Individual and Cumulative Risks for Child Abuse and Neglect

Abstract

Objective The present study investigated whether risk factors vary by subtypes of child maltreatment investigations, with particular attention to the role of cumulative risks affecting child maltreatment. Background Building and expanding on prior work finding that the accumulation of risk factors puts children at risk for maltreatment, this work examines child physical abuse and neglect investigations separately. Method A sample of 1,181 low‐income families was randomly selected from one state's public assistance caseload. Multinomial logistic regression was used to model risk factors associated with 3 subtypes of investigated child maltreatment reports. Results Risk factors for each type of child maltreatment were different. As the number of risk factors families experienced increased, the likelihood of child maltreatment increased across all subtypes of maltreatment. Specifically, families with 5 or more risk factors were at greater risk of maltreatment than families with 2 or fewer risk factors. Conclusion The threshold effect of cumulative risks demonstrates that families may be able to tolerate a moderate number of risk factors; however, beyond a certain number of risks, families may not be able to cope adequately with the stress, and the likelihood of maltreating their children dramatically increases. Implications To alleviate child maltreatment, prevention programs need to address diverse risks simultaneously, rather than focus on a particular risk factor.

Gender differences in the interaction effect of cumulative risk and problem-focused coping on depression among adult employees

“…The 75th percentile cut-off was used (1 = score above the 75th percentile). This cut-off point has been used in other risk studies [8–12].…”

“…However, if his/her cumulative risk index is 4, we can know easily that he/she is suffering from four types of high risk exposure. Therefore, cumulative risk has been used to assess the stressor more and more [8–12].…”

Childhood Trauma Exposure Exacerbates the Impact of Concurrent Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence on Women's Posttraumatic Symptoms

“…Moreover, although it is relatively common to find early neglect in the absence of abuse, it is rare to find abuse in the absence of neglect. In accordance with cumulative risk theory (Barnyard et al, 2001;Yang & Maguire-Jack, 2018), multiple types of maltreatment will lead to worse outcomes than isolated abuse or neglect, and further investigation of additive or synergistic effects of maltreatment may be warranted. Without minimizing the potential harms of childhood neglect, the present finding suggests that perinatal screening and prevention efforts should focus on offering support to women with childhood abuse histories whose partners, even if they are not currently abusive, may be prone to increased aggression in response to the stresses of early parenthood.…”

La réponse aux besoins affectifs et cognitifs de l’enfant : Application du modèle cumulatif à la population générale

“…Plus le nombre de facteurs augmente, plus le risque de maltraitance est grand, révélant un effet linéaire 23,24 . D'autresétudes ont démontré que la présence de maltraitance augmente significativementà partir d'un certain nombre de facteurs de risque, sous-tendant un effet par seuil 22,25,26 . Peu d'études se sont toutefois intéressées au risque cumulatif associé au continuum de réponse aux besoins de l'enfant pouvant menerà de la négligence 22 .À notre connaissance, aucune ne s'est pas penchée sur la réponse aux besoins affectifs et cognitifs spécifiquement auprès de la population générale.…”

“…D'autresétudes ont démontré que la présence de maltraitance augmente significativementà partir d'un certain nombre de facteurs de risque, sous-tendant un effet par seuil 22,25,26 . Peu d'études se sont toutefois intéressées au risque cumulatif associé au continuum de réponse aux besoins de l'enfant pouvant menerà de la négligence 22 .À notre connaissance, aucune ne s'est pas penchée sur la réponse aux besoins affectifs et cognitifs spécifiquement auprès de la population générale. Ces connaissances s'avèrent essentielles, particulièrement dans un contexte où la science faitétat des conséquencesà long terme de ces types de négligence 10,11 ainsi que de la difficulté de repérage 7 .…”