The relationship between race and child welfare service outcomes is confounded by relationships among race and other contributors to poor child welfare outcomes. Child welfare researchers should explicitly consider race and ethnicity in designing and conducting their studies. Service approaches intended to meet the special needs of children of color should be developed and rigorously evaluated. As long as children of color remain more likely than white children to grow up in situations that put them at increased risk of child abuse and neglect, they will continue to be overrepresented as clients with less desirable outcomes. Empirical literature on relationships among race, services, and outcomes in selected domains of child welfare is reviewed. Conceptual and methodological considerations for future research on the subject and for the development of culturally competent child welfare services are presented. 68 references