Self-reported Childhood Maltreatment Research Articles

Emotional Abuse History and Migraine Among Young Adults: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Add Health Dataset.

To define and examine the relationship between self-reported childhood abuse and migraine among young adults. Headache and migraine have been linked to childhood abuse in numerous studies, but there is incomplete characterization of headache types, and limited assessment of abuse types and frequency. Only one population-based study has examined the relationship between emotional abuse and migraine. None have investigated the temporal relationship between onset of abuse and of migraine. We analyzed data from 14,356 adults aged 24-32 years in Wave 4, which is a cross-sectional subset of the longitudinal Add Health study. Participants were queried regarding abuse (emotional, physical and sexual) during childhood, diagnosis of migraine, depression and anxiety by healthcare providers, and symptoms of current depression. We used logistic regression to estimate the association between childhood abuse and migraine, controlling for socio-demographic factors, current depression, and lifetime diagnosis of anxiety and depression. About 14% (n = 2040) of respondents reported migraine. Participants with migraine (vs no migraine) reported significantly higher rates of childhood abuse overall (60.6% vs 48.9%), including emotional (57.8% vs 45.4%), sexual (8.4% vs 4.6%) and physical (22.4% vs 17.9%) abuse. Emotional abuse had a stronger association with migraine (odds ratio [OR] 1.62; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.43-1.85) when compared with physical (OR 1.06; 95% CI 0.89-1.68) and sexual abuse (OR 1.06; 95% CI 0.93-1.68), adjusting for socio-demographic factors. The emotional abuse-migraine association remained even when controlling for lifetime diagnosis of depression and anxiety (OR 1.37; 95% CI 1.19-1.57) and for current depression (OR 1.47; 95% CI 1.30-1.67). The odds of migraine increased with increasing number of abuse types reported. There was a U-shaped distribution of odds of migraine associated with frequency of occurrences of emotional abuse, peaking at one time (OR 1.65; 95% CI 1.34-2.03) and ≥ six times (OR 1.77; 95% CI 1.49-2.10). Emotional abuse during childhood contributed more than physical or sexual abuse to the development of migraine. There is a dose-response relationship with increasing number of abuse types associated with rising odds of migraine. In addition, the relationship between the frequency of emotional abuse and the odds of migraine follows a U-shape pattern.

Concordance Between Self-Reported Childhood Maltreatment Versus Case Record Reviews for Child Welfare-Affiliated Adolescents.

The present study used data from an ongoing longitudinal study of the effects of maltreatment on adolescent development to (1) describe rates of maltreatment experiences obtained from retrospective self-report versus case record review for adolescents with child welfare-documented maltreatment histories, (2) examine self-reported versus child welfare-identified maltreatment in relation to mental health and risk behavior outcomes by maltreatment type, and (3) examine the association between the number of different types of maltreatment and mental health and risk behavior outcomes. Maltreatment was coded from case records using the Maltreatment Case Record Abstraction Instrument (MCRAI) and participants were asked at mean age = 18.49 about childhood maltreatment experiences using the Comprehensive Trauma Interview (CTI). Results showed that an average of 48% of maltreatment found by the MCRAI for each type of maltreatment were unique cases not captured by the CTI, whereas an average of 40% self-reported maltreatment (CTI) was not indicated by the MCRAI. Analyses with outcomes showed generally, self-reported maltreatment, regardless of concordance with MCRAI, was related to the poorest outcomes. The difference in associations with the outcomes indicates both self-report and case record review data may have utility depending on the outcomes being assessed.

Physical, emotional and sexual adolescent abuse victimisation in South Africa: prevalence, incidence, perpetrators and locations

BackgroundPhysical, emotional and sexual abuse of children is a major problem in South Africa, with severe negative outcomes for survivors. To date, no known studies have used data directly obtained...

感覚性の皮膚症状と身体表現性解離・自己報告による被虐待歴との関連

感覚性の皮膚症状と身体表現性解離・自己報告による被虐待歴との関連

Maltreatment in childhood substantially increases the risk of adult depression and anxiety in prospective cohort studies: systematic review, meta-analysis, and proportional attributable fractions.

