National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) Child File
Investigator(s): Children's Bureau, U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services
Abstract: The National Child Abuse and Neglect
Data System (NCANDS) Child File dataset consists of child-specific
data of all investigated reports of maltreatment to State child
protective service agencies. The NCANDS is a federally-sponsored
national data collection effort created for the purpose of tracking
the volume and nature of child maltreatment reporting each year
within the United States. The Child File is the case-level component
of the NCANDS. There is also an NCANDS State-level component, known
as the Agency File, but those data are not part of this collection.
Child File data are collected annually through the voluntary
participation of States. Participating States submit their data
after going through a process in which the State's administrative
system is mapped to the NCANDS data structure. Submitted data
consist of all investigations or assessments of alleged child
maltreatment that received a disposition in the reporting year.
Records are provided at the level of each child on a report, also
known as the report-child pair. Data elements include the
demographics of children and their perpetrators, types of
maltreatment, investigation or assessment dispositions, risk
factors, and services provided as a result of the investigation or
assessment.
List of NCANDS Publications:
NCANDS Publications
Documentation for the Data (codebooks):
NCANDS Child File 2000 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2001 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2002 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2003 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2004 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2005 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2006 User's Guide:
PDF
NCANDS Child File 2007 User's Guide:
PDF
**Restricted Data: Special
NCANDS Child
File ordering procedure required.**
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