Child Maltreatment最新文献

Family separation due to parental substance use negatively impacts not only caregivers and children but also family networks, foster parents, and providers who support these families. This qualitative study examined the experiences of birth, kin, and foster parents, and medical, behavioral, and community providers with child removal and custody loss. Twenty-six individuals participated in five focus groups where three themes emerged: (1) insufficient support for families at the time of removal exacerbates the trauma of custody transitions across all groups; (2) the lack of transparency in the child removal process fosters mutual mistrust; and (3) opportunities exist to enhance support for families facing the challenges of child removal. Holistic strategies that minimize trauma and address the needs of families, caregivers, and professionals who interact with the child welfare system are critical to enhancing the well-being of families affected by parental substance use.

This study uses data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) and the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) to examine the incidence of maltreatment among children in out-of-home care (OOHC), the nature of that maltreatment (neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, or emotional maltreatment), the source of maltreatment reports, and the relationship between maltreatment in OOHC and child characteristics (i.e., age, gender, race, ethnicity, and disability). We found that 6.5% of children in OOHC in a given reporting year were the subject of a child maltreatment report and 0.9% were substantiated maltreatment victims. Children with disabilities were more likely to experience maltreatment in OOHC than children without disabilities. Children who were maltreated while in OOHC were less likely to experience neglect and emotional maltreatment and more likely to experience physical or sexual abuse than other children who were maltreated. Reports involving maltreatment of children in OOHC were less likely to be substantiated than reports involving other children regardless of the report source, maltreatment type, or child characteristics. The relevance of these findings for preventing further harm to children who have already been neglected or abused are discussed.

Longitudinal research on the adverse consequences of childhood maltreatment has recently gained significant traction. However, systematic attrition, partly due to specific subsample recruitment needs, threatens the validity of this research. Furthermore, studies specifically analyzing these factors in the field of maltreatment research remain scarce. We utilized data from a longitudinal study comprising N = 863 participants (M_Age = 10.23 years, 47.5% female) and their caregivers at T1, and 616 participants (M_Age = 17.95 years, 50.0% female) at T2. We determined the attrition rate and analyzed psychosocial and socioeconomic predictors of attrition. Additionally, we examined differences in re-assessment efforts between maltreated and non-maltreated youth for T2. Findings indicate a comparatively low attrition rate of 28.6% over nearly 8 years. Participants' maltreatment experiences, externalizing symptoms, and lower household income predicted higher attrition risk, while interim subsample study participation reduced this risk. Maltreatment experiences, lower household income, and higher age were also associated with increased re-assessment effort. Our study provides insights into predictors of systematic attrition in a longitudinal study with maltreated and non-maltreated youth. It highlights the need for tailored retention strategies, frequent contact with families, and targeted resource allocation to mitigate systematic attrition.

This study used a subset of data from a randomized controlled trial that evaluated the effects of an in-home substance use and dyadic therapy model that provides treatment to child welfare-involved parents. Participants (N = 388) were randomly assigned to Family-Based Recovery (FBR) (n = 268) or treatment-as-usual (TAU) (n = 120). Two child welfare outcomes were examined 18 months post-randomization: out-of-home placements (OOHP) and child protective service (CPS) re-referrals. Overall, 17.3% of parent-child dyads experienced OOHP and 24% CPS re-referrals. Fourteen percent of FBR-assigned dyads experienced an OOHP compared to 24% of TAU dyads. There were no differences in the CPS re-referral outcome by group assignment (FBR: 23.9%; TAU: 24.2%). Cox Proportional Regression results showed adjusted hazard rates of OOHP for FBR-assigned dyads were half compared to TAU-assigned dyads (.52, 95% CI [.32, .85], p = .009). Survival curves showed FBR had fewer dyads with OOHP episodes, and the OOHP event was statistically delayed compared to those assigned to TAU (Wald X² = 6.89; p = .009). Hazard rates of CPS re-referrals were similar for both groups, and no differences were found in the survival curves for CPS re-referrals between FBR and TAU. Results indicate that FBR is an effective model for caregivers experiencing SUD while reducing the likelihood of OOHP.

Parents with intellectual disabilities are disproportionately represented within child welfare systems in the US. Meanwhile, there is evidence to suggest that this is a sizeable population, and child welfare systems encounter challenges in meeting families' needs. This study examines the potential efficacy of Project IMPACT, an intensive, in-home parent training program designed for parents with intellectual disabilities who have child welfare involvement. The aim of the program is to prevent family separation by improving parenting skills. The sample included 134 families who had participated in Project IMPACT and 355 families from a neighboring state who also had child welfare involvement. All families included a parent with intellectual disabilities. Treatment effects analysis was used to compare parents participating in Project IMPACT with a similar group of untreated parents. Logistic regression was used to identify between-group differences in family separation. Post-hoc analysis explored which families might benefit most from Project IMPACT. Project IMPACT families were 486% more likely to remain intact one year after program completion than untreated families. Effects were strongest for families with the youngest children. Child welfare systems should prioritize the implementation of evidence-informed interventions that tailor services to parents' distinct needs and learning styles. By providing effective preventive interventions, programs such as Project IMPACT can focus on keeping children safe at home while preventing family separation.