Literature supports a strong relationship between childhood maltreatment and mental illness but most studies reviewed are cross-sectional and/or use recall to assess maltreatment and are thus prone to temporality and recall bias. Research on the potential prospective impact of maltreatment reduction on the incidence of psychiatric disorders is scarce. Electronic databases and grey literature from 1990 to 2014 were searched for English-language cohort studies with criteria for depression and/or anxiety and non-recall measurement of childhood maltreatment. Systematic review with meta-analysis synthesized the results. Study quality, heterogeneity, and publication bias were examined. Initial screening of titles and abstracts resulted in 199 papers being reviewed. Eight high-quality articles met eligibility criteria. Population attributable fractions (PAFs) estimated potential preventive impact. The pooled odds ratio (OR) between any type of maltreatment and depression was 2.03 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.37-3.01] and 2.70 (95% CI 2.10-3.47) for anxiety. For specific types of maltreatment and depression or anxiety disorders, the ORs were: physical abuse (OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.25-3.19), sexual abuse (OR 2.66, 95% CI 1.88-3.75), and neglect (OR 1.74, 95% CI 1.35-2.23). PAFs suggest that over one-half of global depression and anxiety cases are potentially attributable to self-reported childhood maltreatment. A 10-25% reduction in maltreatment could potentially prevent 31.4-80.3 million depression and anxiety cases worldwide. This review provides robust evidence of childhood maltreatment increasing the risk for depression and anxiety, and reinforces the need for effective programs and policies to reduce its occurrence.

Relationship between abuse and neglect in childhood and diabetes in adulthood: differential effects by sex, national longitudinal study of adolescent health.

IntroductionFew studies have investigated links between child abuse and neglect and diabetes mellitus in nationally representative samples, and none have explored the role of obesity in the relationship. We sought to determine whether child abuse and neglect were associated with diabetes and if so, whether obesity mediated this relationship in a population-representative sample of young adults.MethodsWe used data from 14,493 participants aged 24 to 34 years from Wave IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to study associations between self-reported child abuse (sexual, physical, or emotional abuse) and neglect as children and diabetes or prediabetes in young adulthood. We conducted sex-stratified logistic regression analyses to evaluate associations in models before and after the addition of body mass index (BMI) as a covariate.ResultsAlthough the prevalence of diabetes was similar for men and women (7.0% vs 6.7%), men were more likely than women to have prediabetes (36.3% vs 24.6%; omnibus P < .001). Among men, recurrent sexual abuse (≥3 lifetime incidents) was significantly associated with diabetes (OR, 3.66; 95% CI, 1.31–10.24), but not with prediabetes. There was no evidence of mediation by BMI. No forms of child abuse or neglect were associated with diabetes or prediabetes among women.ConclusionsRecurrent sexual abuse is robustly associated with diabetes in young adult men, independently of other forms of child abuse or neglect and BMI. Future research should explore other potential mechanisms for this association to identify avenues for prevention of diabetes among men who have experienced sexual abuse.

Analog assessment of frustration tolerance: Association with self-reported child abuse risk and physiological reactivity

Although frustration has long been implicated in promoting aggression, the potential for poor frustration tolerance to function as a risk factor for physical child abuse risk has received minimal attention. Instead, much of the extant literature has examined the role of anger in physical abuse risk, relying on self-reports of the experience or expression of anger, despite the fact that this methodology is often acknowledged as vulnerable to bias. Therefore, the present investigation examined whether a more implicit, analog assessment of frustration tolerance specifically relevant to parenting would reveal an association with various markers of elevated physical child abuse risk in a series of samples that varied with regard to age, parenting status, and abuse risk. An analog task was designed to evoke parenting-relevant frustration: the task involved completing an unsolvable task while listening to a crying baby or a toddler's temper tantrum; time scores were generated to gauge participants’ persistence in the task when encountering such frustration. Across these studies, low frustration tolerance was associated with increased physical child abuse potential, greater use of parent–child aggression in discipline encounters, dysfunctional disciplinary style, support for physical discipline use and physical discipline escalation, and increased heart rate. Future research directions that could better inform intervention and prevention programs are discussed, including working to clarify the processes underlying frustration intolerance and potential interactive influences that may exacerbate physical child abuse.

Effects of Parenting Programs on Child Maltreatment Prevention

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of parenting programs in reducing child maltreatment and modifying associated factors as well as to examine the moderator variables that are linked to program effects. For this meta-analysis, we searched nine electronic databases to identify randomized controlled trials published before September 2013. The effect sizes of various outcomes at different time points were computed. From the 3,578 studies identified, we selected 37 studies for further analysis. The total random effect size was 0.296. Our results showed that parenting programs successfully reduced substantiated and self-reported child maltreatment reports and reduced the potential for child maltreatment. The programs also reduced risk factors and enhanced protective factors associated with child maltreatment. However, the effects of the parenting programs on reducing parental depression and stress were limited. Parenting programs produced positive effects in low-, middle-, and high-income countries and were effective in reducing child maltreatment when applied as primary, secondary, or tertiary child maltreatment intervention. In conclusion, parenting programs are effective public health approaches to reduce child maltreatment. The evidence-based service of parenting programs could be widely adopted in future practice.

