Early Child Abuse Research Articles

Identifying the Mechanisms Linking Child Abuse Victimization and Substance Use and Misuse Among an Adult Population in China

ABSTRACT Existing research reveals that early child abuse victimization and substance use and misuse in adulthood have a major relationship. To enhance the understanding of the relationship, we proposed models linking child abuse victimization to substance use and misuse later in life through a social learning process and a psychological strain process channeled through deviant peer association, perceived harms of substance use, self-esteem, and psychological distress. Using data from a probability sample of 2,799 adults in a Chinese city, we conducted an SEM analysis to test the relationships among the conceptual constructs. Child abuse victimization exhibited positive and indirect effects on multiple forms of substance use and misuse, including frequency of tobacco use, frequency of binge drinking, and illicit drug use. Deviant peer association and perceived harms of substance use mediated all effects of child abuse victimization on substance use and misuse in adulthood. Self-esteem and psychological distress, however, played varied roles in the mediating processes. Overall, child abuse victimization demonstrated a significant indirect effect on substance use and misuse in adulthood. To understand whether child abuse victimization is related to substance use behavior in adulthood, examining the indirect links between child abuse victimization and substance use and misuse is critical.

Fostering Tomorrow: Uniting Artificial Intelligence and Social Pediatrics for Comprehensive Child Well-being.

This comprehensive review explores the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of social pediatrics, emphasizing its potential to revolutionize child healthcare. Social pediatrics, a specialized branch within the discipline, focuses on the significant influence of societal, environmental, and economic factors on children's health and development. This field adopts a holistic approach, integrating medical, psychological, and environmental considerations. This review aims to explore the potential of AI in revolutionizing child healthcare from social pediatrics perspective. To achieve that, we explored AI applications in preventive care, growth monitoring, nutritional guidance, environmental risk factor prediction, and early detection of child abuse. The findings highlight AI's significant contributions in various areas of social pediatrics. Artificial intelligence's proficiency in handling large datasets is shown to enhance diagnostic processes, personalize treatments, and improve overall healthcare management. Notable advancements are observed in preventive care, growth monitoring, nutritional counseling, predicting environmental risks, and early child abuse detection. We find that integrating AI into social pediatric healthcare aims to enhance the effectiveness, accessibility, and equity of pediatric health services. This integration ensures high-quality care for every child, regardless of their social background. The study elucidates AI's multifaceted applications in social pediatrics, including natural language processing, machine learning algorithms for health outcome predictions, and AI-driven tools for health and environmental monitoring, collectively fostering a more efficient, informed, and responsive pediatric healthcare system.

Unveiling the shadows: Parental perceptions and familial impact of daycare abuse of preschool children

BackgroundPreschoolers are at an increased risk of experiencing abuse, especially from caregivers. Early child abuse has adverse continuances on children's short and long-term development. The majority of previous studies were conducted in the 1990s in the United States, focusing primarily on sexual abuse. Despite the recently increasing public awareness of daycare abuse (DA), empirical studies on this topic have not yet been conducted in Israel. ObjectiveThe current study was designed to examine parents' perceptions regarding the DA of their preschool children. MethodThe data were collected through semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 14 parents of children who underwent DA. Qualitative analysis was performed on the narratives of the participants. FindingsThree main themes were identified: 1) parental shock, 2) community echoes, and 3) ripples of trauma. The study revealed the dramatic consequences of DA on children and their families. The families dealt with the consequences of the traumatic DA event, which destabilized almost every part of their lives. The study found that parents felt alone and without assistance from the authorities while facing the consequences of the DA. ConclusionsIn examining the parents' perspectives, the current study's findings presented essential empirical knowledge regarding the DA phenomenon and encouraged future studies in this area. This study has the potential to serve as a basis for the creation of professional training programs.

Exploring the prospective role of relationships and psychological distress in postpartum risk of intergenerational continuity of child maltreatment

Objectives: This prospective longitudinal study aimed to explore the role of family relationships (romantic satisfaction and mother-infant bonding) and psychological distress in the associations between four child maltreatment (CM) subtypes (sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, neglect) and early child abuse potential in young mothers.Methods: A sample of 85 pregnant mothers (18-29 years old) was recruited to complete an online survey at Time 1 (T1); 57 mothers participated at T2 (3 months postpartum). The survey documented experiences of CM, prenatal romantic satisfaction, postnatal psychological distress, mother-infant bonding, and child abuse potential using validated questionnaires.Results: Four sequential mediation models were tested, one for each CM subtype. Results show that a maternal history of CM (all subtypes) was indirectly associated with heightened child abuse potential three months postpartum. All CM subtypes were negatively related to prenatal romantic satisfaction, which was in turn negatively associated with postnatal psychological distress. Postnatal psychological distress was related to lower mother-infant bonding which, in turn, was related to increased child abuse potential. The complete sequential model was significant for physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, while a partial sequence was identified with neglect.Implications: Our results are consistent with theoretical models and empirical findings demonstrating the importance of relational factors and mental health in the intergenerational continuity of CM. While our findings await replication, they emphasize the need to intervene early - during the perinatal period - on mental health and family relationships to interrupt intergenerational cycles of CM in at-risk families.

