6533b856fe1ef96bd12b2566

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Negotiations with a risk assessment tool: Standardized decision-making in the United States and the deprofessionalization thesis

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AbstractThis article focuses on the challenges of decision-making in child protection. Comparative studies show that standardized risk assessment tools predict future maltreatment more accurately than interpretative assessment. Despite a long tradition of research on statistical decision-making, few studies deal with how such instruments are used and integrated into professional decision-making practice, and – from a transnational perspective – how specific national regulations influence such instruments and decision-making at street level. The article discusses concerns about the fact that such classification systems might have a negative impact on professional discretion. Based on a materialist approach, it highlights the actual practice of professional decision-making under the conditions of the application of actuarial tools. Using data from an ethnographical study, a practice of negotiation can be shown between the social workers and the assessment tools. The idea is discussed that this negotiation p...