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Advisor

APSAC Advisor

The APSAC Advisor is a peer reviewed quarterly news journal for professionals in the field of child abuse and neglect. The APSAC Advisor provides succinct, data-based, practice-oriented articles that keep interdisciplinary professionals informed of the latest developments in policy and practice in the field of child maltreatment. It is designed to highlight best practices in the field and publish original articles and current information about child maltreatment for professionals from a variety of backgrounds including medicine, law, law enforcement, social work, child protective services, psychology, public health and prevention in the U.S.

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APSAC Handbook on Child Maltreatment

The APSAC Handbook on Child Maltreatment, Fourth Edition

Edited by J. Bart Klika and Jon Conte 

The Fourth Edition of this best-selling handbook provides readers with the most up-to-date theory, research, and best practices in the field of child abuse and neglect. Edited by leading experts, the book covers all aspects of child maltreatment, from physical abuse to sexual abuse and neglect, focusing on etiology, consequences, investigation, and treatment and systems. Updates include new content on assessment and mental health interventions, prevention, as well as global perspectives. Comprehensive and easy to read, the handbook will serve as an invaluable resource for students and professionals—both emerging and seasoned—across disciplines, but part of the same movement dedicated to improving the lives of maltreated children. 

Cost for Paperback Edition:

$105.00 Members; $131.00 Non-Members

Alert
Handbook

APSAC Alert

The APSAC Alert is a digital publication of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children.  Its purpose is to provide a brief summary of a critical body of empirical research directly informing multidisciplinary child abuse practice, including professionals who work in mental health, social service, health, and the law. The APSAC Alert is distributed free to APSAC members, professionals who request a free subscription, and other interested parties. 

An APSAC Alert should be provide a distinct, clear, and easy to understand summary of a body of empirical research.  Each Alert should include a concise summary of key findings of a significant body of research, a brief statement of practice implication, references, and suggested key readings.

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Sign up to Receive the APSAC Alert

APSAC Monograph Series

The purpose of APSAC's Monograph Series is to provide in-depth treatment to important topics within the field of child maltreatment. The inaugural APSAC Monograph on Psychological Maltreatment (PM) includes: 

  • Context, definitions, and forms of PM;

  • Risk factors for PM;

  • Assessment, intervention, and prevention of PM;

  • Future directions for child rights and overall child well-being as they relate to PM;

  • And much more.

This monograph is available to all regardless of APSAC membership status. Please share with clinicians, researchers, students, policy makers, and others who may find the document useful. Please note that this is a living document, and any future version will replace all previous versions.

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Monograph
Position Papers

APSAC Practice Guidelines

APSAC's National Interdisciplinary Guidelines Task Forces regularly publish concise, data-based guidelines on key areas of practice in the field of child maltreatment. APSAC Guidelines for Practice are submitted through a rigorous, multi-layered peer review process, which involves experts in subject areas not on the task force,  APSAC members, legal counsel, and APSAC's Board of Directors. All Guidelines for Practice have been approved by the APSAC Board.

APSAC currently offers the following Practice Guidelines:

  • Forensic Interviewing of Children (Published 2012, Updated 2023)

  • Forensic Mental Health Evaluations When Child Maltreatment Is at Issue (Published 2022)

  • Munchausen by Proxy: Clinical and Case Management Guidance

  • The Investigation and Determination of Suspected Psychological Maltreatment in Children and Adolescents (Published 2017, revised 2019)

  • Evidence-Based Service Planning Guidelines for Child Welfare (Published 2014)

  • The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children- The Medical Provider's Role in Identification, Assessment, and Treatment (Published 2013).

  • Forensic Interviewing in Cases of Suspected Child Abuse (Published 2012- English and Spanish versions available).

  • Integrating Prevention Into the Work of Child Maltreatment Professionals (Published 2010).

  • Challenges in the Evaluation of Child Neglect (Published 2008).

  • Psychosocial Evaluation of Suspected Sexual Abuse in Children (2nd Ed. Published 1997).

  • Use of Anatomical Dolls in Child Sexual Abuse Assessments (Published 1995). 

APSAC's Practice Guidelines are free to the public. Click here to access. You will be asked to fill out a brief form before gaining access to the Guidelines.

 

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Practice Guidelines

APSAC Journals

Child Maltreatment

Child Maltreatment (CM) is a peer reviewed journal that meets the need for interdisciplinary education with articles covering a wide variety of disciplines and every aspect of child maltreatment: prevention, intervention, and treatment of neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse and psychological maltreatment. Recognizing that high quality original research in the field of child abuse and neglect can and should have an immediate impact on the quality of children's lives, the editor and editorial board of Child Maltreatment are committed to creating a journal that advances the scientific knowledge base and is readily accessible to a diverse audience. In 2019, CM was ranked 2nd in the area of Social Work and 5th in Family Studies based on Impact Factor. 

Non-members wishing to subscribe to the journal should contact Sage Publications, 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320 (telephone: 800-818-SAGE).

The Editor-in-Chief of Child Maltreatment is:


Vincent J. Palusci, MD, MS, FAAP
Professor, Pediatrics
NYU Grossman School of Medicine
550 1st Ave. 

New York, NY, 10016

vincent.palusci@nyulangone.org

​The Journal Manager of Child Maltreatment is: 

Judy Donlin
E-mail: childmaltreatment@apsac.org

Trauma, Violence and Abuse Journal 

The Trauma, Violence & Abuse Journal (TVA), is peer-reviewed and published quarterly.  The journal is devoted to organizing, synthesizing, and expanding knowledge on all forms of trauma, abuse, and violence. TVA is practitioner oriented, dedicated to professionals and advanced students in clinical training who work with any form of trauma, abuse, and violence, and is intended to compile knowledge that clearly affects practice, policy, and research.

CMJ
TVA

APSAC Research to Practice Briefs 

In order for APSAC to achieve our goal of strengthening practice through knowledge, we must ensure that up-to-date, high quality research results are reaching the practitioners who need it most. To accomplish this, APSAC has assembled cadres of individuals working in psychology, social work, medicine, child welfare, and law to write 2-3 page translational summaries of articles from Child Maltreatment. These briefs are designed to provide clear policy and practice implications of the research useful to people working in different disciplines. Briefs may appear in the  APSAC Advisor, the APSAC Alert, on the APSAC website, and in other places as needed.

 

If you are interested in writing these translational pieces or bringing this as an assignment to your classroom, contact

 Bri Stormer

Research to Practice
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