Evaluating the Statewide Implementation of the FAIR System for Child Maltreatment Substantiation in Alaska

Child Protective Services is responsible for keeping children and families safe by making determinations about whether allegations of abuse and neglect should be substantiated, yet the decision-making systems that guide their actions are prone to inconsistency. Case substantiation decisions that are unreliable or subject to influence by extraneous factors create inherent unfairness to children and families. The FAIR (Field-tested Assessment, Intervention-planning, and Response) system comprises assessment, training, criteria, and a computerized decision tree that has increased the consistency of military maltreatment decision-making. In 2014, Alaska’s Office of Children’s Services (OCS) began the first statewide implementation of the FAIR System. This study evaluates the success of that implementation with a mixed-methods approach comprising (a) an online survey of 54 OCS professionals (87% female, 74% white) across four roles, and (b) 22 focus groups with 48 participants from regional offices statewide and telephonic sessions with distant offices. Data collection focused on perceptions of fidelity, utility, and impact of FAIR approximately one year after implementation. Results indicated that FAIR permeated OCS initial assessment systems profoundly and all of OCS strongly. Similarly, findings suggest that adopting FAIR has been helpful in multiple ways. Limitations include a focus on implementation (OCS staff perceptions) rather than agency outcomes, potential response and retrospection biases, a cross-sectional design, and possible self-selection bias among focus group participants. These findings indicate that the FAIR system implementation was positively received by Alaska OCS and should be evaluated for effectiveness.