Measuring Client Engagement From the Client’s Perspective in Nonvoluntary Child Protective Services

Objective: This study reports on the development and test of a multidimensional measure of client engagement in child welfare services. Method: Five dimensions of engagement were identified and were based on a literature review and data from interviews with child welfare workers and clients. A pool of items generated to reflect these five dimensions was reviewed by a panel of researchers, scholars, and practitioners. Pilot data from the resulting measure were collected from 287 respondents. Participants were primary caregivers who had an open case with child protective services at the point of data collection. Results: Internal consistency reliability and construct validity were examined, and tests of the fit of the data to the hypothesized measurement model were conducted and reported. Results supported the presence of four underlying factors and a single latent variable. Conclusion: The instrument demonstrated good potential for measuring aspects of client engagement.