Stress, social support, and substantiated maltreatment in the second and third years of life

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this research was to determine whether risk factors for a maltreatment report in the first year of life, especially the interaction of life event stress and social support, persist into the second and third years of life. METHOD: Predominantly low income mothers who had been interviewed shortly after the birth of infants in a longitudinal cohort were re-interviewed around the infants' first birthdays, and reports to North Carolina's Central Registry of Child Abuse and Neglect were tracked for substantiated maltreatment reports. RESULTS: Variables significantly associated with a substantiated maltreatment report in the second or third year of life (p < .01) were first year maltreatment reports and participation in Medicaid. Three interactions between a stressful life event indicator variable and a social support indicator variable were significant predictors of substantiated second or third year reports (p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Even in the presence of significant risk factors from the first year of life, life event stress can increase the risk of a substantiated maltreatment report in the second or third years of life, but social support may moderate the effect of life events.     

New directions for research on the psychological maltreatment of children.

This article identifies several research directions for psychologists interested in studying the psychological maltreatment of children and youth. The field of child maltreatment in general has been criticized for its isolation from psychological theory and for compartmentalizing each of the various forms of maltreatment. In order to organize research on psychological maltreatment and on its relationship to other maltreatment forms, two conceptual perspectives are suggested: ecological and developmental. These perspectives are then used to discuss the following three research areas: definitional issues; ecological processes and child outcomes; and protective factors and child outcomes. Attention is also given to policy issues that emerge in our efforts to understand psychological maltreatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical Maltreatment Victim to Antisocial Child: Evidence of an Environmentally Mediated Process.

The well-documented finding that child physical maltreatment predicts later antisocial behavior has at least 2 explanations: (a) Physical maltreatment causes antisocial behavior, and (b) genetic factors transmitted from parents to children influence the likelihood that parents will be abusive and that children will engage in antisocial behavior. The authors tested these hypotheses in the representative Environmental-Risk cohort of 1,116 twin pairs and their families, who were assessed when the twins were 5 and 7 years old. Mothers reported on children's experience of physical maltreatment, and mothers and teachers reported on children's antisocial behavior. The findings support the hypothesis that physical maltreatment plays a causal role in the development of children's antisocial behavior and that preventing maltreatment can prevent its violent sequelae. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A longitudinal analysis of risk factors for child maltreatment: findings of a 17-year prospective study of officially recorded and self-reported child abuse and neglect

OBJECTIVE: To identify demographic, family, parent, and child factors prospectively associated with risk for child abuse and neglect among families in the community, using data on child maltreatment obtained from both official records and youth self-reports. METHOD: Surveys assessing demographic variables, family relationships, parental behavior, and characteristics of parents and children were administered to a representative sample of 644 families in upstate New York on four occasions between 1975 and 1992. Data on child abuse and neglect were obtained from New York State records and retrospective self-report instruments administered when youths were > or = 18 years old. RESULTS: Logistic regression analyses indicated that different patterns of risk factors predicted the occurrence of physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect, although maternal youth and maternal sociopathy predicted the occurrence of all three forms of child maltreatment. In addition, the prevalence of child abuse or neglect increased from 3% when no risk factors were present to 24% when > or = 4 risk factors were present. State records and self-reports of child maltreatment did not correspond in most cases when maltreatment was reported through at least one data source, underlining the importance of obtaining data from both official records and self-reports. CONCLUSIONS: Assessment of a number of risk factors may permit health professionals to identify parents and children who are at high risk for child maltreatment, facilitating appropriate implementation of prevention and treatment interventions.     

Childhood maltreatment, object relations, and suicidal behavior in women.

