Abstract
PurposeWe sought to investigate the relationship between neighborhood social capital and infant physical abuse using a population-based sample of women with 4-month-old infants in Japan.MethodsA questionnaire was administered to women who participated in a 4-month health checkup program (n = 1277; valid response rate, 80 %). We inquired about their perceptions of the level of trust in their neighborhood (an indicator of “social capital”) as well as the availability of support from their personal social networks. Infant physical abuse during the past month was assessed by self-reports of spanking, shaking or smothering.ResultsThe prevalence of infant physical abuse at 4 months of age was 9.0 % (95 % confidence interval [CI], 7.6–10.7 %). Women living in trusting neighborhoods were less likely to report infant physical abuse compared to those living in areas with low neighborhood trust (odds ratio [OR] 0.25, 95 % CI 0.06–0.97). In addition, women with supportive social networks were less likely to report infant physical abuse (OR 0.59, 95 % CI 0.36–0.99).ConclusionsIn addition to one’s personal social network, social trust in the neighborhood was independently associated with lowered risk of infant physical abuse. To prevent infant abuse, interventions should consider strengthening community social bonds in addition to strengthening the social network of isolated mothers.
Highlights
Child abuse is associated with a host of adverse outcomes including developmental delay [1, 2], poor academic performance [3, 4], mental disorders [5, 6], asthma [7, 8], obesity [9], cardiovascular disease [10], and even premature mortality later in adult life [11]
Our findings suggest that community social capital— as measured by perceptions of trust among neighbors, and the presence of supportive networks in the community—is protective of mother-to-infant physical aggression
Perceived neighborhood trust was protectively associated with infant physical abuse independent of the availability of supportive social networks in the community
Summary
Child abuse is associated with a host of adverse outcomes including developmental delay [1, 2], poor academic performance [3, 4], mental disorders [5, 6], asthma [7, 8], obesity [9], cardiovascular disease [10], and even premature mortality later in adult life [11]. The timing of child abuse is crucial [12,13,14]; the impact of child abuse is greater if abuse occurs at earlier developmental stages, such as infancy, due to the fragility of the infant brain as well as accumulation of damage over time [15,16,17]. The prevention of infant abuse depends on the identification of modifiable risk factors. Other social factors which are modifiable, such as social network or social capital within neighborhood [36], should instead be examined
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