Factors that Affect Decision Making in Child Protection Assessment in Estonia: The Removal of Children from Home
Karmen Toros

Abstract
This article is concerned with unresearchedarea of child welfare—factors that affect decision making in child protection, particularly as it is related to the decision whether or not to remove a child from home. Social work in Estonia has not had a long tradition (21 years of practice), therefore there is a strong need to develop an effective child protection system that responds to adequate satisfaction of children’s needs. The author of this article sought to understand how Estonian child protection workers make assessment related decisions in cases where child protection concerns have been identified. Given that child protection workers must exercise a high degree of professional judgment, it was important to understand based on what decisions are made in practice. This article gives an overview of the relevant literature, followed by a description of methods, findings and conclusions. Practice implications and future directions of research are discussed.

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