Abstract
BackgroundDisclosure is a difficult but important process for victims of child maltreatment. There is limited research on child maltreatment disclosure. Young people have been reluctant to disclose victimization to adults, but short message service (SMS) crisis services may represent one novel method of engaging young people around sensitive topics.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to determine characteristics of child maltreatment disclosure to an SMS-based crisis service.MethodsWe conducted a content analysis of all conversations (N=244) that resulted in a mandatory report by an SMS-based crisis service between October 2015 and July 2017. We coded characteristics of the disclosure process, including the reason for initial contact, phrase used to disclose abuse, perpetrator, type of abuse, and length of victimization. After identifying terms used by young people to disclose child abuse, we randomly selected and analyzed 50 conversations using those terms to determine if use of the terms differed between conversations that did and did not result in mandatory report.ResultsParents were the most common perpetrator. Physical abuse was the most common form of abuse discussed in the initial abuse disclosure (106/244, 43.4%), followed by psychological abuse (83/244, 34.0%), sexual abuse (38/244, 15.6%), and neglect (15/244, 6.1%). More than half of the texters discussed abuse or other significant family issues in the first message. An explicit description of the experience or definite language, such as abuse, rape, and molested, was common in disclosures.ConclusionsEarly disclosure, combined with explicit language, may suggest at least a portion of young victims are actively seeking safe ways to talk about their experiences with abuse, rather than incidentally sharing experiences while seeking support for other issues. SMS text messaging may be a valuable way to engage with young people around sensitive topics, but these approaches will require careful consideration in their development, implementation, and evaluation to ensure a positive experience for young people.
Highlights
The heaviest texters are much more likely than lighter texters to say that they talk on their cell phone daily
What follows are the findings from a study conducted by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project in partnership with the Family Online Safety Institute and supported by Cable in the Classroom
The data discussed in this report are the result of a three-part, multi-modal study that included interviews with experts, seven focus groups with middle and high school students, and a nationally representative random-digit-dial telephone survey of teens and parents
Summary
The volume of texting among teens has risen from 50 texts a day in 2009 to 60 texts for the median teen text user. Are the key findings about the role of texting in teens’ lives: The median number of texts (i.e. the midpoint user in our sample) sent on a typical day by teens [12,13,14,15,16,17] rose from 50 in 2009 to 60 in 2011 Much of this increase occurred among older teens ages [14,15,16,17], who went from a median of 60 texts a day to a median of 100 two years later. The heaviest texters (those who exchange more than 100 texts a day) are much more likely than lighter texters to say that they talk on their cell phone daily. Older teens ages 14 to 17 are more likely to use location-based services (9%) than 12 and 13year-olds, of whom less than 1% report using a location-based service
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