My mandated Reporter Pocketbook

Child maltreatment mandated reporting policies have existed in all US states since the late 1960s. These policies require certain individuals, and in some cases, all adults in a state, to report concerns of child abuse and neglect to a governmental agency. The literature identifies several challenges with the identification and reporting of child maltreatment yet there is a dearth of intervention that successfully address these challenges and supports reporters in executing their legal mandate. Addressing these challenges is vital because otherwise, 1) reporters fail to report situations of child abuse and neglect, which results in children continuing to experience abuse or 2) reporters report situations that don’t constitute child abuse, unnecessarily exposing children and families to a system that can cause them harm. The “My Mandated Reporter Pocket Book” is an app that is created to address the challenges that reporters experience when they encounter situations that they suspect involve child abuse and neglect. The app integrates my years of research and practice/work experience in the field of child welfare to develop a tool that can easily be accessed by those legally required to report.