Spatial Relationships between Neighbourhood Characteristics and Rates of Children from Ethnocultural Communities Reported to Child Protective Services

Objectives The objectives of this study were to 1) map the spatial distribution of rates of children reported to Montreal child protective services by ethnocultural group (Black, other visible minorities, not from visible minorities) and (2) estimate the relative contribution of different neighbourhood characteristics to the rates for those groups. Method The study covered the 505 Montreal-area census tracts for which complete data were available. The rates of children reported by group (dependent variables) and various territorial characteristics such as poverty (independent variables) were mapped and subjected to multiple linear regression and geographically weighted regression. The results of the geographically weighted regression were then mapped. Results The geographic distribution and rates of children reported varied greatly by group, with the Black children having the highest rates. Although neighbourhood characteristics explained 51% of variance for the children who were not members of visible minorities, they were clearly less effective in predicting rates in the case of Black children (18%) and other minorities (18%). Conclusion Already well-known neighbourhood risk factors are at work in Montreal, but their influence is not equally strong in all census tracts nor, especially, in all ethnocultural groups. Therefore, when only the distribution and prediction of reports for all children as a whole are examined, important differences are underestimated. Access to and appropriateness of services offered to vulnerable families, including those of visible minorities, could, however, be improved with a better understanding of local dynamics.