Abstract: Research on Mandated Reporters: A Scoping Review of Outcomes (Society for Social Work and Research 31st Annual Conference)

Schedule:

Friday, January 22, 2027

Golden Gate 4 (Hilton San Francisco Union Square)

* noted as presenting author

Lacey Jenkins, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL

Christian Adeleke, LMSW, PhD Student, Graduate Research Assistant, Adjunct Faculty, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

Catherine Labrenz, PhD, Associate Professor and Director Child Welfare Research Center, University of Texas at Arlington

Micki Washburn, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

Jandel Crutchfield, PhD, LCSW, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

Tracy Orwig, LCSW, Associate Professor of Practice, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

Jennifer Cochran Anderson, MSW, PhD, Graduate Research Assistant, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX

Background and Purpose: Mandated reporting shapes how professionals initiate state intervention in family life and lies at the intersection of equity, care, and democratic accountability. This scoping review examines how empirical research on mandated reporting defines and measures outcomes, with particular attention to equity and bias.

Methods: Using the Arksey and O’Malley scoping review framework and the PRISMA-ScR checklist, we reviewed empirical studies published between 2009 and 2024 on mandated reporting practices, policies, training, and outcomes. Searches of bibliographic databases and grey literature identified 25 studies that met the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted and synthesized using a narrative thematic approach.

Results: Studies primarily examined referral rates, substantiation rates, training, professional attitudes, and universal mandated reporting policies. Policy expansions increased reporting but did not consistently improve substantiation or child safety outcomes. Training improved knowledge but showed limited evidence of behavior change. Reporting patterns varied across disciplines and settings. Equity-related outcomes were rarely assessed. Some studies documented racial disparities in referrals and substantiations and the conflation of poverty-related conditions with neglect, but few investigated underlying mechanisms or whether policies and training reduced bias. Outcomes were largely measured using compliance-based indicators.

Conclusions and Implications: Mandated reporting research tends to emphasize system activity rather than system impact. Limited attention to equity, bias, and harm constrains the ability to determine whether these systems promote equitable outcomes. Future research should incorporate measures of fairness, bias, and harm and examine how policy and training influence decision-making and disparities.