The Effects of Child Abuse and Neglect Issues and Research

Research in child abuse has expanded dramatically since the first controlled studies were started in the mid-1970s. The fields of developmental psychology and clinical child psychology have progressed in tandem, resulting in theoretical richness and increased methodological sophistication. With these advances, it is now commonly recognized that child abuse and neglect can be fully understood only through the use of longitudinal research methods --difficult, expensive, and time-consuming though their application may be. THE EFFECTS OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT reviews the findings from current longitudinal research and also serves as an authoritative guide to the complex methodologic issues involved in conducting such studies. The book's introductory chapter examines the intergenerational transmission of abusive behavior and its adult sequelae. In-depth analyses of three innovative longitudinal investigations follow: the first focuses on the value of an at-risk approach to research in this area; the second evaluates structural equations modeling, a relatively new statistical method; and the third demonstrates the usefulness of a transactional approach to the longitudinal study of different forms of maltreatment. Other contributions focus specifically on the interpretation of existing research and on conducting future studies. Provocative discussions on crucial definitional issues are complemented by equally trenchant analyses of as-yet unresolved design considerations. The remaining chapters deal with basic measurement issues, especially the assessment of parental personality and psychopathology, psychological abuse, parental childrearing belief systems, parent-child attachment and other domains of parent-child interaction, and the impact of maltreatment on physical and emotional development. An effective synthesis of practical and research issues, THE EFFECTS OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT is essential reading for all child development, psychiatry, child psychiatry, family sociology, social work, pediatric, nursing, and other human services professionals responsible for recognizing, treating, and preventing child abuse as well as for ameliorating its long-term consequences.