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Trauma is a Lens, Not a Label: How Schools Can Support All Student

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Trauma is a Lens, Not a Label: How Schools Can Support All Student

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In order to check in and make sure that educators feel that they can do all they need to do within the hours of the work week, she advises that school leaders provide space for teachers to ask questions, ideate and reflect with their principal or school counselor. "We have a cultural expectation that people aren't working after hours. And if you are finding that you can't keep up with your job expectations in the 40-hour work week, you're talking to your supervisor about getting support in a non-shaming way," said Alison Putnam, a school leader at Centerpoint School in Vermont. Her school leaders prioritized getting rid of unnecessary, extra meetings and giving teachers more opportunities to connect with each other.

"We do a monthly wellness group where teachers from across the school get together in small groups to talk about our wellness, and how we're feeling at work. We talk about goals we have for ourselves and what is supportive of those goals," said Putnam.

Another way to support teachers' working conditions and workload is " tap in, tap out," a self care strategy from Fall-Hamilton Elementary School in Nashville, Tennessee. In this technique, educators form a text message group to contact whoever is available to temporarily fill in for them whenever they need to take a moment to step out and regroup during class.

"It's just so simple, but it can be so powerful in acknowledging that you don't have to carry this stress by yourself," said Venet. "It's more than saying, 'We're a community.' It's actually finding a way to put a structure around that."

Trauma happens inside schools

It's not uncommon for educators to think of students as "bringing their trauma to school" as if it's packed in their backpacks somewhere between their bag lunch and homework folders.

"Too often, teachers perceive trauma as something that comes from 'outside of school,'" said Venet. "Much of the research and writing on trauma frames it as resulting from factors schools cannot control." When effectively applied, trauma-informed education means critically examining how oppression at schools causes trauma in students. Oppression can happen outside of schools as well as within schools, caused by peers in situations, individual teachers and curriculum.

"Trauma is a lens, not a label," advises Venet in her book, pushing teachers to look beyond labeling trauma-affected students to understanding how structures may cause trauma.

Schools are not equitable for trauma-affected students and numerous studies show that children experiencing trauma have greater difficulty learning . On top of that, student responses to trauma, such as disengagement or misbehavior, are often unknowingly disciplined.

Venet recommends a universal approach to trauma-informed education so that schools are centering students' humanity, whether their trauma is apparent or not. She advocates for making responsive, social-emotional supports accessible to all students with as few barriers as possible. That means making sure students know what is available to them when they are struggling whether it's having flyers on the wall, information on the school websites, or informed teachers that can point them in the right direction.

A universal approach ensures that all students, including students who are unwilling to ask or have cultivated coping mechanisms that allow them to go unnoticed, get support. High achievers affected by trauma are especially at risk for being overlooked, and adults often misinterpret their coping for resilience.

Cultivate relationships rooted in equity

"Take whatever timeline you have in your mind for how soon you're going to have that strong relationship and multiply it by two, three or four because it just takes people so much longer to build that trusting relationship," said Venet about cultivating connections with students.

She cautions that students' capacity to trust will be lower as a result of the instability and uncertainty of the pandemic. When children go through trauma, they have some mistrust in authority figures and in systems, because often during trauma, those people and systems weren't there for them.

"I think we have a lot of work to do to rebuild and prove that schools can be places of safety and community," she said.

To do this, Venet urges teachers to take a stance of unconditional positive regard for students, a concept developed by psychologist Carl Rogers, that emphasizes removing conditions - such as compliance or achievement - for accepting another person. In schools, Venet sees unconditional positive regard as communicating to the student, "I care about you. You have value. You don't have to do anything to prove it to me, and nothing's going to change my mind."

She encourages teachers to build positive relationships during everyday moments like how students are greeted when they enter class or when they make a mistake.

"Any opportunity you have to affirm the student's inherent worth is a moment for unconditional positive regard," she said.

Establishing good relationships can be a long process. And just because students are not openly responding to relationship-building efforts, it does not necessarily mean that the care and support they've received are unappreciated.

Make sure to note students' progress and focus on their strengths. "Recognize that even though you might not see a shift right away, it doesn't mean the shift isn't happening," said Venet. Additionally, it's helpful to remember what is developmentally appropriate for students, so don't take it personally when a highschooler rolls their eyes or a kindergartener has trouble following directions.

Trauma-informed education is not going to look the same for every educator. In the same way that Venet encourages teachers to pay attention to what is going right when working with students, teachers can expand upon what they do well when it comes to their own practice.

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'Trauma Is A Lens, Not A Label': How Schools Can Support All Students - MindShift

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In order to check in and make sure that educators feel that they can do all they need to do within the hours of the work week, she advises that school leaders provide space for teachers to ask questions, ideate and reflect with their principal or school counselor.

