In the incisive, up-to-date chapters gathered in this volume, some of the field's top investigators present their work and assess its effect on the full spectrum of child welfare services. Future generations of researchers, as well as students, practitioners, and service providers, will find the resulting text indispensable.

During the last decade there have been major advances in research in child welfare, the largest specialty within social work. The focus of this research has been on improving current child welfare practices and programs that protect children from abuse and neglect. The major policy and program changes in the child welfare system have been guided by these research studies, spurred by federal and state emphasis on monitoring child welfare outcomes and identifying best practices. This landmark collection gathers those research developments- and how they have been translated into policies, programs, and practice- in a single volume for the first time. Duncan Lindsey, one of the nation's foremost child welfare scholars, and Aron Shlonsky have assembled a case of the giants in the field who analyze developments in adoption, foster care, risk assessment, CPS work, welfare reform, poverty, decision making, and epidemiological studies. The final section of the book details new approaches to programs designed to combat child maltreatment and child poverty. This volume, with its unparalled breadth, depth, and up-to-date content, will define the state of the field and serve as an invaluable reference for child welfare scholars and practitioners alike.