Who Is at High Risk for Child Abuse and Neglect: Risk Assessment among Battered Women Using Shelter Services

BACKGROUND

The intersections between intimate partner violence (IPV) and child abuse and neglect (CAN) have received growing attention from the research community. However, there is limited research examining the risk factors for CAN among children of battered women who have experienced severe IPV and seek refuge in shelters.

OBJECTIVE

In the current study, we examined the co-occurrence of IPV and CAN and the risk factors for CAN in a sample of battered women.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

We recruited 260 battered women who were staying in women's shelters in Hong Kong.

METHODS

We analyzed the data collected from the risk assessment reports of battered women and focused on IPV against women, CAN, and risk assessment.

RESULTS

Nearly half of the battered women had reported both IPV against themselves and CAN against their children. These women were, in general, younger, unemployed, and had been living in Hong Kong for less than seven years as new immigrants. Other risk factors for CAN in violent families included women's conflicts with their partner and abusers with higher levels of stress and approval of violence.

CONCLUSIONS

This exploratory study of risk factors for the co-occurrence of IPV and CAN advances our understanding of the causes of violence against women and children in families with violence. Our findings suggest that additional integrated services should be offered to both battered women and their children during their stay in shelters and after shelter departure. Addressing IPV and CAN and reducing adverse consequences needs greater collaboration among the various stakeholders across the social services, health, educational, and legal sectors.

The Occurrence and Co-Occurrence of Harsh Parenting and Family Conflict in Hong Kong

The violation of children's right to a safe home environment is a major public health problem in need of serious attention. Evidence has been limited about the family characteristics that go with the co-occurrence of harsh parenting and family conflict. By using a representative community sample of Hong Kong families, this study aims to examine the prevalence and risk factors of harsh parenting and family conflict. This study was conducted using a secondary analysis obtained from the 2017 Hong Kong Family Survey with a sample size of 1926 respondents who have children. Results showed that participants' ages are negatively related to the occurrence and co-occurrence of harsh parenting and/or family conflict. Married mothers reported less family conflict. Fathers with lower education levels reported more experiences of family violence. Mothers reporting a higher level of family satisfaction were less associated with harsh parenting. This study provides insights into the unique and shared familial elements that prevent harsh parenting and family conflict and help facilitate the development of effective intervention strategies for family violence co-occurrence. Family-based prevention for family violence may screen for the presence of harsh parenting and family conflict and take into consideration these signals to better support families in need.

Understanding the interconnected relationships between intimate partner violence and child maltreatment: The role of maternal material hardship

BACKGROUND

Evidence indicates an association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment (CM). Although research shows mothers' IPV victimization is a risk factor for CM, the specific elements within IPV and CM are not well understood. Some studies suggest material hardship plays a role in the relationships between IPV and CM. However, the relationship between different typologies of IPV and CM considering material hardship has rarely been examined.

OBJECTIVE

This study fills this gap by assessing the direct effects of IPV victimization on material hardship and CM, direct effects of material hardship on CM, and indirect effects of IPV victimization on CM via material hardship with attention to typologies of IPV and CM.

METHODS

Data included responses by 3086 mothers in the Fragile Families Child Wellbeing Study.

RESULTS

Structural equation modeling showed that material hardship predicted higher risk of CM regardless of the presence of IPV or what type (child physical assault: β = 0.11, p < 0.001; child psychological aggression: β = 0.12, p < 0.001; child neglect: β = 0.06, p < 0.01). However, mothers who experienced controlling and emotional IPV had a higher risk of material hardship, and this increased their children's risk of CM (child physical assault: β = 0.02, p < 0.01; child psychological aggression: β = 0.02, p < 0.01; child neglect: β = 0.01, p < 0.05). This was the only type of IPV associated with CM through its association with material hardship.

CONCLUSIONS

The varied findings suggest that intervention efforts in families with co-occurring IPV and CM should mobilize economic support to IPV survivors with consideration of the varied effects of different types of IPV.

Mediation of Internet addiction on association between childhood maltreatment and suicidal behaviours among Chinese adolescents

Aims

The associations between suicidal behaviours and childhood maltreatment (CM), as well as Internet addiction (IA) have been extensively examined. However, few studies pay attention to different types of CM and all stages of suicidality, including suicidal ideation (SI), suicidal plans (SP) and suicidal attempts (SA). Moreover, little is known regarding the mediation of IA on the relationship between CM and suicidal behaviours. The study aims to explore the direct effect of CM and IA on three stages of suicidal behaviours, and the indirect effect of CM on suicidality via IA.

Methods

A total of 16 130 high-school students aged 12–18 were recruited using a stratified cluster sampling strategy across five representative provinces in China. Relevant information was collected by a self-administered anonymous questionnaire. Multinomial logistic regression analysis and structural equation model were used to examine the associations.