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Self-care is thrown around a lot as a magic bullet to solve all of your problems. If you'd only take a second to treat yourself, you'd be fine! But what does self-care really mean? First, I think there's a difference between self-care and self-soothing. Self-soothing might look something like this, for example: Self-soothing: Activities that provide distraction and/or comfort in difficult times
Examples illustrated include: TV bingeing, bubble bath, fancy beverages, singing loudly, getting out into nature, time off from home responsibilities & childcare, fresh flowers, cuddling, exercise Such delightful things! Self-soothing is INCREDIBLY important to our well-being. Sometimes, though, these activities may not actually get at stabilizing you, or creating opportunities for you to move forward. That's where self-care can come in: Self-care: Activities that help you find meaning, and that support your growth & groundedness
Examples illustrated include: Going to therapy, meditating, exercise, taking ownership of your finances, napping, saying "yes" and "no" when you really mean it, massage, getting medical care, eating well for your body, yoga, setting - and keeping! - boundaries Do you feel the difference between soothing & care? (That "finances" one may or may not be borne out of my own traumatic experiences with money, btw. Also: certain things may be self-soothing for some, and self-care for others. You get to decide!) Still, it takes a LOT to be able to even do self-care, since the systems and cultural norms in which we currently live can feel impossible to navigate on our own. That's why it's important to have workarounds: Community care: Workarounds for systems that don't inherently support care (ie, capitalism!)
Examples illustrated include: Childcare & education collectives, freecycle and buy nothing groups, dignified, supportive healthcare orgs, intimate relationships outside of traditional romantic couplehood norms, worker-owned coops, credit unions, co-housing, skill sharing and mutual aid Taking one step further back, it's also important to recognize that workarounds and harm-reduction are also only one part of the solution. We also need to fundamentally overhaul (or tear down and rebuild entirely) the systems in which we live, so that we can be further enabled to work on the other kinds of care that we need. Structural care: Systems that support community care, self-care AND self-soothing
Examples illustrated include: comprehensive universal healthcare, environmental defense and renewal, child- and eldercare, living wage, efficient public transportation, gender & sexuality liberation, racial equity & justice, paid family leave (and an illustration of the word "capitalism" on fire and melting) No single person can do all the kinds of care that are needed all the time; we each can play a role in supporting each other in different ways, though. Now, go forth and care for each other - and yourself.
EDITED ON 11/15/2019!

Thank you all SO much for your suggestions on how to improve this. The main one is that I moved "massage" to self-care, thanks to the rallying cries of many practitioners. It was such a mistake! I view my own massage experiences as self-care, why on earth did I put them in soothing?! Haha.

Next, I wanted to reinforce that I view self-soothing as SUPER important. I think with the original text, some people thought I was saying that self-soothing was frivolous or not useful. Quite the opposite! I soothe the helllll outta myself regularly. I've updated that explanation panel to reflect this thinking.

I realized also that I had gotten quite ableist with my drawings, so I made sure to include a person with physical disabilities in the new "nature" drawing in self-soothing. It's bugging something in my brain that "wheelchair" is the default representation of all people with disabilities, though. Does someone have a suggestion for how I can do better in the future?

In structural care, I separated gender/sexuality and racial equity/justice. I was trying to show their integrated nature in the first version, but I think ended up doing a disservice to both. I also renamed the planet one to "environmental defense & renewal," though that still doesn't cover the total essence of righteousness that I feel there, heh.

Finally, there were LOTS of additional suggestions that came through that were fantastic, but I just didn't have the space to accommodate - such as adding journaling to self-care, breaking out the complicated ideas in the structural section, and noting that too much of anything isn't a good thing.

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Self-care is thrown around a lot as a magic bullet to solve all of your problems. If you'd only take a second to treat yourself, you'd be fine! But what does self-care really mean? First, I think there's a difference between self-care and self-soothing.

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The 12 Core ConceptsConcepts for Understanding TraumaticStress Responses in Children and Families

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The 12 Core ConceptsConcepts for Understanding TraumaticStress Responses in Children and Families

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An official website of the United States government

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Talking with children about violence and traumatic events

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Talking with children about violence and traumatic events

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Talking with children about violence and traumatic events

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A movement for children in Hawaiʻi and their families.

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Trauma-informed and resiliency-informed schools can address the following:

Recognize possible triggers at school.

Any stimulus that might remind a student of an overwhelming experience in their past can also lead to the same set of behaviors and/or emotions that originally experienced under stress. These include unpredictability, transitions, sudden change, loss of control, feeling vulnerable or rejected, or experiencing loneliness, sensory overload, confrontation, embarrassment or shame, praise, intimacy, and positive attention.

Be aware of signs or symptoms of distress.

Children, teens, and adults who may feel emotionally dysregulated can demonstrate the following behaviors: a deer-in-headlights look of fear, turning red and clenching fists, breathing more rapidly, bursting into tears or crying, moving the body (in readiness to run or react), keeping very still and/or quiet.

Provide choices.

A student who is triggered needs to regain a sense of control, because trauma can feel disempowering. Offer at least one appealing choice to that student (e.g., get a drink of water, go to our peace corner in the back, listen to music, take a break, work with a friend.).

After a teacher directs his class to prepare for a group project, he notices his student David's rapid breathing, flushed face, and trembling legs. The room is loud and chaotic as students assemble themselves into groups, so he asks David if he would like to take a quick break: "Would you like to get a quick drink of water or visit our quiet corner for a couple of minutes?" Then, he follows up later to find out whether David would prefer to work more closely with one member of his group for part of the project.

Reframe student behaviors.

Teach to students' strengths.

If teachers help students to identify their assets, provide predictable routines that foster student growth, and connect to students' experiences through their instructional activities, they are more likely to address the needs of students who experience trauma, violence, and chronic stress.

Reexamine school discipline practices.

Research suggests that exclusionary discipline (e.g., suspensions and expulsions) can be alienating and counterproductive, and restorative practices (strategies that focus on learning from mistakes and repairing relationships rather than punishing students) may offer a more humanizing, equitable, and respectful alternative.

Interrupt microaggressions.

A group of students in class laugh and yell, "That's so gay!" while commenting on the way a famous actor dresses, and the teacher pauses and inquires, "What do you mean by that?" or "When you say that, I worry that students in our class will not feel safe or accepted here." or "Did you mean to say something hurtful when you said that?"

Model and practice self-regulation strategies.

One way to encourage self-regulation is by strengthening the vagus nerve, a major channel of the parasympathetic ("rest and digest") nervous system. The vagus nerve is activated by shifting breathing patterns to lengthen the out-breath. When your out-breath extends longer than your in-breath, you calm can calm your body. (e.g., breath in for 3 seconds and out for 6 seconds.)

Pay attention to sensations.

