Reporting Child Abuse - Psychologists Lack Child Maltreatment Training
programs doctoral apa courses
The American Psychological Association (APA) believed that, because psychologists are likely to encounter cases of child maltreatment in their practice, training in this area is very important. In 2003 the APA sought to gain information on the type and amount of training psychologists receive regarding child maltreatment in
APA-accredited doctoral programs (Kelly M. Champion, Kimberly Shipman, Barbara L. Bonner, Lisa Hensley, and Allison C. Howe, "Child Maltreatment Training in Doctoral Programs in Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychology: Where Do We Go from Here?" Child Maltreatment , vol. 8, no. 3, August 2003). The study examined surveys sent to training directors
of doctoral programs in 1992 and 2001. The APA found that doctoral programs had remained the same within those ten years. Few doctoral programs offered specific courses on child maltreatment in 1992 and 2001, just 13% and 11%, respectively. Although 65% of programs in 1992 and 59% in 2001 covered child maltreatment in three or more courses, these courses were rarely required to complete a
doctoral program. Twenty percent of programs in 1992 and 22% in 2001 offered training in child maltreatment in clinical settings; most programs, however, reported that students completed just 1% to 10% of such training. Finally, research activities in child maltreatment decreased from 60% in 1992 to 47% in 2001.
User Comments