New Directions in Child Abuse and Neglect Research (2014) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 15-30
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From page 15... ...
These effects are seen in all aspects of human functioning, including physical and mental health, as well as important areas such as education, work, and social relationships. Furthermore, rigorous examinations of risk and protective factors for child abuse and neglect at the individual, contextual, and macrosystem levels have led to more effective strategies for prevention and treatment.
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From page 16... ...
At the same time, however, the existing research and service system infrastructures are inadequate for taking full advantage of this new knowledge. The committee hopes that this gap will narrow as researchers in diverse domains collaborate to elucidate the underlying causes and consequences of child abuse and neglect, as those implementing promising interventions learn how best to take evidence-based models to scale with fidelity, and as policies are examined more rigorously for their ability to improve outcomes and create a coordinated and efficient system of care.
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From page 17... ...
In fiscal year 2011, the latest year for which data are available, state child protective services agencies encountered 676,569 children, or about 9.1 of every 1,000 children, who were found to be victims of child abuse and neglect, including physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and medical and other types of neglect. More than one-quarter had been victimized previously.
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From page 18... ...
It is expected that the committee will give special consideration to the following key topics: preventing child maltreatment and promoting well-being; intervention and evidence-based practices; implementation and dissemination; strategies aimed at community, society, place-based, or system-level changes; parent, family, and community engagement; biological and neurobiological research on child mal treatment; culturally relevant and meaningful practice; and future directions for child maltreatment research methods and measurement.
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From page 19... ...
The committee commissioned a number of background papers that reviewed research results and research infrastructure needs in key areas of child abuse and neglect research. It held four face-to-face meetings, including two public sessions, as well as many whole-committee and subcommittee conference calls, to review the literature; discuss current understanding of the extent, causes, and consequences of child abuse and neglect, the effectiveness of intervention programs, and the impact of public policies; and discuss the draft report chapters and reach consensus on findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
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From page 20... ...
While this federal definition sets a minimum standard for legal definitions, each state has developed its own definitions of child abuse and neglect. Child abuse and neglect are usually represented by four major categories: physical abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and emotional (or psychological)
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From page 21... ...
Sexual Abuse Includes activities by a parent or caregiver such as fondling a child's genitals, penetration, incest, rape, sodomy, indecent exposure, and exploitation through prostitution or the production of pornographic materials. Appearing in the definition of abuse and neglect itself, sexual abuse is further defined by the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA)
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From page 22... ...
This scope is reflective of the minimum definitional standard prescribed by CAPTA. Although individual jurisdictions may expand their definitions of abuse to include actions by extrafamilial parties, the CAPTA minimum standard is the most universally relevant to legal and child protection systems across the United States, as well as the data drawn from such sources for research purposes.
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From page 23... ...
Among specific improvements needed are refined theoretical models and research designs representing the relevant disciplines and ecological levels with appropriate specification of effects; multiple measures and methods for tracking core constructs, including neurological and other biological measures such as genetic and epigenetic factors; longitudinal research designs with which to assess the sequences of events that lead to abusive and neglectful behaviors and to identify treatment and prevention interventions that can protect against the intergenerational transfer of abuse and neglect; appropriate statistical analyses that differentiate effects at various ecological levels; appropriate statistical control to create more rigorous experimental opportunities when randomized controlled trials are infeasible for evaluating
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From page 24... ...
These conclusions demonstrate the importance of designing rigorous studies to examine complex questions such as those relating to child abuse and neglect. The Fragile Families study can provide a great deal of information on child abuse and neglect, and a similarly rigorous study designed to examine the many important questions concerning child abuse and neglect could do much more.
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From page 25... ...
A SYSTEMS FRAMEWORK FOR CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT Research advances in child abuse and neglect make clear that attaining a better understanding of the problem and mounting an effective response will require a systems perspective (e.g., Senge and Sterman, 1992)
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From page 26... ...
The complexity of child abuse and neglect makes the problem difficult to address in the absence of a full understanding of the diverse and multilevel systems that impact its incidence, consequences, and social response. By contrast, sustained and thoughtful systems thinking can lead to rigorous research designs that can advance knowledge and program or service implementation in meaningful ways.
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From page 27... ...
, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status -- and how the inequalities that ensue because of rank ordering in these domains impact child abuse and neglect. In addition, this lens enables intersectionality to be infused into the discourse; thus, how the multiple strata occupied by an individual (e.g., a poor dark-skinned Latino female)
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From page 28... ...
The committee believes attention to these issues of social and economic stratification will yield increased understanding and more effective responses to the problem. CONCLUSION Significant progress has been made in efforts to understand child abuse and neglect; to document its devastating and lifelong impacts on both its victims and society; and to develop, test, and replicate evidence-based treatment and prevention strategies.
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From page 29... ...
The interdependency of myriad factors operating at multiple levels and in multiple domains complicates understanding of the causes and consequences of child abuse and neglect and challenges the ability to design, implement, and sustain effective responses. Building on the gains realized in the past 20 years will require a research paradigm and infrastructure capable of capturing this complexity.
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From page 30... ...
2012. Child maltreatment research, policy, and practice for the next decade: Workshop summary.
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