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| A family unit composed of parents and their children; this smaller family structure is subject to great stress due to the intense close contact between parents and children. |
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| Home in which one or both parents are absent due to divorce or separation; children in such an environment may be prone to antisocial behavior. |
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| Nuclear families that are the product of divorce and remarriage, blending one parent from each of two families and their combined children into one family unit. |
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| An environment of discord and conflict within the family; children who grow up in dysfunctional homes often exhibit delinquent behaviors, having learned at a young age that aggression pays off. |
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| Families in which parents are able to integrate their children into the household unit while at the same time helping assert their individuality and regulate their own behavior. |
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| A condition that occurs when parents have such large families that their resoureses, such as time and money, are spread too thin, causing lack of familial support and control. |
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| Placing a child in the temporary care of a family other than its own as a result of state intervention into problems that are taking place within the birth family; can be used as a temporary shelter while a permanent adoption effort is being completed. |
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| Nonaccidental physical injury of children by their parents or guardians. |
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| Any physical, emotional, or sexual trauma to a child, including neglecting to give proper care and attention, for which no reasonable explanation can be found. |
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| Passive neglect by a parent or guardian, depriving children of food, shelter, health care, and love. |
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| Parents physically leave their children with the intention of completely severing the parent-child relationship. |
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| Mass murders in which a spouse and one or more children are slain. |
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Definition
| A preliminary protective or temporary custody hearing in which the court will review the facts and determine whether removal of the child is justified and notify parents of the charges against them. |
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| The attorney for the social services agency presents and overview of the case, and a plea bargain or negotiated settlement can be agreed to in consent decree. |
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Definition
| The social service agency presents its case plan and recommendations for care of the child and treatment of the parents, including incarceration and counseling or other treatment. |
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| Balancing-of-the-interests approach |
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Definition
| Efforts of the courts to balance the parent's natural right to raise a child with the child's right to grow into adulthood free from physical abuse or emotional harm. |
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| Periodic meetings to determine whether the conditions of the case plan for an abused child are being met by the parents or guardians of the child. |
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Definition
| Out-of-court statements made by one person and recounted in court by another, such statements are generally not allowed as evidence except in child abuse cases wherein a child's statements to social workers, teachers, or police may be admissible. |
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