A student notices that his stomach begins to ache right before having to take an exam. He is reading his body's signal of distress. When he notices this, he remembers to automatically take a few deep breaths (or he may try a brief body scan). His muscles begin to relax and his stomach ache begins to ease. He now feels ready to take the test because he feels less distress-and even feels better on the inside, too.

Engage in trauma-sensitive mindfulness practices.

When you introduce a mindfulness practice in your classroom, 1) invite students to keep their eyes open or closed-based on their comfort level; 2) encourage them to anchor their attention on a sound or body part (e.g., their hands or feet) rather than focusing on their breath, which can sometimes be triggering; and 3) consider incorporating some form of body movement like walking or simple yoga stretches or poses.

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Making Classrooms and Schools Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered | Greater Good In Education

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4 Steps for Managing Trauma-Informed Classrooms

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4 Steps for Managing Trauma-Informed Classrooms

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Take a random walk through any school on any day and you may see challenging behaviors like these:

Sean walks into class with an "attitude." He is argumentative with peers and fails to comply with adult requests.

When his classroom becomes too loud, Ahmed will suddenly bolt from the room.

Alyssa is generally well-behaved, but when asked questions by the teacher in front of the class, will shut down and not respond.

These surface behaviors are easily observed. However, what may remain hidden from the observer (and perhaps from the teachers of Sean, Alyssa and Ahmed, is that each of these students engage in these behaviors as a fight-flight-or-freeze survival response triggered by their unique history of complex trauma[1][2].

Definition of Complex Trauma

Complex trauma can occur when a child is repeatedly exposed to adverse experiences, such as abuse, neglect and dysfunctional family interactions[3]. When incidents of trauma are frequent or ongoing, the child may develop chronically heightened stress levels that can be expressed in various ways, like aggression, inattention, hyperactivity, depression, or anxiety[4]. A danger is that educators might fail to realize that these challenging behaviors are trauma-related and instead punish the student for seemingly willful misconduct.

What is a trauma-informed school?

Many schools across the nation have discovered that substantial numbers of their students have experienced long-term negative effects of trauma and are taking steps to create supportive, non-threatening learning environments and to provide services for these learners[5]. These "trauma-informed schools" usually have these three things in common:

Training their educators to recognize signs of trauma

Encouraging teachers to structure their classrooms to minimize potential stress triggers

Providing additional therapeutic supports such as counseling to students most impacted by complex trauma

Using RTI/MTSS to help students who have experienced trauma

The good news is that schools that adopt a 3-tiered model of RTI/MTSS for behavior have already assembled at least some of the practices necessary to successfully support students with complex trauma, such as:

Teaching and reinforcing expected behaviors

Employing school-wide behavioral screeners and teacher referrals to identify these students

Providing an array of positive behavioral and social-emotional interventions.

By far the most important setting for identifying and supporting those with complex trauma, however, is the general-education classroom (RTI/MTSS Tier 1). When chronically stressed students encounter demanding academic settings, there is an increased probability that these school environments will trigger maladaptive fight-flight-or-freeze behaviors. However, teachers may have only limited knowledge of these students' background-and not realize that their behaviors are a reaction to the effects of complex trauma.

Trauma-informed practices for managing classrooms

A proactive solution is for instructors to adopt a "universal" foundation of positive routines, instructional practices and communication strategies in their classrooms, one that promotes a positive environment for all learners-while most benefiting students with complex trauma[6].

In the trauma-informed classroom, the teacher:

1. Promotes positive interactions with all students

2. Establishes a predictable, non-threatening learning environment

3. Encourages learners to communicate their needs and exercise autonomy

4. Ensures that the disciplining of individual students is fair and focused on teaching and reinforcing expected behaviors.

Steps you can take
These strategies are adapted from ideas previously posted on interventioncentral.org.
1. Promote positive interactions

Students with complex trauma often have a history of problematic relationships with adults that results in their adopting a guarded or defensive stance during teacher interactions. Instructors can work to overcome this relationship barrier by employing a range of positive communication strategies to convey student acceptance and to foster interpersonal connections.

2. Establish a predictable and safe learning environment

A common behavioral trigger for the complex-trauma student is that he or she is suddenly and unexpectedly faced with an adverse academic task. The teacher's goal is to minimize unpleasant surprises for students during the academic day, as well as to teach learners appropriate coping responses when the unexpected does occur.

3. Encourage student autonomy

During academic tasks, students with a history of trauma will be less prone to triggered misbehavior when they are encouraged to voice their learning needs and to exercise choice in aspects of their academic tasks.

4. Ensure fair discipline

Learners with complex trauma may have experienced discipline at home or school as capricious, unpredictable, and largely punitive. In contrast, the trauma-informed educator has the goal in any disciplinary conversation of reteaching behavioral expectations; providing these students with whatever tools and supports might be necessary for behavioral success; and ensuring that they perceive any disciplinary consequences as fair and transparent.

Your efforts have impact!

The lesson that trauma-informed schools can teach us is that teachers can take proactive steps to make their classrooms accepting and supportive havens for children and youth with complex trauma. And research shows[8] that instructors also achieve better academic outcomes across all learners when they interact positively with students, make learning a safe and engaging endeavor, promote student autonomy, and treat discipline as an opportunity to reteach and reinforce expected behaviors.

1 Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41-46.

2 Rosenbaum-Nordoft, C. (2018). Building teacher capacity for trauma-informed practice in the inclusive elementary school classroom. Early Childhood Education, 45(1), 3-12.

3 Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41-46.

4 Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41-46.

5 Howell, P. B., Thomas, S., Sweeney, D., & Vanderhaar, J. (2019). Moving beyond schedules, testing and other duties as deemed necessary by the principal: The school counselor's role in trauma informed practices. Middle School Journal, 50(4), 26-34.

6 Cavanaugh, B. (2016). Trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Beyond Behavior, 25(2), 41-46.

7 Mendler, A. N. (2000). Motivating students who don't care. Bloomington, IN: National Educational Service.

8 Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 18, 144-162.

