The Differential Response is a Child Protective Services (CPS) practice that allows agencies to tailor their response to the unique needs of each family. The Differential Response is based on the premise that not all families who come to the attention of CPS need the same level of intervention. Some families may need only minimal intervention, while others may require more intensive services. The differential response is outlined nationally in the Child Abuse Prevention & Treatment Act (CAPTA), but it is up to each state to develop and implement their own Differential Response.
The Differential Response is pitched as a flexible, family-centered approach that is designed to meet the needs of each individual family. The Differential Response allows CPS agencies to use a variety of responses, depending on the family’s needs. For example, some families may only need information and referrals to community resources, while others may need more intensive services, such as in-home services or placement in out-of-home care. While the differential response includes different levels of the traditional response, as well as the Alternative Response, the Differential Response is most often referenced when describing two different types of investigation: traditional and alternative.
The Differential Response is an alternative to putting all accepted reports through the traditional investigative response. Historically, all reports accepted by child abuse/neglect hotlines in the United States were assigned to the Traditional Response, as it was the only type of response available and in some states, this is still true. The traditional investigative response is often seen as adversarial, and it can be traumatizing for families- even when a child is not removed or the allegations are unsubstantiated. In contrast, the Differential Response is designed to be collaborative and strengths-based. Whether or not the Alternative Response accomplishes this in eligible cases is debatable at best.
The Alternative Response, unlike the traditional response, does not involve a determination of the allegations, which eliminates the risk of being placed on the registry for a substantiated case. It is typically reserved for allegations where there is no suspicion of significant danger or serious harm and likely due to lack of resources or services (more severe allegations are assigned to the traditional response by default). More often than not, all home visits are scheduled in advance (no unannounced home visits) in the Alternative Response and the goal is to provide services to help the family, rather than separation. On the surface, this sounds like a move in the right direction. The services offered are most often prevention services, which are in-home services provided by CPS- or more typically, CPS-contracted non-profit agencies and appear to be more of CPS increasing long-term surveillance of families than genuine reform and respect of parental rights. If you refuse the Alternative Response, CPS will switch your case to the traditional response, making it subject to a determination and possible removal. This compels families, who are frightened of the potential consequences in the Traditional Response, to choose the Alternative Response, since it appears to be lower risk. There are also questions as to whether the alternative response creates an increased risk for perpetual CPS involvement, as the prevention services providers often involved in alternative response cases are mandated reporters and may be more likely to report minor concerns in your home.
The Differential Response is not a new concept, but it is gaining popularity in CPS agencies across the country. Like with the traditional response, how the Differential Response is implemented in practice varies slightly across states. More than half of states have some form of the differential response and they’re listed at the bottom. There are two states that piloted a Differential Response, but have reverted to the traditional response only. It is expected that use of the Differential Response will continue to increase and may become more common than the Traditional Response alone in the future. At CPSprotect Consulting Services, we recommend embracing the Alternative Response if faced with CPS involvement, but to get your own service providers and refuse any and all offers of prevention services from CPS. However, remain cautious about what you do share, as your case can be switched to the traditional response at any time during the course of the investigation.
The Differential Response is a newer approach to child protective services with good intentions, but due to its invasion of parental rights and threat of switching from the Alternative Response to the traditional investigative track over any noncompliance, the implementation is concerning. Improving the outcomes of families is important and we should keep trying to find the right balance between the virtue of protecting children and the need to respect parental rights.
A differential CPS response is active in the following states (if your state is not listed, there is no differential response in place):
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Iowa
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.
NOTE: Pilot differential CPS responses in Florida and Utah have been discontinued and are no longer active.