Does mandatory reporting legislation increase contact with child protection? – a legal doctrinal review and an analytical examination

In Canada today, child maltreatment (CM) occurs in every stratum of society. The negative impacts pose serious immediate and long-term risks to the health and development of its victims [1]. CM impedes healthy development and negatively impacts mental and physical health [1]. It also increases the likelihood of unhealthy behaviors, such as smoking and substance use [2–4]. CM and associated problems are threats to public health.

CM is by no means a rare occurrence. Results from the Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health Survey (CCHS-MH) conducted in 2012 indicate that at least 32% of the adult Canadian population experienced one or more types of childhood maltreatment [5]. Childhood physical abuse (CPA) was the most common form of CM—reported by 26% of CCHS-MH respondents, followed by sexual abuse (CSA), reported by 10%, and exposure to intimate partner violence (CEIPV), by 8% [5]. Neglect and emotional maltreatment were not captured in the 2012 CCHS-MH.

Within a few decades of Canada’s confederation, child protection organizations (CPOs) were introduced. The inception and development of CPOs occurred at different times across the provinces. The first general frameworks for child welfare were established in 1893 in Ontario, in 1902 in Manitoba, and 1906 in Nova Scotia [6]. While the initial focus was primarily on preventing neglected children from having to subsist in the streets, advances in the 1960s and 1970s broadened systemic welfare strategies [7]. One such development was the implementation of laws requiring reporting of CM, similar to those introduced in the 1960s in the United States. These laws were enacted in the provinces at different times and varied in content [7]. Mandatory legislation has been successfully implemented as a public health strategy in other domains such as the requirement for immunizations for children attending school [8].

Despite mandatory reporting legislation, evidence suggests that only a small share of CM is brought to the attention of CPOs. Based on a study of the population aged 15 years or older conducted in the province of Ontario in 1990/1991 [9], reports of contact with a CPO were 5.1% among those with a history of CPA, and 8.7% among those with a history of CSA. A similar study using data collected in the 10 Canadian provinces from the 2012 CCHS-MH [10] indicated that the likelihood of CPO contact was slightly higher, 8.0% among those with a history of CPA, 10.4% among those with a history of CSA and 16.6% among those with a history of CEIPV (CEIPV was not captured in the earlier study conducted in Ontario). Among those with a history of all three types of CM (CPA, CSA and CEIPV), contact was reported by 24.5%.

Although little is known about the effectiveness of CPO interventions in deterring CM, and improving health and social outcomes [1], it is important to understand how legislative changes may influence reporting practices. The objectives of this study are: 1) to examine the history of legislative changes and the key elements of CM mandatory reporting laws in Canada; and 2) to examine the likelihood of reporting contact with a CPO among people reporting a history of CM in relation to the date of enactment of mandatory reporting legislation. The higher reporting rates observed in the study based on the 2012 CCHS-MH [10] compared with the earlier Ontario study from 1990 [9] suggests that the likelihood of CM being reported to CPOs has increased over time. To explore this hypothesis, we examine reporting rates by age cohorts among CCHS-MH respondents.

Ontario was the first province to introduce mandatory reporting legislation for CPA and CSA in 1965, quickly followed by Alberta and British Columbia. By 1981 all Canadian provinces had mandatory reporting for CPA and CSA. In 1973, Saskatchewan was the first province to mandate reporting of CEIPV. By 2014, all provinces except for Ontario and New Brunswick had enacted legislation requiring reporting of CEIPV.

Analysis of CCHS-MH retrospective data strongly suggests that the legal requirements to report suspected CM to child welfare services had an impact on CPO involvement. For those CCHS-MH respondents who had experienced CM, more of those who were born after 1965 reported having had contact with CPO than those born before mandatory reporting legislation was introduced in 1965. The influence of the 1965 legislation appears to have spread well beyond the borders of Ontario—to jurisdictions that had not yet introduced mandatory reporting. The subsequent introduction of legislation in other provinces and expansion of the mandate to report suspected CM likely further encouraged CPO involvement. Furthermore, the seriousness and frequency of maltreatment was directly related to the likelihood of CPO contact.

