National Data on Child Abuse and Neglect

A core mission of the Administration for Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) is to prevent child abuse and neglect and ensure that children who are victims receive treatment and care. Data collection and analysis, and the research knowledge that results, is integral to making important policy decisions, raising awareness, and effecting change. There are many datasets related to child abuse and neglect; some are large, national in scope, and legislatively mandated; other data collection efforts are on a smaller scale through discretionary grants or privately funded research evaluation projects. The National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN) serves as a central repository for these datasets and makes them available for secondary analysis to researchers throughout the country. Providing analytic support, connecting the child maltreatment research community and providing a critical point of access to micro-level data for analysis is a critical function that fosters the continued growth of research-based knowledge on the incidence, causes, consequences, and prevention of child maltreatment, and other child welfare-related topics. The ultimate goal is to promote the expansion of a knowledge base leading to greater safety, permanency, and well-being for America's children.