Disentangling over-representation of parents with disabilities in the child welfare system: Exploring child maltreatment risk factors of parents with disabilities

The study explores the risk factors for child maltreatment and self-reported child maltreatment among a population-based sample of parents with disabilities. Drawing on a nationally-representative, population-based data file that oversampled people of color, income-adjusted odds ratio tests were conducted to establish population differences among parents with and without limitations in activities of daily living (ADLs). Results suggest that parents with disabilities were more likely to report many of the risk factors associated with child maltreatment than parents without disabilities, including witnessing interpersonal violence as a child; experiencing violence, neglect or a foster care stay as a child; mood or substance use disorders; and engaging in or receiving interpersonal violence as an adult. Before controlling for income, parents with disabilities had only a negligibly higher rate of engaging in violence against their children. After controlling for income, parents with disabilities were 2.5 times more likely to engage in violence against their children. Parents with disabilities who did engage in violence against their children had greater amounts of some of the child maltreatment risk factors in comparison to parents with disabilities who did not engage in violence, particularly their own childhood experiences of maltreatment, witnessing of interpersonal violence as a child, childhood stays in foster care, and experiences with interpersonal violence as an adult. Findings add to the understanding of the risk factors for child maltreatment that are related to the collateral effects of having a disability, and through the use of income-adjusted data, help disentangle why parents with disabilities are over-represented in the child welfare system. The findings highlight the need for the child welfare system to increase its disability competence in working with both children and parents with disabilities.

Prevalence and impact of childhood abuse in people with a psychotic illness. Data from the second Australian national survey of psychosis

Child abuse has been associated with risk of mental illness, including schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders and, among those with mental illness, with a more severe clinical profile. Using an extensively characterised and epidemiologically representative sample of 1825 Australians with a psychotic illness aged 18–64 years and in contact with mental health services, we estimated the proportion of individuals with psychotic disorders who self-reported child abuse and examined its relationship with clinical and other characteristics. The prevalence of child abuse in this nationally representative sample of people with psychotic illness was 30.6%. Women were almost three times more likely to report child abuse compared to males (OR, 2.8, 95% CI 2.3–3.4). When adjusted for age at interview and socio-economic status, there was no significant relationship between self-reported child abuse and type of psychosis or course of illness. Participants with child abuse were significantly more likely to have subjective thought disorder, lifetime suicide attempt and premorbid personality disorder (females only) and anxiety (males only). Our findings demonstrate that child abuse is relatively common across the range of psychotic disorders, with an elevated risk for women in particular, compounding the already high burden associated with psychotic illness. Clinicians need to inquire routinely about child abuse in order to develop appropriate treatment plans tailored to individual needs.

Psychometric functioning, socio-demographic variability of childhood maltreatment in the general population and its effects of depression.

Maltreatment of children is a major public-health and social-welfare problem but socio-demographic variability has received little attention. This work addresses such variability in a general population cohort and associations with depression. Analyses were based on the cross-sectional SHIP-LEGEND examination among 2265 adults (29-89 years). Childhood maltreatment was multi-dimensionally assessed with the German 28-item Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ): emotional neglect; emotional abuse; physical neglect; physical abuse; sexual abuse. Non-linear associations between CTQ responses and age were assessed with fractional polynomials and cubic splines. Scale properties were analysed with confirmatory factor analyses and item response models. Associations between childhood maltreatment domains and depression [Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II)] were assessed. The majority (58.9%) reported events indicative of at least mild levels of childhood maltreatment. CTQ subscales showed characteristically different non-linear associations to age across the five studied domains, indicating methodological issues like recall bias and the influence of seminal events. Psychometric scale properties were acceptable to good for all subscales except for physical neglect. Associations to depression measures varied systematically across socio-demographic strata. We conclude that socio-demographic variability is a major issue when studying self-reported childhood maltreatment in a community sample. This needs to be taken into account for the study of associations to psychiatric key outcomes.

