Effects of court-ordered substance abuse treatment in child protective services cases

Courts often play active roles in the lives of families supervised by child protective services (CPS). Judges adjudicate dependency, mandate services, determine placements of children, and order continued supervision or termination of parental rights or services. This study examined the effects of court orders in preventing recurrence of substance abuse in the cases of 447 children in kinship care while under CPS supervision. In addition, the effects of court orders on duration of service and on numbers of placements were studied. Results suggested that court interventions had mixed outcomes. Levels of compliance with mandated substance abuse and mental health treatment did not appear to influence rates of reabuse or duration of service. Court orders appeared to affect both the number of caretakers and placements the children experienced. Children adjudicated dependent were more likely to have multiple caretakers than those under voluntary supervision.