GUIDELINES FOR RESEARCH USING DATA FROM THE CANADIAN INCIDENCE STUDY OF REPORTED CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT (CIS)
Application Procedures • Qualified Researchers • Study Protocol • Conditions of Use
The Injury and Child Maltreatment Section of the Public Health Agency of Canada has a mandate for national surveillance and epidemiologic research on child abuse and neglect. In this capacity, the section has supported the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect. This is a national study of child maltreatment, its associated factors, and selected short-term outcomes. Data were collected from a representative sample of child welfare authorities using a multi-stage sampling design. More information about the CIS can be found at: www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/cm-vee/cis-eng.php. The Injury and Child Maltreatment Section strives to collaborate with other researchers with the following aims:
(1) to extend the knowledge of child maltreatment, its risk factors and its consequences and;
(2) to assist in the training of researchers who specialize in child maltreatment issues.
Application Procedures
In order to meet these objectives, the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section will release data from the CIS to qualified researchers who provide the following information:
- A study protocol, to be approved by the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section Review Committee (see below),
- Letter of support from your thesis supervisor (applicable to students*), and
- A signed and dated copy of this form. Signature constitutes acceptance of the conditions listed below.
The data set and codebook will be provided on a CD-ROM - under no circumstances will data be e-mailed. Data are available in SPSS and DAT formats.
Qualified Researchers
The Injury and Child Maltreatment Section Review Committee will consider applications from the following:
(1) Faculty members, affiliates, or students* of recognized universities, hospitals, public health units, or government departments or ministries.
*Students require written evidence of faculty or departmental approval of their research protocol as well as written support from their research supervisor or advisor. In addition, the research supervisor or advisor must be familiar with the conditions of use of the data (see Conditions of use section below) and ensure that the student adheres to them.
(2) Associates of international health agencies, non-governmental organizations or other organizations involved in health, social service, or criminal justice research.
(3) Private consultants and contractors may be eligible if:
- They are under contract to a researcher or organization meeting the above requirements, or
- They are contracted to an organization working in partnership with the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section or working on a project supported by or endorsed by the Public Health Agency of Canada.
Study Protocol
Please provide the following information – points 4 to 7 should be developed on 5-10 double-spaced pages:
(Applications that do not provide sufficient information will not be considered)
- Study title.
- Names and professional designations of researchers.
- Organizational affiliation, mailing address, telephone and fax numbers.
- A brief review of what is known about the issue you propose to address and why it is important that the proposed study be done.
- A detailed statement of your research question(s)
- How you propose to answer the research question(s) by using the CIS data including:
- The records and variables to be used
- The sample size (approximate if not known)
- A detailed statistical analysis plan - The contribution your research would make to knowledge about child maltreatment
- Other questions to be addressed:
- Other than the principal investigators, who will be using the data?
- How long do you expect to be using the data?
- How will you ensure that the data remain secure?
Conditions of Use
Those granted permission to use the CIS data must agree to the following conditions:
- The data shall be kept strictly confidential and shall not be released to any other person or organization without prior written permission from the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section. Access to the data is restricted to those directly involved in the stated research who have received written permission to use the data from the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section. To help ensure confidentiality, the data shall not be stored on publicly accessible computers, computer networks, or file servers, and shall not be sent by the researcher(s) entirely or partially by e-mail.
- The use of the data is restricted to the present research. Any changes to the study, including but not limited to: its objectives, methods or scope, shall be communicated to and approved by the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section before it is performed.
- Any suspected errors or inconsistencies in the database shall be reported immediately to the Public Health Agency of Canada.
- Upon completion of the research, all copies of the CIS data set shall be removed from all computer hard drives and electronic storage media and destroyed. The CD-ROM containing the original data set shall be returned to the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section.
- In the interest of strict confidentiality no analysis shall be undertaken that is sufficiently detailed to identify individual cases. Statistics calculated on fewer than 6 cases shall not be reported.
- Linkage with other sources and/or data sets for the purpose of identifying individuals or families participating in the CIS shall not be undertaken.
- Researchers shall note the contribution of the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section by including an acknowledgment in all reports or publications (whether printed, electronic, or broadcast) resulting from the use of the CIS data. One of the following citations shall be used in all published work:
- For 1998 data only, use:
Data used in this publication are from the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect, and are used with the permission of the Public Health Agency of Canada. The study was funded by the federal, provincial and territorial governments of Canada and the Bell Canada Child Welfare Research Unit of the University of Toronto. The analyses and interpretations presented in this work do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the above-mentioned sponsors.
- For 2003 data, or both 1998 and 2003 data, use:
Data used in this publication are from the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect, and are used with the permission of the Public Health Agency of Canada. The study was funded by the federal, provincial and territorial governments of Canada, the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society, and the Bell Canada Child Welfare Research Unit of the University of Toronto. The analyses and interpretations presented in this work do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the above-mentioned sponsors.
8. Researchers shall submit a copy of any published work or report to the Injury and Child Maltreatment Section of the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).
*Please submit a signed hard copy of the Agreement with the Conditions of Use document (no faxes, photocopies, or e-mails) to:
Injury and Child Maltreatment Section
Health Surveillance and Epidemiology Division
Public Health Agency of Canada
200 Eglantine Driveway
Tunney’s Pasture, A.L. 1910C
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0K9