Jim Wright

Jim Wright is a highly-acclaimed national presenter, trainer and author on topics that cover the essentials and beyond of Response to Intervention and Multi-Tiered System of Supports. He has worked for 17 years in public education as a school psychologist and school administrator. Jim has published "The RTI Toolkit: A Practical Guide for Schools" and is the creator of the InterventionCentral.org website.

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Managing Trauma-Informed Classrooms by Jim Wright

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Take a random walk through any school on any day and you may see challenging behaviors like these: Sean walks into class with an "attitude." He is argumentative with peers and fails to comply with adult requests. When his classroom becomes too loud, Ahmed will suddenly bolt from the room.

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Trauma Informed Care Classroom and Program Management

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Trauma Informed Care Classroom and Program Management

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Trauma Informed Care Classroom and Program Management

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Trauma Informed Oregon's Introduction to Trauma Informed Care (TIC) Online Training Modules

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Trauma Informed Oregon's Introduction to Trauma Informed Care (TIC) Online Training Modules

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TIO | Intro to Trauma Informed Care Training Modules

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TIO's Introduction to TIC Online Training Modules include four free, self-directed, self-paced modules that walk you through the basics of trauma informed care, as well as an introduction and closing video.

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Making Classrooms and Schools Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered

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Making Classrooms and Schools Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered

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Trauma-informed and resiliency-informed schools can address the following:

Recognize possible triggers at school.

Any stimulus that might remind a student of an overwhelming experience in their past can also lead to the same set of behaviors and/or emotions that originally experienced under stress. These include unpredictability, transitions, sudden change, loss of control, feeling vulnerable or rejected, or experiencing loneliness, sensory overload, confrontation, embarrassment or shame, praise, intimacy, and positive attention.

Be aware of signs or symptoms of distress.

Children, teens, and adults who may feel emotionally dysregulated can demonstrate the following behaviors: a deer-in-headlights look of fear, turning red and clenching fists, breathing more rapidly, bursting into tears or crying, moving the body (in readiness to run or react), keeping very still and/or quiet.

Provide choices.

A student who is triggered needs to regain a sense of control, because trauma can feel disempowering. Offer at least one appealing choice to that student (e.g., get a drink of water, go to our peace corner in the back, listen to music, take a break, work with a friend.).

After a teacher directs his class to prepare for a group project, he notices his student David's rapid breathing, flushed face, and trembling legs. The room is loud and chaotic as students assemble themselves into groups, so he asks David if he would like to take a quick break: "Would you like to get a quick drink of water or visit our quiet corner for a couple of minutes?" Then, he follows up later to find out whether David would prefer to work more closely with one member of his group for part of the project.

Reframe student behaviors.

Teach to students' strengths.

If teachers help students to identify their assets, provide predictable routines that foster student growth, and connect to students' experiences through their instructional activities, they are more likely to address the needs of students who experience trauma, violence, and chronic stress.

Reexamine school discipline practices.

Research suggests that exclusionary discipline (e.g., suspensions and expulsions) can be alienating and counterproductive, and restorative practices (strategies that focus on learning from mistakes and repairing relationships rather than punishing students) may offer a more humanizing, equitable, and respectful alternative.

Interrupt microaggressions.

A group of students in class laugh and yell, "That's so gay!" while commenting on the way a famous actor dresses, and the teacher pauses and inquires, "What do you mean by that?" or "When you say that, I worry that students in our class will not feel safe or accepted here." or "Did you mean to say something hurtful when you said that?"

Model and practice self-regulation strategies.

One way to encourage self-regulation is by strengthening the vagus nerve, a major channel of the parasympathetic ("rest and digest") nervous system. The vagus nerve is activated by shifting breathing patterns to lengthen the out-breath. When your out-breath extends longer than your in-breath, you calm can calm your body. (e.g., breath in for 3 seconds and out for 6 seconds.)

Pay attention to sensations.

A student notices that his stomach begins to ache right before having to take an exam. He is reading his body's signal of distress. When he notices this, he remembers to automatically take a few deep breaths (or he may try a brief body scan). His muscles begin to relax and his stomach ache begins to ease. He now feels ready to take the test because he feels less distress-and even feels better on the inside, too.

Engage in trauma-sensitive mindfulness practices.

When you introduce a mindfulness practice in your classroom, 1) invite students to keep their eyes open or closed-based on their comfort level; 2) encourage them to anchor their attention on a sound or body part (e.g., their hands or feet) rather than focusing on their breath, which can sometimes be triggering; and 3) consider incorporating some form of body movement like walking or simple yoga stretches or poses.

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Making Classrooms and Schools Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered | Greater Good In Education

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A 3-Step Approach To Help Heal Attachment Wounds

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A 3-Step Approach To Help Heal Attachment Wounds

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A 3-Step Approach To Help Heal Attachment Wounds - with Frank Anderson, MD

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The Attachment Theory: How Childhood Affects Life

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The Attachment Theory: How Childhood Affects Life

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The Attachment Theory: How Childhood Affects Life

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Vermont Child Welfare Training Partnership

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The Feelings Wheel, created by Dr. Gloria Willcox, can help us put words to emotions and care for our mental health.

While words may fall short in fully capturing the essence of emotion, they serve to identify and then communicate our experience.

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Learn how to understand and process your emotions, increase self-awareness, enhance emotional communication, and boost your wellbeing with the Feelings Wheel.

Sometimes feelings can be big and intense, and other times they're quiet, buried away, and harder to recognize. If you're feeling frustrated and angry, it might be difficult to point to just one feeling, but having several to choose from may help you to zero in on exactly what's going on inside.

Enter: The Feelings Wheel. The brainchild of Dr. Gloria Willcox, the Feelings Wheel can help us put words to our emotions and to care for our mental health.