Low plasma eicosapentaenoic acid levels are associated with elevated trait aggression and impulsivity in major depressive disorder with a history of comorbid substance use disorder

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with low levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), holding promise for new perspectives on disease etiology and treatment targets. As aggressive and impulsive behaviors are associated with low omega-3 PUFA levels in some clinical contexts, we investigated plasma PUFA relationships with trait aggression and impulsivity in patients with MDD. Medication-free MDD patients (n = 48) and healthy volunteers (HV, n = 35) were assessed with the Brown-Goodwin Aggression Inventory. A subset (MDD, n = 39; HV, n = 33) completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. Plasma PUFAs eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3), and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6) were quantified and ln-transformed to mitigate distributional skew. Ln-transformed PUFA (lnPUFA) levels were predictors in regression models, with aggression or impulsivity scores as outcomes, and cofactors of sex and diagnostic status (MDD with or without a history of substance use disorder [SUD], or HV). Interactions were tested between relevant PUFAs and diagnostic status. Additional analyses explored possible confounds of depression severity, self-reported childhood abuse history, and, in MDD patients, suicide attempt history. Among PUFA, lnEPA but not lnDHA predicted aggression (F1,76 = 12.493, p = 0.001), and impulsivity (F1,65 = 5.598, p = 0.021), with interactions between lnEPA and history of SUD for both aggression (F1,76 = 7.941, p = 0.001) and impulsivity (F1,65 = 3.485, p = 0.037). Results remained significant when adjusted for childhood abuse, depression severity, or history of suicide attempt. In conclusion, low EPA levels were associated with aggression and impulsivity only in patients with MDD and comorbid SUD, even though in most cases SUD was in full sustained remission.

Reduced hippocampal and medial prefrontal gray matter mediate the association between reported childhood maltreatment and trait anxiety in adulthood and predict sensitivity to future life stress

BackgroundThe experience of early life stress is a consistently identified risk factor for the development of mood and anxiety disorders. Preclinical research employing animal models of early life stress has made inroads in understanding this association and suggests that the negative sequelae of early life stress may be mediated by developmental disruption of corticolimbic structures supporting stress responsiveness. Work in humans has corroborated this idea, as childhood adversity has been associated with alterations in gray matter volumes of the hippocampus, amygdala, and medial prefrontal cortex. Yet, missing from this body of research is a full understanding of how these neurobiological vulnerabilities may mechanistically contribute to the reported link between adverse childhood experiences and later affective psychopathology.ResultsAnalyses revealed that self-reported childhood maltreatment was associated with reduced gray matter volumes within the medial prefrontal cortex and left hippocampus. Furthermore, reduced left hippocampal and medial prefrontal gray matter volume mediated the relationship between childhood maltreatment and trait anxiety. Additionally, individual differences in corticolimbic gray matter volume within these same structures predicted the anxious symptoms as a function of life stress 1 year after initial assessment.ConclusionsCollectively, these findings provide novel evidence that reductions in corticolimbic gray matter, particularly within the hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex, are associated with reported childhood maltreatment and individual differences in adult trait anxiety. Furthermore, our results suggest that these structural alterations contribute to increased affective sensitivity to stress later in life in those that have experienced early adversity. More broadly, the findings contribute to an emerging literature highlighting the critical importance of early stress on the development of corticolimbic structures supporting adaptive functioning later in life.

Familial transmission of parental mood disorders: unipolar and bipolar disorders in offspring

Offspring of depressed parents are at increased risk for psychiatric disorders. Although bipolar disorder (BD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) are both found in the same families, it is not clear whether transmission to offspring of BD or MDD tends to occur from parents with the same mood disorder subtype. Our primary hypothesis was that the offspring of parents with BD would be at increased risk for BD and other comorbid disorders common to BD, such as anxiety and substance use, relative to the offspring of parents with MDD. The offspring of parents with BD versus those with MDD were also hypothesized to be at greater risk for externalizing disorders (i.e., conduct disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, or antisocial personality disorder). Parents (n=320) with mood disorders and their offspring (n=679) were studied. Adult offspring were administered the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders to establish the presence of psychopathology. Offspring aged 10-18 years were assessed using the School Aged Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia, Present and Lifetime version, and parents of children under the age of ten completed the Child Behavioral Checklist. Data were examined using Cox proportional hazard regression. There was no difference in hazard of mood disorders in the offspring of parents with BD as compared to the offspring of parents with MDD. However, a number of other parent and offspring characteristics increased the risk of mood, anxiety, externalizing, and substance use disorders in the offspring, including self-reported childhood abuse in the parent or offspring, offspring impulsive aggression, and the age at onset of parental mood disorder. Mood disorders are highly familial, a finding that appears independent of whether the parent's condition is unipolar or bipolar, suggesting considerable overlap in the heritability of MDD and BD. Although parental characteristics had a limited influence on the risk of offspring psychopathology, reported childhood adversity, be it in the parent or child, is a harbinger of negative outcomes. These risk factors extend previous findings, and are consistent with diathesis-stress conceptualizations.