Use of Self-Figure Drawing as an Assessment Tool for Child Abuse: Differentiating between Sexual, Physical, and Emotional Abuse.

Child abuse is a worldwide phenomenon with adverse short- and long-term mental and physical negative consequences, with a huge gap between the prevalence of child abuse and disclosure rates. The study aimed to examine and validate the self-figure drawing as an assessment tool to differentiate between three forms of child abuse, i.e., child sexual abuse (CSA), child physical abuse (CPA), and child emotional abuse (CEA). Following the ethical approval, 1707 Thai children (13–18 years old) from the general population (schools) were asked to complete a self-report anonymous questionnaire consisting of four measures (Demographics, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), The Medical Somatic Dissociation Questionnaire (MSDQ), and The Disclosure of Trauma Questionnaire (DTQ)). After completion, they were asked to draw themselves. There was a significantly positive link between the reluctance to disclose and the experience of abuse, indicating that the more severe the abuse the higher the reluctance to disclose. The findings broaden the knowledge of movement and symbols as representations of inner personal conflictual material. Additionally, it substantiates self-figure drawing as an assessment tool and assists practitioners in early child abuse detection.

A defensive mindset: A pattern of social information processing that develops early and predicts life course outcomes.

The hypothesis was tested that some children develop a defensive mindset that subsumes individual social information processing (SIP) steps, grows from early experiences, and guides long-term outcomes. In Study 1 (Fast Track [FT]), 463 age-5 children (45% girls; 43% Black) were first assessed in 1991 and followed through age 32 (83% retention). In Study 2 (Child Development Project [CDP]), 585 age-5 children (48% girls, 17% Black) were first assessed in 1987 and followed through age 34 (78% retention). In both studies, measures were collected of early adverse experiences, defensive mindset and SIP, and adult outcomes. Across both studies, a robust latent construct of school-age defensive mindset was validated empirically (comparative fit index=.99 in each study) and found to mediate the impact of early child abuse (38% in FT and 29% in CDP of total effect) and peer social rejection (14% in FT and 7% in CDP of total effect) on adult incarceration.

Early Child Abuse and the Effects of Subsequent Witnessed Violence: Results from a National High Risk Sample of Adolescents

Early child abuse likely changes the response to later witnessed community violence, but this interaction is not well understood. This study examined whether early physical, emotional and sexual abuse modify the relationship between adolescent witnessed community violence and functioning. Drawing on stress–diathesis theory, we examined the relevance of two competing models—the stress amplification and stress inoculation model—in a large national high risk sample (N = 874) in the United States. Consistent with stress amplification, results derived from multiple linear regressions suggested that early physical and sexual abuse strengthened the association of adolescent witnessed violence with social competency. In contrast, in one case a stress-inoculation effect was observed, such that youth who reported early sexual abuse experienced fewer internalizing symptoms in response to witnessed violence compared to those without early abuse. Implications of findings are addressed, including the importance of screening for all forms of early abuse (physical, emotional and sexual) so service provision can be effectively timed and tailored.

Prevention factors for suicide ideation among abused pre/early adolescent youths

Suicide ideation is a problem among youths who have been previously abused. This study assesses whether three factors (ie, feeling connected to school, having parents who reward good behaviour, and...

Healthy Families New York (HFNY) randomized trial: Effects on early child abuse and neglect

Objective To evaluate the effects of a home visiting program modeled after Healthy Families America on parenting behaviors in the first 2 years of life. Methods A sample of 1173 families at risk for child abuse and neglect who met the criteria for Healthy Families New York (HFNY) was randomly assigned to either an intervention group that was offered HFNY or a control group that was given information and referrals to other services. Data were collected through a review of CPS records, and maternal interviews at baseline and the child's first birthday (90% re-interviewed) and second birthday (85% re-interviewed). Results HFNY mothers reported committing one-quarter as many acts of serious abuse at age 2 as control mothers (.01 versus .04, p < .05). Two sets of interactions were tested and found to have significant effects ( p < .05). At age 2, young, first-time mothers in the HFNY group who were randomly assigned at 30 weeks of pregnancy or less were less likely than counterparts in the control group to engage in minor physical aggression in the past year (51% versus 70%) and harsh parenting in the past week (41% versus 62%). Among women who were “psychologically vulnerable,” HFNY mothers were one-quarter as likely to report engaging in serious abuse and neglect as control mothers (5% versus 19%) at age 2. Conclusions These findings suggest that who is offered home visitation may be an important factor in explaining the differential effectiveness of home visitation programs. Improved effects may be realized by prioritizing the populations served or by enhancing the model to meet program objectives for hard-to-serve families.

