Improving measurement of child abuse and neglect: A systematic review and analysis of national prevalence studies

Abstract

Objectives Child maltreatment through physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, and exposure to domestic violence, causes substantial adverse health, educational and behavioural consequences through the lifespan. The generation of reliable data on the prevalence and characteristics of child maltreatment in nationwide populations is essential to plan and evaluate public health interventions to reduce maltreatment. Measurement of child maltreatment must overcome numerous methodological challenges. Little is known to date about the extent, nature and methodological quality of these national studies. This study aimed to systematically review the most comprehensive national studies of the prevalence of child maltreatment, and critically appraise their methodologies to help inform the design of future studies. Methods Guided by PRISMA and following a published protocol, we searched 22 databases from inception to 31 May 2019 to identify nationwide studies of the prevalence of either all five or at least four forms of child maltreatment. We conducted a formal quality assessment and critical analysis of study design. Results This review identified 30 national prevalence studies of all five or at least four forms of child maltreatment, in 22 countries. While sound approaches are available for different settings, methodologies varied widely in nature and robustness. Some instruments are more reliable and obtain more detailed and useful information about the characteristics of the maltreatment, including its nature, frequency, and the relationship between the child and the person

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Child-parent interactions in American and Turkish families: Examining measurement invariance analysis of child-parent relationship scale

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Population-based estimates of associations between child maltreatment type: A meta-analysis

“…1 Experiences of abuse or neglect during early life pose a serious public health issue; beyond immediate physical harm, they may increase long-term risk for poorer physical health, substance abuse, interpersonal violence, suicidality, and psychiatric disorders. [2][3][4][5] Recently, there is growing interest in better understanding the magnitude and specificity of these associations, [6][7][8] particularly given that child maltreatment is an umbrella term that consists of several correlated (at least at the group level) but distinct experiences, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect.…”