Results

During the last year, 16.0% of participants reported suicidal behaviours. Specifically, 7.9% reported SI only, 4.6% reported SP but no SA, and 3.5% reported SA. The prevalence of neglect, physical abuse and IA in moderate to severe were 28.9, 19.9 and 33.1%, respectively. After controlling for demographic characteristics and confounding factors, such as loneliness, psychological resilience, and social support, moderate and severe neglect, physical abuse and IA were associated with an increased risk of SI, SP and SA (p < 0.01). The total effect of neglect and physical abuse on suicidal behaviours were 0.152 and 0.172, respectively (p < 0.001). The mediation proportion of IA on the association between neglect and suicidal behaviours, as well as physical abuse and suicidal behaviours were 22.4 and 18.0%, respectively.

Conclusions

CM and IA are independently associated with suicidal behaviours among Chinese adolescents. Moreover, IA plays a mediating role on the relationship between CM and suicidality. Targeted interventions for adolescents’ suicidal behaviours should focus on those who have experience of CM and IA.

Intimate partner violence against women and child maltreatment in a Brazilian birth cohort study: co-occurrence and shared risk factors

BACKGROUND

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women and child maltreatment (CM) are major public health problems and human rights issues and may have shared causes. However, their overlap is understudied. We investigated the prevalence of IPV and CM, their co-occurrence in households and possible shared risk factors, in the general population of a Brazilian urban setting.

METHODS

Prospective population-based birth cohort, including over 3500 mother-child dyads with maternal reports on both IPV and CM when children were 4 years old. Eleven neighbourhood, family and parental risk factors were measured between birth and age 4 years. Bivariate and multivariate Poisson regression models with robust variance were used to test which potential risk factors were associated with IPV, CM and their co-occurrence.

RESULTS

The prevalence of any IPV and CM were 22.8% and 10.9%, respectively; the co-occurrence of both types of violence was 5%. Multivariate analyses showed that the overlap of IPV and CM was strongly associated with neighbourhood violence, absence of the child's biological father, paternal antisocial behaviour in general and a mother-partner relationship characterised by high levels of criticism, maternal depression and younger maternal age. A concentration of many risk factors among 10% of the population was associated with a sixfold increase in risk for overlapping IPV and CM compared with households with no risk factors.

CONCLUSION

IPV and CM share important risk factors in the family and neighbourhood environments and are particularly common in households with multiple social disadvantages and family difficulties. Integrated preventive interventions are needed.

Prevalence and Correlates of the Co-Occurrence of Family Violence: A Meta-Analysis on Family Polyvictimization

OBJECTIVE

The aims of this study are to (a) provide reliable estimates of prevalence rates of family polyvictimization by synthesizing the findings from the existing literature, (b) examine the effect sizes of the impact of one type of family victimization on other types of family victimization, and (c) investigate the correlates of family polyvictimization.

METHOD

Databases of literature published on or before April 2018 were searched. A total of 59 publications met the inclusion criteria and were included in the analysis for the combined odds ratios (ORs) to estimate the associations among different types of family victimization; 38 of them (99,956 participants) were used for the calculation of the combined prevalence rates of family polyvictimization.

FINDINGS

The overall co-occurrence rates of family victimization were 9.7% among the general population and 36.0% among the clinical population. The combined OR of other type(s) of victimization when one was present was 6.01 (p < .001). Longitudinal studies show that, when a family reported intimate partner violence, the odds of child abuse and neglect within the same family at a later stage was 3.64 (p < .001). Depression and post-traumatic stress disorder were two significant correlates associated with family polyvictimization.

CONCLUSION

Family polyvictimization is prevalent across the world. The high co-occurrence rates and strong associations between different types of victimization on different family members warrant the need for the early detection of victims and effective preventions and interventions using a family approach, instead of treating victims from the same family individually.

Association of harsh parenting and maltreatment with internet addiction, and the mediating role of bullying and social support

Growing evidence has shown that exposure to harsh parenting and child maltreatment elevate the risk of Internet addiction in adolescence. Yet, limited research has examined the mechanisms underlying this association. The present study was a cross-sectional school survey of 1204 adolescents (52.2 % male and 47.8 % female; mean age, 13.36 years) in Hong Kong. The adolescents completed a self-reported questionnaire about their exposure to bullying victimization, bullying perpetration, child maltreatment, Internet addiction, and social support. The findings showed that harsh parenting and maltreatment was significantly associated with Internet addiction. After controlling for a number of confounding factors, the results of the mediation analyses showed that family support and bullying perpetration, and family support and bullying victimization accounted for 36 % and 25 % of the effect of harsh discipline and maltreatment on Internet addiction, respectively. Effective prevention and intervention strategies for Internet addiction should target family and social vulnerabilities in adolescents.

