The California Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (CAPSAC) annually awards a grant of $750 for outstanding research by a graduate student (or early career professional up to one-year post MA/PhD) in the field of child maltreatment, child welfare, foster care, or a related topic. The recipient will also receive a one-year membership to APSAC (American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children) and CAPSAC. 

Paul Crissey served as President of CAPSAC during its formative years in the early 90s and dedicated his professional life to the welfare of children. Paul’s love was teaching, as he worked as a high school teacher for many years before he became the Coordinator for the Child Abuse Prevention Program in Contra Costa County and then Director of Training for the California Consortium for the Prevention of Child Abuse. His great sense of humor was always uplifting, and he was a powerful advocate for multidisciplinary teams. CAPSAC has proudly honored Paul Crissey with this award since 1998. 

AWARD SUBMISSION INFORMATION

First place:
Krystal Wilbert, California State University, Los Angeles. The Effects of Type of Abuse and Victim Age on Juror Decision-Making

Second place:
Anthony Gomez, University of California, Berkeley. Bringing Development to the Forefront: An Investigation of Foster Care Trajectories and Placement Instability in a Sample of California Adolescents

Dana Hartman, University of California, Davis. Childhood Sexual Abuse: A Longitudinal Study of Disclosures and Denials

PAST RECIPIENTS

2023 Katelyn Ray & Yuerui WU
1) Examining the Relationship Between Maternal Childhood Maltreatment and Parenting Among First-Time Mothers. California State University Fullerton (Ray)
2) Interpersonal Familiarity and Memory. University of California Davis (Wu)

2022 Maha Al-Suwaidi & Shreya Mukhopadhyay
1) Socioeconomic Correlates of Childhood Neglect. University of California Los Angeles (Al-Suwaidi)
2) Foster Children’s Placement Preferences: The Roles of Kin, Siblings and Age. University of California Irvine (Mukhopadhyay)

2021 Lindsay Palmer
A Population-Based Examination of Adolescent Suicide and Child Protective Service Involvement. University of Southern California.

2020 Mayra Cazares
Why Self-Love & Connectedness Matters: Enhancing Positive Outcomes among Transition-Age Youth. UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare.

2019 Jaclyn Chambers
RED Teams: Evaluating an innovative team approach to child maltreatment decision-making. UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare.

2018 Julia Hernandez
A Family Approach to Child Maltreatment: Engaging Fathers in the Child Welfare System. UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare.

2017 Catalaine Knell
Munchausen By Proxy. CSULA.

2016 Wendella Wray
A Wellness Tele-Coaching Intervention to Support Low SES Families in the “Nurturing Parenting Program”: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Loma Linda University.

2015 Sue D. Hobbs & Rakel P. Larson
Systematic Review of Interviewer Support and Rapport Effects on Children’s Reports. UC Davis & UCLA, Psychology.

2009 Maria Salazar & Denise Maria LaLande
Defining Verbal Aggression in Child Abuse Cases by Professional Social Workers. CSULA Social Work. (Salazar)
Half Measures Availed Us Nothing: Policy and Practice Analysis of Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services and Substance- Abusing Parents. CSULA Social Work. (LaLande)

2005 Jeffrey K. Ellens
The Effects of Domestic Violence, Child Abuse, and Parenting Stress on Psychological Distress in Children. UC Santa Barbara, Clinical Psychology.

2003 Polina Bryson
The Relationship Among Intimate Partner Satisfaction, Quality of Parent-Child Interactions, and Child Physical Abuse Potential. Alliant International University, San Diego, Psychology.

2000 Jodi Quas
Children’s Memories of Experienced and Non-Experienced Events Across Repeated Interviews. UC Davis, Developmental Psychology.

1998 Debra Young Kaplan
Maltreated Children’s Perception of Their Placement Experience. UCLA.