Using data from a nationally representative sample of caregivers in the second cohort of families of the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, this study found that child welfare caseworkers employed informational referral strategies for mental health services twice as often as social referral strategies. However, caregivers whose caseworkers used social referral strategies—either alone or alongside informational strategies—had significantly higher odds of receiving mental health services. Specifically, caregivers who received assistance with completing paperwork, scheduling appointments, or attending treatment sessions with their caseworkers were more likely to obtain the mental health care they needed.
