Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard)
About This Program
Target Population: Judges in the dependency court system where there may be high placement rates into foster care and disparate treatment of children of color
Program Overview
Intended for use during initial juvenile dependency hearings, the Courts Catalyzing Change Preliminary Protective Hearing (PPH) Benchcard asks judges to reflect on the decision-making process to identify and attempt to minimize institutional bias and to consider some key inquiries, analyses, and decisions relating to removal, placement, and services. The PPH Benchcard is built around two types of inquiry: internal and external. The internal inquiry is set forth in a self-reflection section containing questions designed to help judges examine potential biases at play that may affect their decisions. The external inquiry considers due process related questions and considerations as well as the actual judicial inquiry of the hearing participants related to specific salient issues that should be determined at the preliminary protective hearing. Before they first use the PPH Benchcard, judges and other stakeholders participate in a training focused on implicit bias and structural and institutional racism.
Program Goals
The goals of Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard are:
- Reduce racial disproportionality and disparate treatment.
- Safely decrease foster care placement rates.
- Increase relative placement rates.
Logic Model
The program representative did not provide information about a Logic Model for Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard).
Essential Components
The essential components of Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard include:
- Training for judges and stakeholders on implicit bias, structural and institutional racism
- Training on PPHBenchcard implementation
- Baseline data collection on racial disproportionality, placement rates, and types of initial hearings
- Full implementation of the PPH Benchcard at initial hearings
- Post-implementation data collection and reporting
- Parents actively engaged in removal hearings; aim to have more children placed with parents
Program Delivery
Recommended Intensity:
PPH Benchcard should be used at each removal hearing. The recommended hearing length should be one hour for full implementation.
Recommended Duration:
Ongoing
Delivery Setting
This program is typically conducted in a(n):
- Justice Setting (Juvenile Detention, Jail, Prison, Courtroom, etc.)
Homework
This program does not include a homework component.
Resources Needed to Run Program
The typical resources for implementing the program are:
Adequate judicial resources, effective legal representation of parents and children, and adequate hearing time
Manuals and Training
Prerequisite/Minimum Provider Qualifications
Juvenile court judges and judicial officers that are legally trained.
Manual Information
There is a manual that describes how to deliver this program.
Training Information
There is training available for this program.
Training Contact:
- Melissa Bahmer, Director
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
phone: (775) 784-7709
Training Type/Location:
On-site, regional, and statewide
Number of days/hours:
8 hours
Additional Resources:
There currently are additional qualified resources for training:
Khatib Waheed, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Consultant
Rita Cameron-Wedding, Sacramento State University
Shawn Marsh, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Nancy Miller, National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Implementation Information
Pre-Implementation Materials
There are no pre-implementation materials to measure organizational or provider readiness for Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard).
Formal Support for Implementation
There is no formal support available for implementation of Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard).
Fidelity Measures
There are fidelity measures for Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard) as listed below:
A court observation tool, modified from the standardized court observation tool typically used in court, is available. The PPH Benchcard was designed to increase discussion, judicial inquiry, and judicial engagement of parents. The tool captures the breadth and depth of discussion of a set of topic areas (from the PPH Benchcard), identifies whether the judge inquired specifically about each item, and includes a 5-item judicial engagement of parents section, with a series of yes/no questions. For example, "Did the judge ask if the parent had any questions?" (this item was one of the three direct questions to parents that judges should ask per the PPH Benchcard).
Implementation Guides or Manuals
There are implementation guides or manuals for Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard) as listed below:
There is a technical assistance bulletin that accompanies the PPH Benchcard that describes its importance and recommendations for implementation. It can be found at https://www.ncjfcj.org/publications/right-from-the-start-the-courts-catalyzing-change-preliminary-protective-hearing-benchcard/
Research on How to Implement the Program
Research has not been conducted on how to implement Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard).
Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research
Child Welfare Outcome: Permanency
Russell, J., & Summers, A. (2013). An overview of the courts catalyzing change Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard study. Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 64(2), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1111/jfcj.12003
Type of Study:
Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants:
555
Population:
- Age — 3–18 years
- Race/Ethnicity — Control Group: 35% White, 29% Hispanic, 22% African American, 7% Unable to determine, 4% Other, and 3% Asian/PI; Benchcard Group: 35% White, 29% Hispanic, 24% African American, 7% Unable to Determine, 4% Other, 2% Native American/Indian, and 1% Asian/PI
- Gender — Control Group: 54% Female, 41% Male, and 5% Unable to Determine; Benchcard Group: 54% Female, 39% Male, and 7% Unable to Determine
- Status — Participants were children in foster care or the Child Welfare System.
Location/Institution: Los Angeles, California; Omaha, Nebraska; & Portland, Oregon.
Summary:
(To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of the use of the Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard using a standardized hearing observation instrument. Participants were randomly assigned to either a Benchcard group or a control group. Measures utilized include court case records. Results indicate that Benchcard implementation appears to be associated with substantially higher quantities and quality of discussion of key dependency topics during preliminary protective hearings. Benchcard implementation also corresponds to increased judicial inquiry and parent engagement. Benchcard use was associated with more family placements—placement with a charged parent, a non-charged parent, or a relative—at the initial hearing and even more at adjudication when comparing the same judges before and after Benchcard implementation. Similarly, the percentage of children who were reunified with the charged parent at the initial hearing and the adjudication hearing increased after Benchcard implementation. Limitations include possible spill-over effect and observation bias.
Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: Not specified.
Russell, J., & Summers, A. (2013). Reflective decision-making and foster care placements. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 19(2), 127–136. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031582
Type of Study:
Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants:
555
Population:
- Age — Mean=6 years
- Race/Ethnicity — BL: 40% Caucasian, 26% African American, 25% Hispanic/Latino, & 9% Other; Benchcard Follow-up: 36% Hispanic/Latino, 32% Caucasian, 18% African American, & 14% Other; Control Follow-up: 34% Hispanic/Latino, 21% African American, 20% Caucasian, & 25% Other
- Gender — Baseline: 57% Female; Benchcard Follow-up: 59% Female; Control Follow-up: 58% Female
- Status — Participants were children in foster care or the Child Welfare System.
Location/Institution: Los Angeles, California; Omaha, Nebraska; & Portland, Oregon
Summary:
(To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The study used the same sample as Russel & Summers (2013). The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of two interventions on placement decisions. Participants were randomized to either Benchcard intervention [now called Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard)] or to a control group. All participants received the implicit bias and institutional racism training intervention. Measures utilized include court case files. Results indicate that the training intervention was associated with more parent placements and fewer non-relative foster care placements. However, this change appeared to diminish over time when it was not coupled with use of the Benchcard intervention. The training and Benchcard together were also associated with improvement in placement outcomes, and this effect did not appear to diminish over time. Limitations included small sample size, possible spillover effects, and lack of generalizability to other court locations.
Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: Not specified.
Additional References
No reference materials are currently available for Preliminary Protective Hearing Benchcard (PPH Benchcard).
Contact Information
- Melissa Gueller
- Title: Program Director
- Agency/Affiliation: National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
- Website: www.ncjfcj.org/publications/right-from-the-start-the-courts-catalyzing-change-preliminary-protective-hearing-benchcard
- Email: mgueller@ncjfcj.org
- Phone: (775) 507-4826
Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed by CEBC: October 2023
Date Program Content Last Reviewed by Program Staff: October 2018
Date Program Originally Loaded onto CEBC: April 2013