Prevalence of self-reported childhood abuse in psychosis: A meta-analysis of retrospective studies

There is extensive clinical literature reporting traumatic childhood experiences in patients with psychosis. A quantitative meta-analysis addressing the prevalence of self-reported childhood sexual (CSA), physical (CPA) and emotional abuse (CEA) in psychotic patients has yet to be done. We conducted, a systematic literature search to identify retrospective studies addressing self-reported childhood abuse in patients with DSM/ICD psychosis. Demographic, clinical, and methodological variables were extracted from each publication, or obtained directly from its authors. Quantitative meta-analysis of CSA, CPA, CEA in the sample of patients was performed. Statistical heterogeneity and publication bias were assessed and meta-regressions performed to control for different moderators.Twenty-three studies were retrieved and included a total of 2017 psychotic patients. The prevalence of self-reported CSA, CPA, CEA were respectively of 26%, 39% and 34%. Age, publication year, gender and substance abuse moderated CSA, while age, clinical setting and substance abuse moderated CPA. Results indicated that CEA was moderated by gender and publication year of the study. According to our meta-analysis, psychotic patients have a consistently high self-report of childhood traumatic events which are sexual, physical and emotional in nature. It is our opinion that clinicians should be trained and skilled to carefully investigate childhood abuse in psychosis.

Childhood Maltreatment Affects the Serotonergic System in Male Alcohol‐Dependent Individuals

Reduced central serotonergic neurotransmission has been demonstrated in individuals with excessive alcohol consumption and/or alcohol dependence. Childhood maltreatment has also been found to have a negative impact on central serotonergic neurotransmission. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of childhood maltreatment on central serotonergic dysfunction in alcohol-dependent individuals. Adult men with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence (n = 18) were recruited from outpatient treatment units for alcoholism. Central serotonergic neurotransmission was assessed by a neuroendocrine method, that is, the prolactin (PRL) response to the selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitor citalopram. Childhood maltreatment was assessed retrospectively by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Alcohol-dependent individuals with childhood experience of emotional abuse had significantly lower PRL response compared with those without such abuse (3 ± 5 and 64 ± 24 mU/l, respectively; t = 6.51, p < 0.001). Among those who reported childhood emotional abuse, 4 of 7 individuals had flat PRL responses in comparison with none in those with no report of such abuse (p < 0.01). This is the first study to show that self-reported childhood maltreatment, in particular emotional abuse, in male alcohol-dependent individuals is associated with a quite dramatic (more than 90%) reduction in central serotonergic neurotransmission. It should, however, be noted that the number of individuals is relatively small, and the results should therefore be considered as preliminary.

Exploring child maltreatment and its relationship to alcohol and cannabis use in selected Latin American and Caribbean countries

ObjectivesResearch from developed countries shows that child maltreatment increases the risk for substance use and problems. However, little evidence on this relationship is available from developing countries, and recognition of this relationship may have important implications for substance demand reduction strategies, including efforts to prevent and treat substance use and related problems. Latin America and the Caribbean is a rich and diverse region of the world with a large range of social and cultural influences. A working group constituted by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission and the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in June, 2010 identified research on this relationship as a priority area for a multinational research partnership. MethodsThis paper examines the association between self-reported child maltreatment and use in the past 12 months of alcohol and cannabis in 2294 university students in seven participating universities in six participating countries: Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama and Uruguay. The research also considers the possible impact of religiosity and minimal psychological distress as factors contributing to resiliency in these samples. ResultsThe results showed that experience of maltreatment was associated with increased use of alcohol and cannabis. However, the effects differed depending on the type of maltreatment experienced. Higher levels of religiosity were consistently associated with lower levels of alcohol and cannabis use, but we found no evidence of an impact of minimal psychological distress on these measures. ConclusionsThis preliminary study shows that the experience of maltreatment may increase the risk of alcohol and cannabis use among university students in Latin American and Caribbean countries, but that higher levels of religiosity may reduce that risk. More work to determine the nature and significance of these relationships is needed.

