Children's Abuse Disclosures Research Articles

Caregivers' Perceptions of Child Trauma Symptomatology, Stress, and Child Abuse Disclosures.

Caregivers consider child abuse disclosures stressful life events, but research has not investigated whether this stress affects caregiver ratings of child trauma symptomatology. Secondary data from a Child Advocacy Center in the Midwestern United States between the period of January 1, 2018, and April 31, 2019, stepwise logistic regression models, and change in estimate calculations were used to assess (1) the relationship between child abuse disclosure(s) and caregiver stress and (2) the association between caregiver stress disclosure and clinically significant ratings on the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC). While a child's physical abuse disclosure was associated with caregiver stress and caregiver stress was significantly associated with clinically significant ratings for child depression and anger/aggression TSCYC scales, abuse disclosure did not affect the relationship between caregiver stress and TSCYC scale ratings. Moving forward, caregiver-reported stress should be considered when utilizing caregiver-completed child trauma symptom screens.

How Interviewers Navigate Child Abuse Disclosure After an Unproductive Start in Forensic Interviews

Obtaining abuse disclosure from children in forensic interviews can be challenging for interviewers. The present study explored strategies interviewers used when children did not disclose abuse in response to the initial invitation to provide the interview purpose. The sample included 116 forensic interviews with 4- to 16-year-olds who ultimately disclosed abuse (85% sexual). Interviewer strategies were coded following the non-productive initial invitation until the point of children’s eventual disclosure. Four main types of strategies were found: re-phrasing the initial transition prompt, asking a follow-up question, introducing prior information, and using a minimal encourager (e.g., “Uh-huh”). Strategies were coded as high- or low-quality. Consistent with predictions, 85% of children’s disclosures followed high-quality strategies. In a cycle of effective communication, such interviewer strategies predicted informative child responses, which then led to subsequent high-quality interviewer strategies. Both interviewers and children demonstrated consistency in their question and response patterns, respectively. Coupled with additional exploratory sequential analyses of interviewer-child reciprocal communication and the prior research literature, the present data suggest practical ways that interviewers can break ineffective cycles of communication in the process of obtaining child abuse disclosures.

Disclosing the abuse: The effect of ethnoreligious identity on CSA disclosure in forensic interviews

Multiple studies have examined sexually abused children and their interactions with the legal system, as manifested in children's disclosures of sexual abuse during forensic interviews. Nevertheless, few have done so while referencing contextual variables, such as ethnoreligious identity. The current study was designed to examine how ethnoreligious identity affects children's disclosure in forensic interviews beyond the contribution of child characteristics and abuse characteristics. In addition, the moderating role of pre-interview disclosure was examined. An analysis of 1054 forensic interviews conducted in Israel indicated a relationship between a child's age, gender, and abuse characteristics (i.e., perpetrator identity and type of abuse) with the likelihood of disclosure during the forensic interview. The results indicated a relationship between ethnoreligious identity and forensic disclosure. Unexpectedly, Muslim Arab children were more likely to disclose than Jewish children. Predictably, pre-interview disclosure moderated the relationship between abuse characteristics and ethnoreligious identity (among Jews) and forensic disclosure. Conversely, it did not moderate the relationship between child characteristics and disclosure during the forensic interview. The findings demonstrate the importance of a context-informed examination of child abuse disclosure and its potential to advance the development of services adapted to children from diverse communities.

A retrospective approach to examining child abuse disclosure

BackgroundOften times, a child’s disclosure is the only forensic evidence available in child abuse cases. Therefore, understanding disclosure patterns of suspected child abuse victims plays a critical role in the forensic investigations of both child physical abuse (CPA) and child sexual abuse (CSA) cases. ObjectiveTo explore adults’ retrospective reports about childhood disclosure of CPA and CSA. Participants and settingCollege students (N = 907) were screened for reported histories of CSA (n = 94) or CPA (n = 109). MethodsThrough an online survey, participants provided anonymous information regarding CSA and CPA experiences along with information about any disclosure events or opportunities that they have encountered since the abuse. ResultsAmong the adults reporting CSA histories, 50 % indicated disclosing the abuse during childhood; 80 % indicated any lifetime disclosure. Among the adults indicating CPA histories, 32 % reportedly disclosed the abuse to someone during childhood with 52 % reporting any lifetime disclosure. For both groups, length of delay until disclosure was bimodal with many individuals reporting immediately and many waiting considerable time. Among adults reporting CSA, a minority (16 %) indicated the abuse came to the attention of authorities, with even fewer CPA cases (8%) reporting authorities were aware of their abuse. Denial and recantation in a formal setting was infrequent regardless of abuse type reported. ConclusionsGiven that participants experiencing CSA and CPA both reported low levels of denial and recantation, forensic investigators and practitioners may benefit from considering consistent interviewing approaches and protocols, regardless of the type of abuse suspected.

