Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect 1998 (OIS-1998)

Abstract

The 1998 Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (OIS 1998) is the second Ontario study to examine the incidence of reported child maltreatment and the characteristics of children and families investigated by the province’s children’s aid societies. The study used a multistage sampling design to select a representative sample of 13 child welfare service areas across Ontario and track maltreatment investigations conducted by the selected sites from October to December 1998. The final sample of 3,053 investigations was used to derive province-wide estimates of the scope and characteristics of child maltreatment investigations. The OIS 1998 was conducted in conjunction with the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS 1998), with funding from the provincial government to collect information from a larger Ontario sample. The OIS 1998 includes contextual information about factors associated with key child welfare service decisions and provides the basis for comparison with the 1993 Ontario Incidence Study. The OIS 1998 describes the study methodology and results, and presents major findings with regard to the incidence of abuse and neglect, characteristics of maltreatment, investigation outcomes, child and household characteristics, referral and agency characteristics, and recommendations for further research.