ABSTRACT
Child abuse became a national talking point in the United States when the image of the abused child blended biography and art. In the United States, public child welfare agencies are mandated to receive, investigate, and act on reports of abuse or neglect of a child. Public child welfare work involves a dual, even ambiguous, role. The practice of child welfare touches the lives of literally hundreds of thousands of American children and their families, so the study of what workers does and what they understand of what they do is an important question. The importance of child welfare work is highlighted by the realisation that abuse and neglect can be devastating to an individual child and can have serious effects on a child for the rest of her/his life. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