Childhood victimization and alcohol symptoms in females: causal inferences and hypothesized mediators☆

Objective: Previous research has reported a relationship between childhood victimization experiences and alcohol problems in females. This paper has two distinct goals: (1) to determine whether it is appropriate to make a causal inference regarding the association between early child abuse and neglect and alcohol symptoms in females; and (2) to examine five potential mechanisms (depression, worthlessness, social isolation/loneliness, low self esteem, and using alcohol and/or drugs to cope) that may mediate the relationship between child abuse and neglect and alcohol symptomatology. Method: Substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect from 1967 to 1971 were matched on sex, age, race, and approximate social class with nonabused and non-neglected children and followed prospectively into young adulthood. Subjects were administered a 2–h in-person interview, including the NIMH Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS-III-R) to assess alcohol use and abuse. Analyses are restricted to females in the sample ( N = 582). Results: Structural equation modeling provides support for the inference that childhood victimization plays a causal role in the development of alcohol symptoms in women. There also is support for the hypothesized mediating role of two mechanisms (depression and using alcohol/drugs to cope), but not for the other mediators. Conclusions: Evidence from this prospective study suggests that childhood victimization may be one of the causal factors in the development of alcohol problems in females. Interventions should be directed at abused and neglected females of all ages to help them to deal with depression and to develop coping strategies to prevent the development of serious alcohol problems.

Dissociative identity disorder: a literature review

This paper presents a review of the literature into dissociative identity disorder. This disorder, previously known as multiple personality disorder, is increasingly diagnosed, in part because of more focused diagnostic tools, but also because people are accessing services to assist with the longterm problems of early child abuse and neglect. Dissociative identity disorder is examined in the literature according to a variety of discourses, each of which suggest different ways of conceptualizing problems and therapeutic approaches. These discourses reviewed include: psychiatry, psychology, corporeality, feminism, social constructivism, anthropology, and postmodernism. The paper concludes with an examination of the nursing literature and suggests opportunities for nursing research into this complex mental health problem.

Child victims: Searching for opportunities to break the cycle of violence

In 1986 I began research to address the relationship between early child abuse and neglect and later deliquent and violent criminal behavior using a prospective cohort design. The relationship is not inevitable, suggesting an opportunity for long-range violence prevention through appropriate early intervention. Here, I briefly describe how childhood victimization and violent criminal behavior are related and illustrate a number of promising strategies and opportunities to intervene. Finally, I offer five principles to guide interventions: (1) the earlier the intervention, the better; (2) don't neglect neglected children; (3) one size does not fit all; (4) surveillance—a double-edged sword; and (5) accessibility to resources. Rather than focusing on responses to child abuse or neglect in court proceedings that “treat” offenders, primary prevention efforts should target childhood victims to reduce their risk of becoming offenders in the future.

Narrative truth and putative child abuse.

Memories of early child abuse can be read in at least two distinct ways--as true accounts of an unspeakable event or as metaphors for a wide range of boundary violations which belong to both past and present. An actual memory of an early experience tends to fade unless repeatedly rehearsed; because abuse memories are inherently shameful, it seems reasonable to be skeptical of this kind of repetition and to be suspicious of their sudden emergence. An actual memory of an early experience would be told from the child's point of view and would probably contain many false starts, internal contradictions, and all the other earmarks of a confused memory that refer to an early happening; by contrast, a seamless account with a tight narrative structure and an almost total absence of doubt or irrelevant detail is almost certainly false. An actual memory would tend to have its own flavor and style; by contrast, a memory of child abuse that sounds too much like other memories is more likely a metaphor for something else. Therapists, lawyers, and other professionals need to be trained to listen metaphorically to these accounts, to be on guard against hearing them as concrete references to a particular time and place, and to beware of reinforcing them prematurely.

Notes on the lasting effects of early child abuse throughout the life cycle

Notes on the lasting effects of early child abuse throughout the life cycle