Lessons Learned from International Studies on Child Protection Decision-Making Employing the Model of Judgments and Decisions Processes in Context (JUDPiC)

The study of intercountry variability of child protection decision-making has become an emerging research theme in the past decade. This chapter draws on a variety of studies conducted using the model of Judgments and Decisions Processes in Context (JUDPiC) to compare judgments and decisions in cases of alleged maltreatment made by decision-makers in five countries: Israel, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Portugal, and Spain. The chapter begins with a brief overview of research on intercountry comparisons in the field of child protection decision-making, then describes the JUDPiC model and presents in some detail the first international comparison study conducted with this underlying model. The authors offer next the subsequent developments of this research project in the different countries involved. In the final section, they discuss some implications for child protection policy and practice and future research.