between risk and protective factors among families with young children who have been exposed to violence and Safe Start treatment outcomes as measured by the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form. Three groups of clients receiving different interventions were studied over the course of two years to investigate changes in parental stress and parent-child interaction. The results suggest that the groups differed in number of needs and protective factors and that these differences were strong predictors of variation in Parenting Stress Index-Short Form scores. Based on this finding, we conclude that families with higher levels of stress require immediate attention and support in linking with services that promote resiliency by reducing parental stress.
Sandra Ortega was a Senior Evaluator at the Ounce of Prevention Fund and local lead evaluator for the evaluation of the Pinellas County Safe Start Initiative conducted by the Ounce of Prevention Fund in partnership with the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County.
Evaluation of Early Childhood Court Teams in Escambia and Okaloosa Counties (Research Brief) - 2017 and Evaluation of Early Childhood Court Teams in Escambia and Okaloosa Counties (Research Report) – 2017
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Kayla Sutherland Thomas, M.P.H.
The purpose of this project was to address two specific needs in the implementation of the Escambia and Okaloosa Early Childhood Court Teams (ECCs). These needs were: 1) a comprehensive evaluation of the ECCs and 2) training delivered by the National Center for Child Traumatic Stress (NCTSN) based on NCTSN’s Child Welfare Trauma Training Toolkit to enhance the functioning of the ECCs. In addition, one of the primary challenges addressed by the project was collaboration among service providers and the judiciary within the child welfare and dependency system.
Presentation at the Child Welfare League of America's National Conference in Washington, D.C. (April 2013)
How Community Centers and Neighborhood-Based Family Support Networks can be Key Partners for Child Welfare Agencies, providing overviews of Los Angeles County's Prevention Initiative Demonstration Project, The Library Partnership, and Edward Waters College Schell-Sweet Community Resource Center
The Library Partnership as a Neighborhood Resource Center: A Research Chronicle and Edward Waters College Schell-Sweet Community Resource Center: A Research Chronicle and Executive Summary
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Caitlin Murphy, M.S.W., M.P.A., Phyllis E.W. Stolc (2012)
Chronicles on two community resource centers in Florida were prepared in partnership with Casey Family Programs. These centers are the Library Partnership in Gainesville and the Edward Waters College Schell-Sweet Community Resource Center in Jacksonville. This focus on community resource centers is connected to the Building Communities of Hope initiative that has been endorsed by Casey Family Programs. The chronicles provide a description of several primary features of each center, including a description of each center's purpose, programs and services offered at and through the center, their organizational structure and governing or advisory bodies, participation and performance expectations, and the funding or other resources that have contributed to the establishment and growth of each center. The chronicles also highlight several successes that have been part of each center?s development. Each chronicle closes with sections on challenges that have been addressed, challenges that remain, and lessons learned.
Evaluation Brief: Family Centered Practice Evaluation in Three Florida Innovation Sites-Years 1 and 2 and Companion Summary
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Christine K. Thompson, M.S.W., M.P.A. (2012)
The FCP implementation evaluation began in July 2010 and included three "innovation sites." The evaluation was funded by Casey Family Programs and was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 ended in January 2011 and Phase 2 was concluded in December 2011. The evaluation team worked with an advisory group that included representatives from the Department of Children and Families, Community-based Care agencies, Casey Family Programs and the Florida judiciary. The innovation sites were located in Circuits 1 (Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and Walton counties), 3/8 (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Suwannee, Taylor and Union counties) and 11 (Miami-Dade County).
Florida Circle of Parents® Evaluation - FY 2010 - 2011
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D. (2011)
The Florida Circle of Parents® is part of a national network of support groups led by parents for parents with the help of a trained group facilitator. The Circle of Parents® model is based on principles of shared leadership and family support offered in a non-judgmental atmosphere. The groups also offer a children?s program or childcare services during parent support group meetings to enable parents to attend and provide children with developmental opportunities.
Circle of Parents has been facilitating the formation and participation of parent support groups in Florida since 2004. The number of groups in Florida has ranged from 12 to 57 with the number active during the 2010-2011 fiscal year being 41. Circle of Parents® groups are active in several regions in Florida and serve a diverse group of parents. Circle of Parents® groups are held in local communities by partnering agencies. Agencies, organizations, associations or programs voluntarily host the Circle of Parents® groups for their program participants because they recognize the benefit of bringing parents together to form social connections and share the successes and challenges of raising children.
2008-2009 Winds of Change Campaign Annual Evaluation Report
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., W. Douglas Evans, Ph.D., Samantha Marcus, M.S.W., Shawna Shannon, M.S.W., September 24, 2009
This report documents several research projects with different methodologies that were completed to evaluate Florida?s Winds of Change campaign during fiscal year 2008-09. The goal of the Winds of Change campaign is to prevent child abuse and neglect through a better understanding of child development, improved parenting practices and community action. The evaluation methodologies included a survey of Florida's campaign community coordinators and stakeholders, a content analysis of Florida online newspaper, television, and radio reporting, an analysis of Florida parent helpline data, parent and program staff focus groups in several regions of Florida, and a randomized efficacy trial that surveyed Florida parents who were members of an online web panel. In addition to providing a wide range of valuable feedback to those who develop and launch the campaign each year, the research provided the first wave of evidence that the campaign has been effective in impacting several outcomes.