What is the Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel offers a unique and nuanced approach to identifying and comprehending emotions. It's a tool that allows individuals to better navigate their inner emotional landscapes and foster healthier emotional intelligence.

Dr. Gloria Wilcox's Feelings Wheel draws from a diverse range of disciplines, including psychology, neuroscience, and linguistics.

How does the Feelings Wheel work?

The Feelings Wheel organizes the different dimensions of feelings we may have into several categories and subcategories to help you pinpoint exactly how you're feeling, which can be helpful, especially if you're overwhelmed by your emotions or in a heated communication.

At first glance, the Feelings Wheel resembles a color wheel, with concentric circles representing different layers of emotions. The Wheel is divided into primary emotions, secondary emotions, and tertiary emotions. Each layer delves deeper into the nuances of emotional experiences, allowing individuals to pinpoint their feelings with remarkable precision.

Primary emotions: The innermost circle of the wheel consists of broad primary emotions, such as happiness, sadness, anger, and fear. These emotions serve as the fundamental building blocks of our emotional experiences. They provide a general sense of how we are feeling, acting as a starting point for further exploration.

Secondary emotions: As we move outward, the wheel introduces secondary emotions that stem from the primary emotions. These emotions offer a more nuanced understanding of our feelings. For example, under the primary emotion of anger, secondary emotions like frustration, annoyance, and resentment can be found. This layer acknowledges that emotions are rarely singular; they often manifest as a complex blend of various feelings.

Tertiary emotions: The outermost layer of the Feelings Wheel unveils tertiary emotions, which are the most specific and detailed emotions one can experience. These emotions capture the subtle distinctions that make each emotional experience unique. Under frustration, for instance, tertiary emotions might include impatience, exasperation, or agitation.

Why use the Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel can serve as a guide to understand the intricate web of emotions we all feel and their interconnectedness with other emotions. It's a powerful tool that can help you explore your feelings more deeply and also express them more accurately so you can get the support you need, or simply process whatever emotions you're navigating.

Here are some of the benefits of using the Feelings Wheel.

The Feelings Wheel facilitates effective communication

Clear and accurate communication of emotions is pivotal in maintaining healthy connections with others. With the Feelings Wheel, you can effectively communicate your emotional states, enabling your loved ones or colleagues to respond to you with empathy and support. This tool helps break down barriers in conversations and fosters open dialogue about feelings.

The Feelings Wheel encourages mindful reflection

Being able to reflect on our emotions can benefit our emotional growth and wellbeing. The Feelings Wheel serves as a mirror that reflects the intricate tapestry of emotions within us. As you explore the various segments of the Wheel, you may discover emotions they hadn't previously recognized or considered.

This exploration cultivates increased self-awareness, allowing you gain insight into your thoughts and behaviors.

The Feelings Wheel can support emotional regulation

Emotionally regulating oneself is a fundamental aspect of mental wellbeing. The Feelings Wheel aids in this process by helping you to identify and label your emotions, which is the first step towards managing them.

When we can pinpoint our emotions, we are better equipped to implement strategies for emotional regulation. This might involve techniques like mindfulness, deep breathing, or engaging in activities that align with the corresponding emotional needs.

💙 If you're feeling stressed or overwhelmed, try this Sign of Relief guided meditation with Jay Shetty.

The Feelings Wheel can help you identify emotional patterns and triggers

The Feelings Wheel validates the diverse range of emotions we experience and can help us better pinpoint our triggers. It helps us understand that our emotional responses are valid and normal, which is especially important in cultures or environments that might stigmatize certain emotions.

This validation fosters a sense of empowerment, encouraging individuals to embrace their feelings without judgment and also to better learn how to manage them when they come up.

Support for mental health:

The Feelings Wheel has found a valuable place in therapy and mental health treatment. Therapists often use it as a tool to facilitate discussions about emotions, allowing clients to delve deeper into their experiences. Moreover, it aids therapists in teaching clients about emotional intelligence and coping strategies. As a result, the Feelings Wheel contributes to more effective therapeutic outcomes.

The Feelings Wheel helps to enhance emotional awareness

Empathy and emotional awareness are key in understanding and sharing our feelings with others. These are cornerstones of healthy relationships and effective communication.

The Feelings Wheel can help individuals cultivate empathy by encouraging them to explore emotions beyond their own experiences. By engaging with the wheel, people develop a broader perspective on emotions, enabling them to relate to and support others more effectively.
Using a tool like The Feelings Wheel can help you to get better in tune with yourself and your feelings. It can be a great tool for communication, or even when journaling your feelings. 💙 For more resources like this, check out Calm's Feelings Journal

How to use the Feelings Wheel

The Feelings Wheel serves as more than just a visual representation of emotions; it's a practical tool that empowers individuals to develop their emotional intelligence. Here's how the Feelings Wheel can be effectively utilized:

1. Download the Feelings Wheel

We recommend downloading this handy tool for the next time you can't quite name what's arising within.

We also included a black and white version of the feelings wheel so that you can color it in yourself. Coloring the wheel is an opportunity to get to know and contemplate each word.
Download the Feelings Wheel
2. Check-in with yourself

The first step in using the Feelings Wheel is to take a moment to check in with how you feel in the moment.

Take a few breaths and notice how your body feels. Do you have tension anywhere? Then check in with your emotions. Do you feel like you want to cry, hide, yell? Scan the wheel to discover what adjective best describes your state and then allow that understanding to empower how you want to meet the moment.

Figuring out the basic category of feelings you're in can help you to pinpoint exactly what's going on. Sometimes we struggle to accurately identify our emotions beyond the basic ones. The Feelings Wheel helps us delve deeper into our emotional states, allowing us to differentiate between, for instance, sadness and melancholy. This heightened emotional awareness is the cornerstone of emotional intelligence, fostering healthier self-expression and communication.

3. Communicate your emotions

Once you know exactly what you're feeling then you can start communicating it either to yourself, your partner, or someone else in your support system.

