Child Abuse And Neglect

Child Abuse and Neglect

• Researchers: Nick McRee, Mary E. Haskett, Jason C. Allaire, Shawn Kreig, Kendra C. Hart, Takeo Fujiwara, Makiko Okuyama, Mari Kasahara, and Ayako Nakamura

• Reviewed by: Nasim Ameri, Rose Yejha, and Angelique Noel

• October 14, 2008• Psyc 308 UMBC

Abstract

Intro- Blended Households• Issue: abused and neglected children

and the types of families they live in.• Homes with the child, mother and

boyfriend were expected to have more reports. (Companion parents)

• A child getting hit a belt from parent is usually the primary thought for abuse.

• Neglected children

Intro cont’d• Goal: Study variation of abuse in non-

related parent figures• Importance: inform researcher and

readers of where most child abuse is taking place and in what types of families.

• hypothesized that adopted parents will show lower evidence of abuse in comparison to stepparents.

Forms of neglect

Method Blended Households

• Large sample of runaway/homeless youth• Info on health and human services• Collected demographic, problems

w/youth and family structure• Evidence of sexual/physical abuse and

victimization risk• Calculate abuse risk• Grouped by type of parent

Results – Blended Households

Percentage

Status

56.1% Female

65% Non-Hispanic White

35% Runaways

9% Homeless

7% Contemplating run away

48% In program reason unspecified

33%

No father figure

8% No mothers

Results 1 Sexual abuse• Households that had non-related parents

was a sign of higher risk for sexual abuse to the youth.

• One natural parent and a relative had low evidence or risk.

• Natural parent/adopted parent = 1.2% more cases.

• Natural/Stepparent = 3.6% more cases.• Natural/Cohabiting = 12.1%fewer cases.

Results 1 physical abuse

• Adopted parents = 13.7% fewer cases

• Stepparents = 0.8% fewer cases• Natural/cohabiting parent = 5.0%

more

Intro- Munchausen• Munchausen syndrome• Objective of research• UK and US vs. Japan• Doctors consultations

Intro cont’d• The researchers hypothesized that

due to the health system in Japan the characteristics of victims and perpetrators of MSBP could be effected.

Method- MunchausenTop 11 doctors in child abuse, JapanReported casesQuestionnaireVariables of victims

– Sex, age, duration of abuse, developmental disorder, family structure, medical background

Type of MSBP and symptoms

Results- Munchausen• Most of the victims were males. • More than half the victims were 4yrs• Most of the perpetrators were biological

mothers• More than half the perpetrators had mental

disorders• Most cases were confirmed by seperating

parent and child• 70% of victims didn’t get an education

opportunity• Often the child is found dead.

Intro- Ethnicity• Correlation between physical

abuse and problems with aggression/behavior

• Social factors• Physical discipline is correlated

with aggression and behavior in the European American children.

Intro cont’d• Physical discipline and adjustment

problems, show a weak relationship in African American children. There aren’t many reports on aggression bad behavior.

• Focus of study: predictors of social adjustment for abused and non-abused children

Intro - Ethnicity• No difference on the bases of

ethnicity for physical abuse. • There is a difference in ethnicity

when it comes to physical discipline.

Intro- Ethnicity (Parenting)

• Children with warm and responsive parents show empathy and cooperation, they are looked in a positive way by their peers and are involved in less activities demonstrating mal behavior.

• Spanking a child will increase the behavior when the parents have low emotional support

• Spanking will decrease behavior when parents have high emotional support

Method- Ethnicity78 children w/ reported physical abuse/

abusive parents75 non abused children w/ one parentAbusive parents were from CPS through

a letterOther group of parents were informed

through flyers each was screened– Phone interview, administration, CPS review

Method- EthnicityParent/child interaction was

observedSix month after a questionnaire

was sent out to the teacher$75 for participants

Results-Ethnicity• Sensitivity of the parent was a

main factor in determining aggression.

• There was a connection between abuse and ethnicity

• Abused and non-abused African American children had no difference in aggressive behavior

Results Ethnicity• Abused European children showed

more signs of aggression than non-abused

• Non-abused African American children were more aggressive in comparison to non-abused European American children

Discussion The purpose of these studies were to compile different ideas

that may be linked to child abuse and neglect. It was hypothesized that family structure, ethnicity, and culture play a role in child maltreatment. The hypotheses in these three studies were proven to be true. In the family structure study, researchers observed that abuse risks were higher in households with non-related parents. In the ethnicity study, there was definite connection found between abuse and ethnicity. In the culture study, researchers observed that perpetrators of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy didn’t necessarily have to have a medical background in a country that provides universal medical care such as Japan. These finding are important for understanding underlying causes for child abuse so precautions can be made where possible. Since there are many different kinds of family structures, ethnicities, and cultures, these studies couldn’t possibly obtain statistics from every single one, therefore there were some limitations in these studies.

Food for thought

References• Fujiwara, T., Okuyama, M., Kasahara, M., Nakamura, A.

(2008). Characteristics of hospital-based munchausen syndrome by proxy in japan. Child Abuse and Neglect The International Journal, 32 503-509.

• Haskett, M. E., Allaire, J. C., Kreig, S., Hart, K. C. (2008). Protective and vulnerability factors for physically abused children: Effects of ethnicity and parenting context. Child Abuse and Neglect The International Journal, 32 567-576.

• McRee, N. (2008). Child abuse in blended households: Reports from runaway and homeless youth. Child Abuse and Neglect The International Journal, 32 449-453.

• Miller-Perrin, C., Perrin, R.D., (2006). Child maltreatment. Second Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.