Incidence of Child Abuse and the Development of Resilience in the Abused: A Traditional Statistical Plus GIS-Based Spatial Analysis Case Study in Egypt

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis study investigates the association between child abuse and the victim's negative feelings (sense of hopelessness) as well as the impact of demographic factors such as age, gender, and residence on both the incidence of child abuse and the development of those negative feelings in the victim. A total of 1,750 abused children between the ages of five and twelve years old, from fifty-eight villages and cities in the Assiut Governorate of Egypt, were interviewed about their experiences. It was found that abuse was just as likely to occur in urban and rural areas, and to either gender. Abused male children were less likely to disclose their abuse than female children and this difference was greater in urban areas. A child was more likely to report abuse when isolated and socially alienated, regardless of gender or place of residence. Interventions such as neighborhood improvements, psychotherapy, and parent training would help reduce the incidence of abuse and enable abused children to gain resilience.