Expressing emotions can be a challenging task, especially when words fall short of capturing the complexity of feelings we're having. The Feelings Wheel offers a common language for describing emotions, enhancing communication between individuals. This can be particularly helpful in personal relationships, workplace settings, and therapy sessions, where understanding and articulating emotions is crucial.

4. Take appropriate action

Once you've expressed your feelings you can take action. By accurately identifying our emotions, we can better understand the triggers and underlying causes of our feelings. This insight empowers them to manage their emotional responses more effectively, reducing impulsive reactions and promoting thoughtful, measured responses.

💙 Feeling stressed? Try SOS Breath Work with Chibs Okereke.

Taking action with your feelings enables you to better understand and explore them. Learning about your feelings encourages you to engage in introspection, reflecting on the subtleties of our emotions and the deeper meanings behind them.

The Feelings Wheel FAQs

What is The Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel, created by Dr. Gloria Willcox can help us put words to our emotions which inturn can help us care for our mental health. Sometimes feelings can be big and intense and other times they are quiet, buried away, and harder to recognize. If you're feeling frustrated and angry, it might be difficult to point to just one feeling, but having several to choose from may help you to zero in on exactly what's going on inside.

How can I use it?

The Feelings Wheel serves as more than just a visual representation of emotions; it's a practical tool that empowers individuals to develop their emotional intelligence. The wheel made of concentric circles shows primary emotions and then breaks them down further into secondary and tertiary emotions to help you pinpoint exactly how you're feeling. It's a great tool for communication, or even journaling exactly how you're feeling. Download here.

What is it best used for?

The Feelings Wheel is best used for communication, but it also enhances emotional intelligence, empathy, reflection and emotional regulation.

Are there any downsides?

There are very few downsides to expressing your emotions when you're able to do it in a mindful manner. If you feel nervous about expressing how you feel, you can use The Feelings Wheel with a mental health professional. That way if expressing the feelings triggers anything big and scary, you have an advocate there to help you process it.

Where can I find The Feelings Wheel?

You can download it for free right here.

READ NEXT: 5 Benefits of Tracking Your Mood How are you feeling? A 31 Day Challenge

Calm your mind. Change your life.
Mental health is hard. Getting support doesn't have to be. The Calm puts the tools to feel better in your back pocket, with personalized content to manage stress and anxiety, get better sleep, and feel more present in your life. Calm your mind. Change the world.

Learn how to understand and process your emotions, increase self-awareness, enhance emotional communication, and boost your wellbeing with the Feelings Wheel.

Sometimes feelings can be big and intense, and other times they're quiet, buried away, and harder to recognize. If you're feeling frustrated and angry, it might be difficult to point to just one feeling, but having several to choose from may help you to zero in on exactly what's going on inside.

Enter: The Feelings Wheel. The brainchild of Dr. Gloria Willcox, the Feelings Wheel can help us put words to our emotions and to care for our mental health.

What is the Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel offers a unique and nuanced approach to identifying and comprehending emotions. It's a tool that allows individuals to better navigate their inner emotional landscapes and foster healthier emotional intelligence.

Dr. Gloria Wilcox's Feelings Wheel draws from a diverse range of disciplines, including psychology, neuroscience, and linguistics.

How does the Feelings Wheel work?

The Feelings Wheel organizes the different dimensions of feelings we may have into several categories and subcategories to help you pinpoint exactly how you're feeling, which can be helpful, especially if you're overwhelmed by your emotions or in a heated communication.

At first glance, the Feelings Wheel resembles a color wheel, with concentric circles representing different layers of emotions. The Wheel is divided into primary emotions, secondary emotions, and tertiary emotions. Each layer delves deeper into the nuances of emotional experiences, allowing individuals to pinpoint their feelings with remarkable precision.

Primary emotions: The innermost circle of the wheel consists of broad primary emotions, such as happiness, sadness, anger, and fear. These emotions serve as the fundamental building blocks of our emotional experiences. They provide a general sense of how we are feeling, acting as a starting point for further exploration.

Secondary emotions: As we move outward, the wheel introduces secondary emotions that stem from the primary emotions. These emotions offer a more nuanced understanding of our feelings. For example, under the primary emotion of anger, secondary emotions like frustration, annoyance, and resentment can be found. This layer acknowledges that emotions are rarely singular; they often manifest as a complex blend of various feelings.

Tertiary emotions: The outermost layer of the Feelings Wheel unveils tertiary emotions, which are the most specific and detailed emotions one can experience. These emotions capture the subtle distinctions that make each emotional experience unique. Under frustration, for instance, tertiary emotions might include impatience, exasperation, or agitation.

Why use the Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel can serve as a guide to understand the intricate web of emotions we all feel and their interconnectedness with other emotions. It's a powerful tool that can help you explore your feelings more deeply and also express them more accurately so you can get the support you need, or simply process whatever emotions you're navigating.

Here are some of the benefits of using the Feelings Wheel.

The Feelings Wheel facilitates effective communication

Clear and accurate communication of emotions is pivotal in maintaining healthy connections with others. With the Feelings Wheel, you can effectively communicate your emotional states, enabling your loved ones or colleagues to respond to you with empathy and support. This tool helps break down barriers in conversations and fosters open dialogue about feelings.

The Feelings Wheel encourages mindful reflection

Being able to reflect on our emotions can benefit our emotional growth and wellbeing. The Feelings Wheel serves as a mirror that reflects the intricate tapestry of emotions within us. As you explore the various segments of the Wheel, you may discover emotions they hadn't previously recognized or considered.

This exploration cultivates increased self-awareness, allowing you gain insight into your thoughts and behaviors.

The Feelings Wheel can support emotional regulation

Emotionally regulating oneself is a fundamental aspect of mental wellbeing. The Feelings Wheel aids in this process by helping you to identify and label your emotions, which is the first step towards managing them.