Findings from a study examining object relations (OR) as a mediator of the link between childhood maltreatment and suicidal behavior in a sample of predominantly low-income, African American women (suicide attempters: n?=?53; nonattempters: n?=?106) revealed that each OR dimension fully, yet differentially, mediated specific links between 5 types of childhood maltreatment (sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, and emotional and physical neglect) and suicide attempt status. The alienation subscale of 1 of the 2 OR measures used was the most robust mediator, fully mediating the links between all types of childhood maltreatment and suicide attempt status. For both childhood sexual abuse and physical neglect, the links with suicide attempt status were fully mediated by 5 of 6 OR dimensions measured, whereas the other childhood maltreatment types (physical abuse, emotional abuse, and emotional neglect) were fully mediated by just 1 or 2 OR dimensions. Research directions and clinical implications of the findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological child maltreatment. A developmental view

This article explores the concept of psychological child maltreatment. It begins with a definition of psychological maltreatment in terms of care-giver behavior that thwarts the meeting of the needs of children. It focuses on five forms of psychological maltreatment that are of concern to the practitioner: rejecting (sending messages of rejection to the child), ignoring (being psychologically unavailable to the child), terrorizing (using intense fear as a weapon against the child), isolating (cutting the child off from normal social relationships), and corrupting (missocializing the child into self-destructive and antisocial patterns of behavior).     

The role of child maltreatment and attachment style in adolescent relationship violence

Utilizing attachment theory as a basis for conceptualizing close relationships among adolescents, this study investigated two important relationship risk factors (child maltreatment, and adolescent self-perceived insecure attachment style) as predictors of "offender" and "victim" experiences in youth relationships. In addition to considering the influence of these risk factors, we further considered their interaction in predicting conflict in close relationships. Of interest was the extent to which attachment styles may function as a moderator of the relationship between childhood abuse and current abuse in teen close relationships. High school students (N = 321) in grades 9 and 10 completed questionnaires tapping their histories of maltreatment, currently viewed styles of attachment, and conflict in close relationships over the past 6 months. Maltreatment alone emerged as the most consistent predictor, accounting for 13-18% of the variance in male's physically, sexually, and verbally abusive behaviors; in contrast, it was not highly predictive of female's abusive behaviors. Maltreatment was predictive of victimization experiences for both males and females. Attachment style did not substantially add to the prediction of relationship conflict beyond maltreatment; however, avoidant attachment style emerged repeatedly as a significant predictor of female abusiveness and victimization. Attachment self-ratings were found to function as a moderator of child maltreatment in predicting primarily male coercive behavior towards a relationship partner as well as predicting male's experience of coercion from a partner. Thus, the presence of childhood maltreatment and adolescent self-perceived insecure attachment style applies predominantly to male youth. The implication of these gender differences for understanding relationship violence is discussed.     

A concept analysis of, and proposed new term for, challenging behaviour

While the term 'challenging behaviour' is used frequently in literature with reference to people who have learning disabilities, the concept has not been defined comprehensively and empirical indicators for the presence of the phenomenon have not been defined from the perspective of nurses for people with learning disabilities. In this paper the concept 'challenging behaviour', as used in the area of nursing people who have learning disabilities, is analysed. It is suggested that it is an ambiguous term which is unsuitable for use in the field of learning disabilities. A new term is synthesized to replace that of 'challenging behaviour' and an attempt to develop concise indicators which will demonstrate the concept's presence in individuals who have a learning disability will be undertaken. It is suggested that the proposed term is less ambiguous than 'challenging behaviour' and, as such, is more user-friendly for both nurses and other carers of people who have learning disabilities. The paper concludes with the recommendation that further refinement is required in practice to expand and define the operational indicators of the proposed new term 'problematic behaviours'.     

Social support and coping strategies as mediators of adult adjustment following childhood maltreatment

Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to examine whether coping efforts and social support mediate the long-term sequelae of child maltreatment. The hypothesized SEM fit the data well and indicated that the association between previous childhood sexual and physical maltreatment and current psychological adjustment appeared to be strongly mediated by social support and coping strategies. In this sample of 302 female and male university students, most of whom reported at least one episode of childhood maltreatment, perceived social support and ways of coping with earlier maltreatment appeared essential to an understanding of the relationship between childhood maltreatment and later adjustment.     

Social support and stress factors in child maltreatment among alcoholic families.

