Physical abuse of children is a serious public health problem, associated with poor mental and physical health sequelae, and more prevalent in impoverished communities. In 1995 the estimated rate of serious physical abuse was 49 per 1000 children in the U.S.; among families who earned less than $20,000 per year, it was 93 per 1000. Additionally, neighborhood violence, often associated with poverty, may put children at even higher risk of physical abuse. The relationship between neighborhood violence, individual experience of violence, neighborhood/individual poverty, and severe physical assault of children is explored through a multi-level investigation. Data come from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, an interdisciplinary study aimed at deepening our understanding of the pathways to child and adolescent criminal behavior, psychiatric disorder, and prosocial behavior among a diverse sample. Severe physical assault of their children in the past year was reported by 32% of primary caregivers of 3-15 year-olds sampled from 80 Chicago neighborhoods. This percentage ranged across neighborhoods from a low of 9.7% to 63.8%. Among children ages 9-15, 88% reported witnessing violence in their neighborhoods or schools, and among parents of children ages 3-15, 50% reported family or close friends hurt or killed. A scale of neighborhood perceptions of safety and violence was created using data from a contemporaneous, independent survey of residents. Identification of multi-level risk factors for severe physical assault of children is an important step toward understanding how neighborhood violence may be adversely affecting caregivers and children within the home.
Learning Objectives: 1. List risk factors for physical assault of children by caregivers, at both individual and neighborhood levels. 2. Discuss links between different types of violence: neighborhood violence, partner violence between caregivers, and physical assaults perpetrated on children within the home. 3. Recognize the importance of using multi-level, hierarchical analysis when you have a diverse sample and are investigating a complex social and behavioral research question
Keywords: Family Violence, Child/Adolescent Mental Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.