We investigated whether poverty is primarily associated with neglect while showing weaker links to other forms of child maltreatment at the zip code level. To do this, we analyzed relationships between child poverty rates and maltreatment report rates for neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse across all Illinois zip codes from 2014 to 2018 (N = 1354). Our analysis showed that the unstandardized effect sizes for neglect were larger than those for physical and sexual abuse, primarily due to the higher prevalence of neglect reports, which leads to a larger absolute change. However, because unstandardized effect sizes are influenced by the prevalence of outcomes, they are not ideal for comparing the strength of relationships. In contrast, standardized effect sizes, which are not affected by outcome prevalence, were consistently strong and nearly identical across all maltreatment types. This indicates that the relationship between area-level poverty rates and maltreatment report rates is similarly strong for neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse, rather than being notably stronger for neglect. Practically, this suggests that efforts to reduce child maltreatment in impoverished areas should encompass all types of abuse, rather than focusing primarily on neglect.

Jones et al. (2020) showed that compared to non-abused others, sexually abused jurors are more likely to empathize with child sexual abuse (CSA) victims, perceive victims as credible, and convict defendants in CSA mock trials. We extend these findings by investigating effects of sexually abused mock jurors' abuse severity on CSA victim empathy and trial judgments. Data were derived from all known mock trial studies measuring mock juror abuse history (N = 7), including 361 undergraduate jurors. Meta-analyses examined effects of four separate abuse-severity indices: (a) emotional scarring from sexual abuse, (b) abuse frequency, (c) perpetrator relationship, and (d) age abuse began. Twenty separate meta-analyses revealed that the more severe mock jurors' victimization was, the more empathy they had for child victims of sexual abuse generally. Although Jones et al. (2020) showed that victims are more likely than non-victims to vote guilty in CSA cases, we found that, among victims, abuse severity has no additional effect on guilt. Thus, attorneys will not achieve a legitimate legal goal by questioning victims about intimate details of their abuse during jury selection. Moreover, because victimization is one of many unique experiences from which jurors can draw during deliberation, it is important not to disproportionately exclude these individuals as jurors.

Identifying families with increased risk and preventing child neglect recurrence are important goals for the child protection system and the public health priority to mitigate Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). While much has been studied about the factors leading to neglect, less is known about the specific factors contributing to neglect recurrence after CPS investigation. We used Child Files from FY2015-2020 in the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System and the Neglect and Prevention Policies Dataset to first describe recurrence and then to identify the contributions of child, family, report characteristics, state neglect definitions, and CPS post investigation service referrals. We found that confirmed child maltreatment of all types most often recurs as neglect, but there are also significant proportions of children who have a second confirmed report with the same type of maltreatment. There are significant associations with neglect recurrence for exposures at all levels of the socioecological model including some child, family and report factors, and more state definitions are associated with more confirmed neglect recurrence. The effects of race were blunted when adjusted for family financial factors. Some post-investigation services were associated with decreased neglect recurrence, but most were not. CPS agencies and states can look for certain case characteristics and provide services to reduce neglect recurrence.

Research examining commercially sexually exploited adolescents' (CSEA) reluctance has found lower rates of reluctance in court than in police interviews. One possible explanation is that the constrained courtroom questioning environment leads witnesses to express reluctance in novel ways. This study analyzed the responses (N = 4163) of six female CSE witnesses aged 15-17 (Mage = 16.50) who were associated with the same trafficker, interviewed by the same police officers (n = 1660 utterances), and questioned by the same attorneys in court (n = 2463 utterances). We utilized a coding scheme identifying novel forms of reluctance in CSEA (Henderson et al., 2021), and supplemented the scheme with additional types of reluctance, derived from literature examining the questioning of politicians and suspects in interrogations. Supplementing the scheme increased the rate of reluctance in court from 3% to 13% (OR = 4.83), with higher reluctance exhibited in response to the defense (16%) than to the prosecution (10%). The rate of reluctance in the police interviews also increased from 13% to 18% (OR = 1.47). Reluctance was often expressed differently in court than in police interviews, with greater use of altering the narrative (including questioning implicit assumptions of the questioner) and inappropriate diction (including resisting formality).

In 2009, Vermont became the first state to enact a comprehensive health education policy that included child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention. This study describes the implementation efforts of CSA prevention programming led by Prevent Child Abuse Vermont, both one year prior to the policy enactment and ten years later (i.e., 2008-2019). We used data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) to obtain rates of substantiated CSA reports and examined their association with program implementation. Findings from longitudinal hierarchical linear modeling indicated that, in seven Vermont counties, an increased number of CSA prevention programs correlated with a decrease in substantiated CSA reports. Three adult focused programs, Nurturing Healthy Sexual Development, Informed Supervision, and Overcoming Barriers-were also associated with reduced substantiated CSA reports. These findings suggest that consistent implementation of CSA prevention programs across the state of Vermont was associated with lower rates of CSA incidents.