The importance of mandatory legislation to increasing the reporting of CM and identification of cases has been observed elsewhere. In Western Australia, reporting of CSA increased almost four-fold following establishment of mandatory reporting requirements [20]. Comparisons among countries with and without mandatory legislation also show higher reporting rates for jurisdictions with mandatory reporting than for those without [21]. The finding that the greatest increase occurred for those reporting the most frequent or serious types of CM is promising, especially in view of debates regarding over-reporting [22].

The merits of mandatory reporting have been debated [22–26], and some Canadian mental health professionals have called for revocation of such laws [27]. Opponents contend that mandatory reporting increases workload, is intrusive and diverts resources from assisting children and families in need [22, 28]. Melton, probably the strongest critic of mandatory reporting, argues that mandatory legislation was created based on a misunderstanding of the nature and scope of CM [22]. Other critics posit that child protection provides only an individual response to what is a broader, societal problem [29]. Advocates of mandatory reporting contend that reporting of CM to CPOs increase opportunities for beneficial intervention. Clients are generally satisfied with the interaction with a CPO [23], and those who report CM appreciate the laws related to privacy and confidentiality [30]. Furthermore, increased reporting to CPOs reflects government commitment and brings attention to the problem of CM [24].

The findings of this paper should be interpreted in light of its strengths and limitations. Strengths of this paper include the comprehensive doctrinal legal review that was employed. The statistical analysis used data from a large representative sample of Canadian adults. However, insufficient sample precluded more detailed analysis by specific types of maltreatment and province. Other limitations include the unknown validity of the CPO measure. It is possible that some respondents who reported CM were unaware that CPO involvement occurred or they did not recall the involvement. However, the finding that reported CPO involvement was rare among those who reported no CM provides some evidence of the validity of the CPO measure. The small proportion of respondents who reported CPO involvement but no CM may have experienced other types of CM not included in the CCHS MH such as neglect or emotional abuse. As well, reporting of CM may be subject to recall bias. However, evidence of the validity of retrospectively collected CM data is increasing [31–34]. Another limitation was the assumption that the respondent lived in the same province before age 16 as when the CCHS questionnaire was completed. Data from the 2011 National Household Survey indicate that 85% of the Canadian-born population resides in their province of birth [35]. As well, the study is limited to the household population in Canada’s 10 provinces and excludes the territories. Some groups who were not part of the CCHS target population (the homeless, residents of institutions, Indigenous peoples living on reserves, full-time military personnel and the northern territories) have in some studies been found to have elevated levels of CM [36–41]. How this might influence associations between CM and CPO involvement is unknown. Finally, it is possible that secular changes in social values, openness to acknowledge that CM has occurred, family characteristics or other factors may have increased reporting of CM to CPOs over time, independent of mandatory reporting laws.

Although it is undisputable that CM can have devastating immediate and long-term negative consequences, the effects of reporting to CPO are not well studied. Assuming that CPO reporting is related to less maltreatment and better outcomes for children, it is encouraging to see that increasing percentages of children who have experienced CM are being reported to CPO and that mandatory reporting has assisted in identification of children in need of protection. Unfortunately, this analysis does not inform our understanding about the effectiveness of CPO interventions themselves, such as the provision of services to parents and protective orders for children — an important area for future research [25]. Does contact with CPO and the measures taken by CPO reduce re-victimisation of children and prevent maltreatment of others? Do children get needed help to treat negative outcomes associated with their exposure to CM?

This study compiled the history of mandatory reporting to CPO for CSA, CPA and CEIPV in Canadian provinces. The timing of these legislative changes was examined in relation to contacts with CPO as reported by survey respondents. Evidence from the analysis suggests that the legislation is effective in increasing CPO involvement. Further study should address if reporting to CPO is successful in preventing the recurrence of CM and providing effective assistance to victims and their families since its effectiveness as a public health strategy is unknown. The collection and analysis of longitudinal CPO data would significantly contribute to such efforts.