Child Maltreatment Among Immigrant Chinese Families: Characteristics and Patterns of Placement

Abstract

This study examined the characteristics of child abuse among immigrant Chinese families in Los Angeles. The study also identified some of the critical variables contributing to the selection of one of two types of placement (in home or out of home) by the child protective services system. Data were obtained from 221 active Chinese case files maintained by the Asian Pacific Unit of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services. The extracted data were presented with logistic regression analysis to examine the odds of children being removed from the home. The most prevalent type of maltreatment experienced by the Chinese victims was physical abuse, and the rate of physical abuse was higher than in the general child welfare population. Chinese children are less likely to be removed from their homes than are non-Chinese children. Implications for practice include the need for focusing services on Chinese parent education and family preservation.

Review of child maltreatment in immigrant and refugee families

“…14,15,31,32 There were no differences in maltreatment as a function of child gender in three studies, 14,31,32 but three others reported that being a boy constituted a risk factor 18,27,34 and another three reported that more girls from immigrant families were involved with CPS. 16,21,22 Two studies reported that children born outside the US and involved with CPS were more likely to be older than those born in the US and involved with CPS.…”

“…22,29,30 Of the 18 studies, 11 explored associations between country of origin and type of maltreatment (see Table 3 for details of these studies' results). The results generally show that children of immigrant families are most frequently reported for physical abuse 11,15,18,20,21,26,31,32 and to a lesser extent for physical neglect, 11,14 emotional/educational neglect 11,20 and sexual abuse 16,17,26 or to experience emotional abuse. 20,26 The authors explain that the higher rates of emotional abuse may be due to different parental practices and expectations regarding child rearing 16,32 or to the occurrence of intimate partner violence as reported by studies involving families of Mexican 26 and Korean origin.…”

“…27 Studies have also reported the use of excessive physical discipline 18,22 and having beliefs and practices that approve of excessive physical discipline as additional risk factors. [14][15][16]22,27,31,32 The parents' history of maltreatment as a child was positively associated with an increased likelihood of physical punishment being used with their own children. 34 However, 38% of mothers who did not report a history of maltreatment as a child did use physical punishment with their own children.…”

“…The severity of the abuse was inversely related to the length of residence in the host country: more years living in the US was associated with less severe physical abuse. 21,31,32,34 This was explained by the acculturative stress hypothesis, which stipulates that immigrant families may be at higher risk during the first years of settlement because they face increased stress for acculturation and because they are less familiar with the laws, norms and values of the host society. 31 Park found a significant association between high -Vietnamese children were more likely to be reported for physical abuse (51.6%) and less so for incapacity or absence of caregiver (3.3%).…”

“…16,17,22,26 Most parents reported experiencing difficulties because they did not speak the local language. 25,27,32,33 In terms of family structure, the majority of immigrant children involved with CPS lived in two-parent households (mostly with both biological parents), in which the parents were either married or living with a common-law partner. [14][15][16][17][18]22,31,32 Only six studies investigated the link between these characteristics and the likelihood of maltreatment occurring.…”