Investigated the relationships among social support, stress, child maltreatment, and child aggressiveness in alcoholic families. Ss were 62 fathers, 65 mothers, and 65 children (aged 3–5 yrs). Three process models based on prior research were proposed and tested against one another using path analysis. Results suggest that for fathers, social support and stress were each independent direct predictors of child maltreatment. For mothers, social support was an indirect predictor of child maltreatment, and it buffered (moderated) the effect of stress on child maltreatment. For both fathers and mothers, lifetime alcohol problems predicted extent of child maltreatment. The data also indicate that child maltreatment influenced child aggressiveness. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peer relationships and self-esteem among children who have been maltreated

A prospective longitudinal design was employed to assess risks associated with maltreatment in a representative community sample of 107 maltreated children and an equal number of nonmaltreated comparison children. Heightened difficulties in peer relationships and self-esteem were associated with greater severity and chronicity of maltreatment. For example, children who experienced chronic maltreatment were less well-liked by peers. Type of maltreatment was also related to specific aspects of children's adjustment. For instance, sexual abuse predicted low self-esteem, but not problems in peer relationships. Emotional maltreatment, on the other hand, was related to difficulties in peer relationships, but not to low self-esteem. Thus, the best predictions of specific aspects of children's adjustment were provided by considering timing, type, and severity of maltreatment. For some groups of maltreated children, having a good friend was associated with improvement over time in self-esteem.     

Comparison of parents with and without disabilities raising teens: Information from the nhis and two national surveys.

Objectives: To contrast families headed by parents with disabilities raising children ages 11-17 years with families headed by parents without disabilities. Study Design: There were 3 sources of data: (a) the National Health Institute Survey (National Center for Health Statistics, 2000), (b) a previous national survey (L. T. T. Barker & V. Maralani, 1997), (c) a new national survey of parents with disabilities (n = 273) and their teens (ages 11-17 years; n = 246) and a control group of parents without disabilities (n = 48) and their teens (n = 37). Main Measure: Participants completed a survey designed for this study. Results: Parents with disabilities were generally quite similar to parents without disabilities, with some notable differences, particularly in employment and income. Deaf parents exhibited certain differences from parents with other disabilities. Conclusion: Survey responses provided a snapshot of parents with disabilities and their families from community samples, including aspects in which disabled and nondisabled participants were similar. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Association of insulin resistance to electrocardiographic changes in non obese Asian Indian subjects with hypertension

Although it is well documented that child maltreatment exerts a deleterious impact on child adaptation, much less is known about the precise etiological pathways that eventuate in child abuse and neglect. This paper reports on a multimethod ecological study of the relationship between neighborhood structural factors and child maltreatment reports in African American and European American census tracts. The study had two major components. First, in an aggregate analysis, the effects of four measures of community structure (impoverishment, child care burden, instability, and geographic isolation) on child maltreatment report rates were examined separately for predominantly African American (n = 94) and predominantly European American (n = 189) census tracts. Impoverishment in particular had a significantly weaker effect on maltreatment rates in African American than in European American neighborhoods. Second, focused ethnographies were conducted in four selected census tracts with child maltreatment report rates in the highest and lowest quartiles. Ethnographic data point to the importance of the social fabric in accounting for differences in child maltreatment report rates by predominant neighborhood ethnicity.     

Reliability of family maltreatment diagnostic criteria: 41 site dissemination field trial.

R. E. Heyman and A. M. S. Slep (see record 2006-10939-007) developed and conducted an effectiveness trial of a diagnostic system for child and partner maltreatment. The current investigation tested the widespread dissemination of the diagnostic system at 41 child and partner maltreatment services sites (n = 549 partner maltreatment cases and n = 342 child maltreatment cases). Agreement between field and master reviewers’ decisions was good for partner physical and emotional abuse (κ = 0.83–0.84). Agreement was also good for child physical, emotional, and sexual abuse (κ = 0.73–0.89) but lagged slightly for child neglect (κ = 0.66). Thus, multifaceted and content valid family maltreatment diagnostic criteria can be disseminated reliably. Replication studies of interrater agreement of the diagnostic system in typical clinical and agency settings are necessary; however, the high levels of agreement in myriad field sites imply that consistency of maltreatment determinations is achievable in widespread use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The association between childhood maltreatment and gambling problems in a community sample of adult men and women.

