The quality of collaboration with child welfare scale (Q-CCW): Development and validation

Collaborations in child welfare are crucial for addressing complex needs and improving outcomes for children and their families. In this study we aimed to develop and validate the Quality of Collaboration with Child Welfare (Q-CCW) scale to assess working relationships between providers and child welfare workers. The scale was developed to assess four attributes of collaboration: quality of the working relationship, responsiveness, joint understanding, and communication. Following its construction, the scale was administered to a sample of 208 participants, including mental health clinicians, foster/kinship parents, and lawyers/evaluators. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a one-factor solution, indicating a unified construct of quality collaboration, that demonstrated reliability. The Q-CCW can facilitate the measurement and improvement of collaborations in child welfare, thereby contributing to enhanced service delivery and positive outcomes for children and families.