Effectiveness of Potential Interventions to Change Gendered Social Norms on Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence in Uganda: a Causal Inference Approach

Evidence of the effectiveness of programs to change gendered social norms related to intimate partner violence (IPV) is growing, but their potential to significantly impact actual occurrence of IPV at population level is lacking. We study whether modest changes in gendered social norms related to wife-beating can result in significant changes in the incidence of emotional, physical, and sexual IPV among ever married women in Uganda. We employ an imputation-based causal inference approach, based on nationally representative Demographic Health Survey data. The steps are (1) model the association between adjusted neighborhood norms and experiences of IPV using a random effects logistic regression model, (2) impute unobserved counterfactual probabilities of experiencing IPV for each woman while manipulating her neighborhood norms by setting it to different values, (3) average the probabilities across the population, and (4) bootstrap confidence intervals. Results show that statistically significant inverse associations between more prohibitive neighborhood IPV norms and women's experiences of different forms of IPV at the population level exist. The effect is however small, that even if an entire community disapproves of wife-beating, incidence of IPV falls by about 10 percentage points to 48.5% (95% CI 46.0%-50.9%) from the observed value of 57.6% (95% CI 55.2%-59.9%). Furthermore, changes in neighborhood social norms are found to have no statistical significant effect on the incidence of sexual violence. In conclusion, changing gendered social norms related to wife-beating will not result in significant reductions in different forms for IPV at the population level.

Multiple Forms of Early Violent Socialization and the Acceptance of Interpersonal Violence Among Chinese College Students

Early violent socialization has consistently been associated with individuals' attitudes toward interpersonal violence in adulthood. However, how particular types of violent socialization during childhood differently influence individuals' acceptance of interpersonal violence remains unclear. The current study examined the effect of multiple types of violent socialization on acceptance of interpersonal violence among Chinese college students in Hong Kong (N = 794). The findings of hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that verbal advice regarding and witnessed experience with violence during childhood predict the acceptance of violence. In contrast, childhood experience of being a violence victim was not significantly associated with the acceptance of violence. In addition, gender moderates the relationship between verbal advice toward violence and acceptance of violence. Therefore, educational interventions related to the impact of multiple forms of violent socialization on attitudes toward violence that create a safe and stable environment for children may be beneficial for parents, teachers, and practitioners who work closely with children. The results may be also useful in informing colleges, universities, and professional practitioners as they make decisions about social awareness programs for college students to help change their attitudes toward violence.

Prevalence of Child Maltreatment and Its Association with Parenting Style: A Population Study in Hong Kong

Previous studies point to a link between parenting style and child maltreatment, but evidence from a Chinese context is lacking. We investigated the association between parenting style and child maltreatment in Hong Kong, and examined whether family socio-economic status and child gender moderate this relationship. Using stratified random sampling, 7585 children in Grade 1 to Grade 3 of 51 schools in Hong Kong were recruited and their parents were invited to complete the questionnaire. The past year weighted prevalence for minor physical abuse, severe/very severe physical abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect were 63.9%, 23.4%, 84.1%, and 23.2%, respectively. Authoritarian parenting was associated with all types of child maltreatment (prevalence ratio (PR) range: 1.10⁻1.53; p < 0.001), whereas authoritative parenting was associated with a lower risk of all types of child maltreatment (PR range: 0.89⁻0.97; p < 0.001). Child maltreatment is prevalent in Hong Kong and is strongly associated with parenting style. The association was significantly stronger among girls and those with higher family socioeconomic status. Education to empower parenting skills may alleviate the burden of child maltreatment.

Intimate partner violence against married rural-to-urban migrant workers in eastern China: prevalence, patterns, and associated factors

BACKGROUND

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health issue among married rural-to-urban migrant workers, the largest group of internal migrants in China. This study aims to explore the prevalence, patterns and associated factors of intimate partner violence against married rural-to-urban migrant workers in eastern China.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted in Zhejiang province in China between July 2015 and April 2016, and a total of 1,744 married rural-to-urban migrant workers ultimately took part in the study. Conflict Tactics Scales and several short demographic questions were applied. Data were principally analyzed with logistic regression.

RESULTS

The majority of married rural-to-urban migrant workers were middle-aged couples with a low education level and a relatively long-term duration of migration in fixed migrant cities. Nearly 45% of married rural-to-urban migrant workers were experienced at least one incident of intimate partner violence during the past 12 months. The joint occurrence of multiple forms of violence is the most commonly reported features of intimate partner violence, especially three overlapping patterns of intimate partner violence. Some individual (education and age), relationship (marital satisfaction, premarital sex and extramarital affairs) and social (duration of migration and number of migratory cities) factors of the respondents, were negatively or positively associated with intimate partner violence against married rural-to-urban migrant workers.

CONCLUSION

The results indicated that one out of two married rural-to-urban migrant workers experienced at least one incident of intimate partner violence during the past 12 months in China. Accordingly, there is an obvious demand of intervention and treatment activities to prevent and reduce the occurrence of intimate partner violence among the millions of migrant workers in China.