When we can pinpoint our emotions, we are better equipped to implement strategies for emotional regulation. This might involve techniques like mindfulness, deep breathing, or engaging in activities that align with the corresponding emotional needs.

💙 If you're feeling stressed or overwhelmed, try this Sign of Relief guided meditation with Jay Shetty.

The Feelings Wheel can help you identify emotional patterns and triggers

The Feelings Wheel validates the diverse range of emotions we experience and can help us better pinpoint our triggers. It helps us understand that our emotional responses are valid and normal, which is especially important in cultures or environments that might stigmatize certain emotions.

This validation fosters a sense of empowerment, encouraging individuals to embrace their feelings without judgment and also to better learn how to manage them when they come up.

Support for mental health:

The Feelings Wheel has found a valuable place in therapy and mental health treatment. Therapists often use it as a tool to facilitate discussions about emotions, allowing clients to delve deeper into their experiences. Moreover, it aids therapists in teaching clients about emotional intelligence and coping strategies. As a result, the Feelings Wheel contributes to more effective therapeutic outcomes.

The Feelings Wheel helps to enhance emotional awareness

Empathy and emotional awareness are key in understanding and sharing our feelings with others. These are cornerstones of healthy relationships and effective communication.

The Feelings Wheel can help individuals cultivate empathy by encouraging them to explore emotions beyond their own experiences. By engaging with the wheel, people develop a broader perspective on emotions, enabling them to relate to and support others more effectively.
Using a tool like The Feelings Wheel can help you to get better in tune with yourself and your feelings. It can be a great tool for communication, or even when journaling your feelings. 💙 For more resources like this, check out Calm's Feelings Journal

How to use the Feelings Wheel

The Feelings Wheel serves as more than just a visual representation of emotions; it's a practical tool that empowers individuals to develop their emotional intelligence. Here's how the Feelings Wheel can be effectively utilized:

1. Download the Feelings Wheel

We recommend downloading this handy tool for the next time you can't quite name what's arising within.

We also included a black and white version of the feelings wheel so that you can color it in yourself. Coloring the wheel is an opportunity to get to know and contemplate each word.
Download the Feelings Wheel
2. Check-in with yourself

The first step in using the Feelings Wheel is to take a moment to check in with how you feel in the moment.

Take a few breaths and notice how your body feels. Do you have tension anywhere? Then check in with your emotions. Do you feel like you want to cry, hide, yell? Scan the wheel to discover what adjective best describes your state and then allow that understanding to empower how you want to meet the moment.

Figuring out the basic category of feelings you're in can help you to pinpoint exactly what's going on. Sometimes we struggle to accurately identify our emotions beyond the basic ones. The Feelings Wheel helps us delve deeper into our emotional states, allowing us to differentiate between, for instance, sadness and melancholy. This heightened emotional awareness is the cornerstone of emotional intelligence, fostering healthier self-expression and communication.

3. Communicate your emotions

Once you know exactly what you're feeling then you can start communicating it either to yourself, your partner, or someone else in your support system.

Expressing emotions can be a challenging task, especially when words fall short of capturing the complexity of feelings we're having. The Feelings Wheel offers a common language for describing emotions, enhancing communication between individuals. This can be particularly helpful in personal relationships, workplace settings, and therapy sessions, where understanding and articulating emotions is crucial.

4. Take appropriate action

Once you've expressed your feelings you can take action. By accurately identifying our emotions, we can better understand the triggers and underlying causes of our feelings. This insight empowers them to manage their emotional responses more effectively, reducing impulsive reactions and promoting thoughtful, measured responses.

💙 Feeling stressed? Try SOS Breath Work with Chibs Okereke.

Taking action with your feelings enables you to better understand and explore them. Learning about your feelings encourages you to engage in introspection, reflecting on the subtleties of our emotions and the deeper meanings behind them.

The Feelings Wheel FAQs

What is The Feelings Wheel?

The Feelings Wheel, created by Dr. Gloria Willcox can help us put words to our emotions which inturn can help us care for our mental health. Sometimes feelings can be big and intense and other times they are quiet, buried away, and harder to recognize. If you're feeling frustrated and angry, it might be difficult to point to just one feeling, but having several to choose from may help you to zero in on exactly what's going on inside.

How can I use it?

The Feelings Wheel serves as more than just a visual representation of emotions; it's a practical tool that empowers individuals to develop their emotional intelligence. The wheel made of concentric circles shows primary emotions and then breaks them down further into secondary and tertiary emotions to help you pinpoint exactly how you're feeling. It's a great tool for communication, or even journaling exactly how you're feeling. Download here.

What is it best used for?

The Feelings Wheel is best used for communication, but it also enhances emotional intelligence, empathy, reflection and emotional regulation.

Are there any downsides?

There are very few downsides to expressing your emotions when you're able to do it in a mindful manner. If you feel nervous about expressing how you feel, you can use The Feelings Wheel with a mental health professional. That way if expressing the feelings triggers anything big and scary, you have an advocate there to help you process it.

Where can I find The Feelings Wheel?

You can download it for free right here.

READ NEXT: 5 Benefits of Tracking Your Mood How are you feeling? A 31 Day Challenge

Calm your mind. Change your life.
Mental health is hard. Getting support doesn't have to be. The Calm puts the tools to feel better in your back pocket, with personalized content to manage stress and anxiety, get better sleep, and feel more present in your life. Calm your mind. Change the world.

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The Feelings Wheel: unlock the power of your emotions - Calm Blog

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Learn how to understand and process your emotions, increase self-awareness, enhance emotional communication, and boost your wellbeing with the Feelings Wheel.

# data[].attributes.headline
Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

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Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

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Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

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Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.

# data[].attributes.headline
Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children.

# data[].attributes.subject
Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.

# data[].attributes.headline
Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children.

# data[].attributes.subject
Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

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Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.

