Social Work Perspectives of the Children’s Aid Society

This study examined social workers’ conceptualizations of decision-making and the therapeutic relationship in the context of the mandatory reporting of child maltreatment. Participants (n=439) who were members of a provincial social work association responded to an online survey, which contained vignettes of child maltreatment with Likert-scale questions and open-ended questions regarding the therapeutic relationship. Within the qualitative results, two patterns surfaced in participants’ responses: (1) positive experiences regarding the Children’s Aid Society (CAS), such as the opportunity for anonymous consultation and assistance regarding how to inform the family of the report, and (2) negative experiences, such as perceiving that CAS has a punitive versus prevention orientation, and lacks a systemic focus. Implications for social work practice include increased training for child protection workers with an emphasis on ecological systems theory, a trauma-informed lens, and effective engagement strategies