ABSTRACT
Families have the primary responsibility to nurture and protect their children. Historically, families in the United States have been free to carry out this responsibility as they saw fit, with little outside interference. But there has been mounting attention to the rights of children and the recognition that some families may not adequately nurture and protect their children. Accordingly, the legal principle of parens patriae whereby the state has a responsibility to ensure the well-being of its citizens, including children, has been established in the United States. Since the 1960s this has been implemented mostly via the child welfare system and designated state agencies mandated to protect children who are being abused or neglected. The framework for this effort has been quite narrow, focusing on acts of commission and omission by parents or caregivers, with little attention to the contributory problems underlying the maltreatment of their children (e.g., few community resources for new parents). Even less attention has been paid to other aspects of our society and its institutions that may directly abuse or neglect children (e.g., seriously inadequate public schools); instead, families have been the primary concern and target. This is not to infer that intervening at the family level is inappropriate. Rather, the intent is to place the phenomenon of child neglect in context.