Florida Circle of Parents® Annual Report 2005-2006
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D.
This quantitative analysis provided additional evidence that the Florida Circle of Parent® support groups are an effective approach for addressing the needs of parents. Improvements in performance in the four measurement domains were documented for the entire sample of survey respondents. These domains are self-management, quality of parent/child relationship, parenting skills or practices, and support system awareness and use. In addition, the analyses indicated that improvements were evident largely among survey respondents who attended a higher number of support group sessions. While the results in the analysis of the survey responses in this evaluation are a positive appraisal of the Florida Circle of Parents® program, the results should not be generalized to all participants in the Florida Circle of Parents® program.
Mutual Self-Help Parent Support Groups 2005-2006
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D.
Mutual self-help parent support groups are gaining recognition and momentum as an integral part of our strategies to prevent child abuse and neglect. The popularity of support groups is evident with estimates of the number of Americans participating in these groups being as high as ten million (Kessler, Mickelson, & Zhao, 1997). Over the past four decades, research on risk factors and conditions that are associated with child abuse and neglect have been pointing to the need for social support and the benefits that a parent support group can provide.
Addendum to the HFF 5-Year Evaluation Report - 2005
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Dan McGee, Ph.D.
This document is an addendum to the Healthy Families Florida (HFF) five-year evaluation report released in February 2005. Findings based on the impact analysis presented in the February 2005 report indicated that Healthy Families Florida is effective in preventing child maltreatment. The purpose of this addendum was to supplement the impact analysis in the February 2005 report. It explains the additional analysis of the data used in the five-year evaluation and confirms the findings presented in the February 2005 report. The supplemental analysis presented in the addendum was conducted in collaboration with Dr. Dan McGee at Florida State University.
HFF Engagement and Retention Overview - 2007
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Joanna Arrington, M.S.W.
Recommendations to improve engagement and retention based on the research findings presented in this overview covered a variety of options for HF project staff.
HFF Engagement and Retention Technical Report - 2007
Mary Kay Falconer, Ph.D., Joanna Arrington, M.S.W.
In this report, a comprehensive review of research on engagement and retention in home visiting programs designed to prevent child abuse and neglect was presented. The report began by reviewing important components in theoretical models that explain engagement and retention in home visiting programs that have the prevention of child abuse and neglect as a major goal. Second, findings in previous relevant research on engagement and retention in these programs were reviewed. Third, retention rates for Healthy Families Florida (HFF) families were calculated and relationships between explanatory factors and retention among families enrolled during 2003-2004 were analyzed. Fourth, there was a close look at HFF families who closed from December 2005 through March 2006. Fifth, results from a mail survey of participants who closed due to "Not Interested" or "Other" reasons were presented. Sixth, research that tapped expertise at the HF project level on reasons families do not engage or remain in the program and tips for engaging families and keeping them in the program was covered.
Early Steps Strategic Plan for Sustainability - 2007
Gary Walby, Ph.D.
The Florida Developmental Disabilities Council in collaboration with the Florida Department of Health, Children's Medical Services contracted with the Ounce of Prevention Fund to develop a research-based statewide strategic plan for sustainability for the Early Steps program. The program is charged with supporting children from birth to three years of age born with a developmental disorder or delay. Early Steps serves over 40,000 youth and their families each year and is the primary provider of services for this critical developmental period. This planning process utilized a blend of research methods that gathered information from over 1,000 individual stakeholders around the state. Surveys with family members, providers and Early Steps directors, serial focus groups via web conferences, face-to-face focus groups with parents, providers, Early Steps staff and other stakeholders, interviews and documents from Florida and twelve other states, and other data collection activities were used to systematically gather and report back analytic results to two advisory groups.
Dr. Walby was a Senior Evaluator with the Ounce of Prevention Fund at time of this report.
Juvenile Justice Diversion Programs - A Study of Civil Citation and Teen Court Programs in Florida, Executive Summary Only
Gary Walby, Ph.D.
The Juvenile Justice Diversion Study focused on the current operation of Civil Citation and Teen Court programs in Florida as well as establishing guidelines for starting Civil Citation programs in communities that are planning to begin a program. To accomplish this, the research team utilized information from 45 programs in 29 counties in Florida that included 12 Civil Citation programs, 19 Teen Court programs and 14 other programs or agencies (e.g. State Attorney's Office, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, Circuit Courts). In addition, white papers, reports, and published literature were reviewed. Information was obtained via both qualitative (interviews, document review) and quantitative (completion of a study survey) methods.
Dr. Walby was a Senior Evaluator with the Ounce of Prevention Fund at time of this report.