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Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence—and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness—may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children.

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Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence—and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness—may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.

# data[].attributes.headline
There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve.

# data[].attributes.subject
There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.

# data[].attributes.headline
A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.  Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

# data[].attributes.subject
A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.  Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, and communities that promote the health and well-being of children and families. By using a protective factors approach, child welfare professionals and others can help parents find resources and supports that emphasize their strengths while also identifying areas where they need assistance, thereby reducing the chances of child abuse and neglect.

What are the protective factors to prevent child abuse and neglect?

There are a variety of protective factors approaches, with each highlighting a different set of factors. The following are the six factors included in the Children's Bureau's framework that community-based service providers can use to identify strengths within families and how those strengths can be further developed to prevent child abuse.

A child's early experiences of being nurtured and developing a bond with a caring adult affects all aspects of behavior and development. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.

Research shows that babies who receive affection and nurturing from their parents have the best chance of healthy development. A child's relationship with a consistent, caring adult in the early years is associated later in life with better academic grades, healthier behaviors, more positive peer interactions, and an increased ability to cope with stress.

Essentials for Childhood: Creating Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments for All Children (PDF - 24,945 KB)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Violence Prevention (2019)
Describes a framework to guide community activities to help build safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments for children and families. The guide outlines four main goals: to raise awareness and commitment to promoting safe, stable, and nurturing relationships; to use data to inform actions; to create the context for healthy children through norms change and program creation; and to create the context for healthy children through policy change.

Helping Caregivers Foster Secure Attachment in Young Children
Jackson (2017)
Social Work Today, 17(4)
Describes an intervention designed to help parents better identify behaviors that may contribute to insecure attachment and increase the quantity and quality of nurturing behaviors.

Responsive Care: Nurturing a Strong Attachment Through Everyday Moments
ZERO TO THREE (2016)
Showcases a video on responsive care, the process of watching and tuning into a child's cues and responding in a sensitive way in order to nurture and build attachment with the child.

There is extensive research linking healthy child development to effective parenting. Children thrive when parents provide not only affection but also respectful communication and listening, consistent rules and expectations, and safe opportunities that promote independence. Successful parenting fosters psychological adjustment, helps children succeed in school, encourages curiosity about the world, and motivates children to achieve. The following resources offer information that helps families build their knowledge of child and youth development.

Parents who can cope with the stresses of everyday life, as well an occasional crisis, have resilience; they have the flexibility and inner strength necessary to bounce back when things are not going well. Multiple life stressors, such as a family history of abuse or neglect, health problems, marital conflict, or domestic or community violence-and financial stressors, such as unemployment, poverty, and homelessness-may reduce a parent's capacity to cope effectively with the typical day-to-day stresses of raising children. The following resources support parents and caregivers in building their resilience.

Engaging Resilience: How Responsive Caregiving Lays the Foundation for Children to Thrive
LENA (2020)
Discusses the importance of the relationship with a caring adult provides children with the stability and security they need for healthy emotional, social, and behavioral development.

Parents and caregivers with a social network of emotionally supportive friends, family, and neighbors often find that it is easier to care for their children and themselves compared with those who do not have such a network. All caregivers need people they can call on once in a while when they need a sympathetic listener, advice, or concrete support. Research has shown that parents who are isolated and have few social connections are at higher risk for maltreating their children. The following resources provide an array of information that help families enhance their social connections.

Many factors can affect a family's ability to care for its children.

Partnering with parents to identify and access resources in the community may help prevent the stress that sometimes precipitates child maltreatment. Providing concrete supports may also help prevent the unintended neglect that sometimes occurs when parents are unable to provide for their children. The following resources outline resources that offer help to parents and caregivers.

Find Support
National Parent Helpline
Provides links to national resources for a wide range of supports, including basic needs, social support emergency numbers, parenting education, and more. The webpage also includes State-specific resources.

Making Connections
Annie E. Casey Foundation
This initiative operates on the premise that families do better when they live in communities that help them to succeed. Information on theory, sites, results, and reading materials are provided.

Parents support healthy social and emotional development in children when they model how to express and communicate emotions effectively, self-regulate, and make friends. A child's social and emotional competence is crucial to sound relationships with family, adults, and peers. Conversely, delayed social-emotional development may obstruct healthy relationships. Early identification of such delays and early assistance for children and parents can provide support for family relationships and sustain positive and appropriate development.

Social-Emotional Competence of Children: Protective and Promotive Factors (PDF - 202 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2018)
Discusses the link between children's level of social and emotional competence and their language skills, mental health, and school success.

Children's Social Emotional Development and Mental Health: Why Does It Matter?
Children's Bureau and Learning Coordination Center
Highlights why it's important for all child-and family-serving programs to integrate increased support for the social emotional development of young children and the well-being of their caregivers.

Protective factors framework

A protective factors framework provides a better understanding on how six protective factors may contribute to or explain positive outcomes for children, families, and communities, as well as prevent child abuse and neglect. The resources below provide examples of the protective factors approaches commonly used in child welfare systems.

Protective Factors and Protective Capacities: Common Ground for Protecting Children and Strengthening Families [Infographic] (PDF - 233 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2016)
Describes the protective capacities framework and the protective factors framework, both of which are used by child welfare practitioners to assess, intervene, and serve families as well as explores the common ground the frameworks share to help strengthen consistency in services for families.

Protective Factors Approaches in Child Welfare

Provides an overview of national protective factors approaches to prevent child abuse and neglect. It is designed to help child welfare professionals, administrators, service providers, policymakers, and other interested individuals understand the concepts of protective and risk factors in families and communities and learn ways in which building protective factors can help lower the risk of child abuse and neglect now and in the future.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Protective Factors to Promote Well-Being and Prevent Child Abuse & Neglect

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk in families and communities that, when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families.