A Semantic Network Analysis of News Comments on Child Abuse: Focusing on the Major Changes of Child Abuse Policies

Abstract

Objectives: This study analyzes how pulic awareness of perception of child abuse and the recent child abuse policy changes appeared in the news comments about child abuse. The major policy changes include the Act on Special Cases Concerning The Punishment, Etc. of Child Abuse Crimes (Act No. 15255, Dec. 19, 2017), Mandatory CCTV Installation at Daycare Centers (2015), investigation for school children who have been absent school long-term (2016), the 100 state tasks in inclusive welfare (2017), e-Child Happiness Support Service (2018), and Strengthening the Publicness of Child Protection Service (2019).Methods: For the purpose, this study analyzed 1,333,677 comments on news about child abuse from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2019. In this study, we conducted semantic network analysis to analyze how the contents of child abuse appeared in child abuse comments and the policy contents appeared at the time when major policies were implemented. The analysis using R program.Results: As a result of the analysis, the study found that the public recognized child abuse as a crime. Second, stereotypes on the perpetrators of child abuse were identified. Third, it was confirmed that the public is deeply interested in child abuse incidents occurred at kindergartens and daycare centers. Lastly, the result has revealed that the public, in general, does not yet acknowledge changes on the central policy of child abuse.Conclusion: Based on these findings, policy implcations are discussed to make improvements in awareness of child abuse more accessible to the public. Specifically, The government is responsible for solving stereotypes of child abuse, improving trust in daycare centers, and providing information on child care policies to the public.