Help-Seeking Behaviors in Non-Offending Caregivers of Abused Children in the Philippines

ABSTRACTThe help-seeking process among non-offending caregivers (NOCs) of abused children particularly in the non-Western context has yet to be elucidated. The objective of the current study was to investigate what proportion of Filipino NOCs of abused children sought professional support services within 12 months following child abuse disclosure (T1) and at 12 months (T2) follow-up in the Philippines. Two further aims were to investigate NOCs’ preferred service providers and settings and to explore barriers to help-seeking. A comparison group of Filipino parents without an abused child were also recruited to compare preferences and potential barriers to help seeking for child and family problems. A total of 47 NOCs and 70 comparison parents/guardians completed questionnaires, which assessed help-seeking preferences and barriers as well as parental stress. The majority of NOCs reported seeking help, which was perceived to be helpful. Almost two thirds of NOCs indicated preference for in-person counseling relative to the comparison group of parents. The majority of NOCs preferred seeking help from social workers and psychologists. Almost one third of both parental samples reported being judged as an unfit parent as a key barrier to seeking help for family problems. The findings have implications for psychological and allied health service providers in facilitating the adjustment for families of recently abused children.

Parental Relations and Family Functioning in Non-Offending Caregivers of Abused Children

There is a paucity of research on family adjustment following child abuse disclosure including non-Western samples. The overarching aim of the current study was to investigate perceived family relations and family functioning in non-offending caregivers (NOCs) of abused children compared with parents of non-abused children in a Filipino sample. In particular, we investigated whether parental history of abuse and current depression and anxiety/stress would influence NOCs’ perceptions of parent–child relations, spousal/partner relationship satisfaction, social support and family functioning compared to caregivers of non-abused children. A self-report survey was completed by 92 NOCs and 94 parents of non-abused children from the Philippines. Results revealed that NOCs of abused children reported poorer parent–child relations, lower spousal/partner relationship satisfaction, greater family disengagement and chaotic family functioning than parents of non-abused children. Furthermore, depressed and anxious/stressed parents (irrespective of whether their child was abused or not) reported significant conflict and distant child–parent relationship, as well as poorer family functioning including poor communication and low family satisfaction. Interestingly however, parental abuse history did not have a significant interaction effect between the two parental groups on any of the outcomes. These findings underscore the need to assess both NOCs’ and clinically distressed caregivers in relation to their child and partner/spouse relations and family functioning in order to provide targeted interventions to improve family outcomes.

Interviewing Children Versus Tossing Coins: Accurately Assessing the Diagnosticity of Children's Disclosures of Abuse

We describe a Bayesian approach to evaluating children's abuse disclosures and review research demonstrating that children's disclosure of genital touch can be highly probative of sexual abuse, with the probative value depending on disclosure spontaneity and children's age. We discuss how some commentators understate the probative value of children's disclosures by: confusing the probability of abuse given disclosure with the probability of disclosure given abuse, assuming that children formally questioned about sexual abuse have a low prior probability of sexual abuse, misstating the probative value of abuse disclosure, and confusing the distinction between disclosure and nondisclosure with the distinction between true and false disclosures. We review interviewing methods that increase the probative value of disclosures, including interview instructions, narrative practice, noncontingent reinforcement, and questions about perpetrator/caregiver statements and children's reactions to the alleged abuse.

An analysis of allegations of sexual abuse in a multi-victim day-care center case

Sexual abuse in day-care centers is a phenomenon of increasing concern, both in terms of its prevalence and its serious effects on child victims. Legal intervention in this area is problematic because criminal investigations are usually beset with difficulties: Characteristics of children and of the abuse situation affect disclosure rates and credibility. Research on children as witnesses is amassing; however, so far, little systematic analysis has been conducted on multi-victim child sexual abuse cases. The present study concerns a case of sexual abuse in a day-care center with over 100 alleged victims. Criteria derived from Statement Validity Analysis (SVA) protocols were applied to aggregate record review data to assess the veritability of the abuse allegations. Individual children's abuse disclosures were also analyzed, vis-à-vis characteristics of the children (age, gender, recency of attendance) and of the investigation (agency doing the interview, number of interviews, use of anatomically detailed dolls). The use of SVA criteria supported the veritability of allegations in this day-care abuse case. Even acknowledging the limitations of archival data collected for other purposes, the aggregate data analysis reflected consistency, logical structure, and spontaneity; however, little evidence of accommodation was found. Multivariate comparison of disclosing and nondisclosing children found an unexpected inverse relationship of disclosure with age, as well as positive associations with number of interviews and use of dolls. Alternative interpretations of these results are discussed.