Defense Date

3-17-2014

Graduation Date

Spring 2014

Availability

Immediate Access

Submission Type

thesis

Degree Name

MA

Department

Graduate Center for Social and Public Policy

School

McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts

Committee Chair

Michael Irwin

Committee Member

Ann Marie Popp

Keywords

Allegheny County, child welfare, DHS, foster care, substance abuse

Abstract

This study uses logistic regression to examine whether parental substance abuse makes biological mothers more or less likely to have their children returned home if the children have been removed by the Office of Children, Youth and Families (CYF). CYF handles the executive branch child welfare responsibilities for Allegheny County, which includes the city of Pittsburgh, PA. The sample in this study included children who had been removed from the home for the first time in 2012, and was split by age, creating two models. Parental drug abuse was found to make the child less likely to reunify in both models. Alleged or reported neglect and family structure significantly contributed to the model for children ages 0 to 8. Results for children ages 9 to 17 indicated that if the child was removed from the home due to the child's behavior problem, the child was more likely to reunify.

Format

PDF

Language

English

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