International journal on child maltreatment : research, policy and practice最新文献

South African children have a high risk of experiencing multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) compared to children living in high-income countries. In a low- and middle-income context with high levels of deprivation and crime, we should consider expanded ACEs (ACE-E) that are contextually sensitive, alongside conventional ACEs (ACEs-C). Latent class analysis was used to explore patterns of 14 ACEs measured in a sample of 3,401 South African adolescents (56.42% girls). Data were collected in 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. We assessed the association between class membership and demographic covariates of poverty, location (rural vs. urban), gender, age, and province. 5 classes emerged based on model fit indices and theory: "Low ACEs," "High Parental AIDS-Affectedness and Parental Death," "High Parental AIDS-Affectedness and Parental Sickness," "Moderate Multi-Type Abuse," and "Highest Multi-type ACEs." ACEs-E played a stronger role in shaping latent classes than ACEs-C. Compared to the low ACE class, adolescents in other classes lived in greater poverty, were older, and more likely to be girls. Children in "High Parental AIDS-Affectedness and Parental Death" were more likely to be in the Mpumalanga province and children in "Moderate Multi-Type Abuse" were more likely to be in Western Cape. South African adolescents are at risk of multiple ACE exposure and contextually sensitive ACEs mattered most when characterising patterns of ACEs. Research should continue to focus on person-centred approaches to ACEs for understanding the complexity and multiplicative effects of ACEs in low-resource settings.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42448-025-00231-5.

This study examines the differences in sentencing for offenses involving child victims versus adult victims within a statewide population of adults convicted of physical and sexual assault. Crimes against children are often viewed as particularly heinous and may consequently receive harsher sentences. However, children may be unreliable witnesses or unable to testify, leading to more lenient sentencing through plea agreements. This study investigates the disparities in sentencing for physical and sexual violence against children in comparison to adults. We utilize data from the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing, which includes 47,288 adults convicted of physical and sexual assaults between 2014 and 2019. The sentencing outcomes encompass sentence type (incarceration versus noncustodial penalty) and severity (in relation to the presumptive sentence under guidelines). Logistic and linear regression models are employed to adjust for offender demographics and case characteristics. The findings indicate that physical assaults against children are punished less severely than those against adults, while sexual assaults against children receive harsher penalties than sexual assaults against adults. The implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42448-025-00234-2.

Few studies have systematically asked youth about their perceptions of placement in out-of-home care (OOHC) and no known longitudinal studies have explored how their perspectives change over time. In this mixed methods study, over 200 preadolescent children recently placed into OOHC were asked questions about the difficulty and helpfulness of placement and how their lives might be different had they not been removed. Participants were then asked these same questions when interviewed 10 years later as well as how they would change the child welfare system. At both ages, over 80% of participants reported that it was somewhat or very helpful to have been placed in OOHC. Although fewer young adults than pre-teens felt that their lives would have been better if they had never been removed from their homes, more young adults reported that it was very difficult to have been placed in OOHC. Many participants reported that they did not get enough information from their caseworkers and almost never had enough say about what happened to them while in OOHC. Demographic and psychosocial characteristics measured in both preadolescence and young adulthood were largely unrelated to ratings of placement in OOHC. Participant responses to the question about how they would change the child welfare system varied from "nothing" to impassioned responses about the need for change (e.g., better oversight, giving birth parents more time before removal, keeping siblings together). Data suggest, overwhelmingly, that the experiences of youth are nuanced and complicated and they highlight the importance of youth voice in child welfare decision making.