The association between childhood maltreatment and gambling problems was examined in a community sample of men and women (N = 1,372). As hypothesized, individuals with gambling problems reported greater childhood maltreatment than individuals without gambling problems. Childhood maltreatment predicted severity of gambling problems and frequency of gambling even when other individual and social factors were controlled including symptoms of alcohol and other drug use disorders, family environment, psychological distress, and symptoms of antisocial disorder. In contrast to findings in treatment-seeking samples, women with gambling problems did not report greater maltreatment than men with gambling problems. These results underscore the need for both increased prevention of childhood maltreatment and increased sensitivity towards trauma issues in gambling treatment programs for men and women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical Disability, Unemployment, and Mental Health.

Objective: Assess the joint mental health effects of unemployment and physical disability. Study Design: Face-to-face interviews with participants screened for the presence of a physical disability and a matched comparison sample obtained from the same geographic area. Participants: Five hundred fifty-six community-based physically disabled persons and 460 matched comparison participants. Outcome Measures: Mastery (L. I. Pearlin & C. Schooler, 1978) and self-esteem (M. Rosenberg, 1979), financial strain, and depression (L. S. Radloff, 1977). Results: Persons with disabilities are 5 times more likely than their nondisabled counterparts to be involuntarily unemployed. However, this difference accounts for only about 30% of the elevations in depression among the former. Furthermore, the emotional impact of unemployment appears to be greater among those with disabilities. Conclusions: There appears to be no overlap in the psychological impacts of physical disability and unemployment-the 2 stressors representing cumulative, and even synergistic, adversity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in abused children with and without disabilities

OBJECTIVE: Two questions were posed: (1) What are the proportions of boys and girls in various categories of substantiated child abuse? (2) Do the gender proportions differ for children with and without disabilities? METHOD: Data collected by previous researchers from a demographically representative sample of U.S. child abuse reporting districts was analyzed. This included 1,249 case files involving 1,834 children. The number of girls and boys who did and did not have disabilities was identified for three age categories and for several categories of abuse. Chi-square analyses were used to determine whether there was a relationship between disability and gender for the various age and abuse categories. RESULTS: More boys were physically abused and neglected, but more girls were sexually abused. Boys with disabilities, however, were over-represented in all categories of abuse. Moreover, gender proportions among abused children with disabilities differed significantly from those found among other abused children. Although slightly more than half of abused children without disabilities were girls, 65% of abused children with disabilities were boys. CONCLUSIONS: Boys represented a significantly larger proportion of physically abused, sexually abused, and neglected children with disabilities than would be expected from their respective proportion of abused and neglected children without disabilities. Several possible explanations for the observed gender and disability status interaction are discussed.     

Age of onset of child maltreatment predicts long-term mental health outcomes.

The authors tested the hypothesis that children who are maltreated earlier in life are at greater risk for poor psychological functioning in adulthood than those maltreated later in life. Age of onset of maltreatment was assessed with 3 classifications: (a) continuous (ages 0-11 years); (b) dichotomous (early [ages 0-5 years] vs. later [ages 6-11 years]); and (c) developmental (infancy [ages 0-2 years], preschool [ages 3-5 years], early school age [ages 6-8 years], and school age [ages 9-11 years]). Individuals with documented cases of physical and sexual abuse and neglect prior to age 12 (N=496) were followed up and assessed in adulthood. Results indicated that an earlier onset of maltreatment, measured dichotomously and developmentally, predicted more symptoms of anxiety and depression in adulthood, while controlling for gender, race, current age, and other abuse reports. Later onset of maltreatment, measured continuously or developmentally, was predictive of more behavioral problems in adulthood. Implications for the assessment of maltreated children, the prevention of adult psychopathology, and the classification of age of maltreatment onset are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)