Physical and psychological maltreatment in childhood and later health problems in women: An exploratory investigation of the roles of perceived stress and coping strategies

ObjectiveThis retrospective, cross-sectional study investigated the association between childhood physical and psychological maltreatment and self-reported physical health concerns in adult women. The mediating roles of perceived stress and coping strategies were examined. MethodsParticipants were 235 women (aged 18–59 years) recruited from the community. Semi-structured interviews and questionnaires were used to assess self-reported childhood maltreatment and current perceived stress, coping strategies, and health status. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. ResultsAfter controlling for a history of child sexual abuse and relevant demographic variables, child physical and psychological maltreatment were significantly associated with greater physical health concerns. Support was found for models in which perceived stress and emotion-focused coping partially mediate the relation between maltreatment and health problems; problem-focused and avoidance coping did not operate as mediators. Multi-mediation model testing indicated that emotion-focused coping and perceived stress together better explain the relationship between child maltreatment and physical health than either variable alone. ConclusionFindings suggest that child maltreatment is an important risk factor for adverse health outcomes in later life and that current stress and coping strategies may influence this relationship. Implications for the physical health of maltreatment survivors are discussed. Practice implicationsThe management of perceived stress and the use of adaptive emotion-focused coping responses in the everyday lives of maltreated women may be particularly useful points of intervention in order to mitigate physical health concerns in adulthood.

Child maltreatment in an incarcerated sample in China: Prediction for crime types in adulthood

Abstract The consequences of child maltreatment have drawn increased attention in the West. Evidence has associated such maltreatment with mental health problems, the adult personality disorders, and subsequent criminal behavior. However, little is known about its prevalence and consequences in China, especially the relationship between child maltreatment and criminal behavior. The aims of this study were twofold: (1) to explore the prevalence of self-reported child maltreatment in an incarcerated adult sample in China, and, (2) to examine relationships between child maltreatment and offense types. A retrospective self-reported survey was administered to a sample of 2690 incarcerated adults (2410 male and 280 female) in all eleven jails in Beijing, China. For Aim 1, participants completed a self-reported survey that included Childhood Trauma Questionnaire assessing five types of child maltreatment (emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect and physical neglect). For Aim 2, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and logistic regression were conducted to identify the relationship between child maltreatment and crime types with the subsample of 702 male individuals with the available data from three different jails. The prevalence of child maltreatment in the sample ranged from 16.5% for emotional abuse to 91.2% for physical neglect. Almost 90% of the participants reported more than one form of child maltreatment. Men and women had significantly different rates of physical abuse, sexual abuse and emotional neglect. Men reported high levels of physical abuse, whereas women reported high levels of physical neglect. Of the subgroup with the crime type records, childhood physical abuse significantly predicted violent crime, whereas sexual abuse was inversely related to violent crime. This study is the first to report on child maltreatment among a large sample of incarcerated individuals in China. Findings indicate that the prevalence of child maltreatment among this population is extremely high, and that there is a relationship between childhood physical abuse and commitment to jail for violent crimes in adulthood. The data clearly indicate the importance of developing appropriate interventions in order to prevent child maltreatment.

Childhood maltreatment histories, alcohol and other drug use symptoms, and sexual risk behavior in a treatment sample of adolescents.

We tested a structural model of relations among self-reported childhood maltreatment, alcohol and other drug abuse and dependence symptoms, and sexual risk behavior in a sample of adolescents receiving outpatient treatment of substance use problems. Structured interviews were administered to an ethnically diverse sample of 394 adolescents (114 girls, 280 boys; mean = 16.30 years; SD = 1.15 years; 44.9% Hispanic, 20.6% African American, 25.4% White non-Hispanic, and 9.1% other) in 2 outpatient treatment settings. Path analyses yielded findings consistent with a mediation model. Alcohol abuse and dependence symptoms mediated (1) relations between emotional neglect scores and sex with co-occurring alcohol use and (2) relations between sexual abuse scores and sex with co-occurring alcohol use. Drug abuse and dependence symptoms mediated relations between (1) neglect scores and (2) sexual intercourse with co-occurring alcohol or drug use, as well as unprotected sexual intercourse. Efforts to treat alcohol or drug use problems among adolescents or to prevent transmission of HIV or other sexually transmitted infections among youths with substance use problems may require tailoring treatment or prevention protocols to address client histories of maltreatment.