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Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

The prevention of child maltreatment requires supporting all families to provide safe, stable, nurturing relationships, and environments for their children. We can do this by building protective factors through community and natural supports, while working to reduce the risk factors for maltreatment in our communities and families. The following CEBC topic areas have been grouped by the level of prevention they address, based on the Office of Child Abuse Prevention’s Framework for Preventing Child Abuse.

Each topic area page linked below contains a topic area description and specific characteristics that the programs in the topic area must meet to be included. In addition, all of the programs reviewed in that topic area are listed with their CEBC Scientific Rating, if applicable, and their Child Welfare System Relevance Level.

Primary Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

These topic areas contain programs directed at the general population to strengthen communities and improve child and family well-being:

Secondary Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

These topic areas contain programs for origin families that have risk factors associated with child maltreatment:

Tertiary Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect

These topic areas contain programs for origin families where child maltreatment has occurred:

The CEBC also created a webpage about Family Resource Centers, their role in prevention, and the available research on their effectiveness.

Last updated 2/3/2025