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Article Excerpt
Despite more than 40 years of key federal legislation addressing child abuse and neglect, ranging from the 1974 Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (P.L. 93-247) to the more recent amendment, Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-36), many children remain at risk of child maltreatment in the United States. In 2005, of the 3.3 million referrals made to child protective services, which involved 6 million children, approximately 890,000 children received substantiated dispositions for child maltreatment. These children most commonly experienced neglect (62.8 percent), followed by physical abuse (16.6 percent), sexual abuse (9.3 percent), and emotional maltreatment (7.1 percent). Infants and toddlers were most at risk of maltreatment. Most of these children (54.5 percent) were seven years old or younger when maltreatment was substantiated (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], 2007).
From a developmental perspective, child maltreatment, especially in early childhood, may have adverse short- and long-term consequences on youth and adult development (Gerwitz & Edleson, 2007; Watts-English, Forston, Gibler, Hooper, & De-Bellis, 2006). These adverse effects may affect youths in psychological, cognitive, emotional, social, and behavioral domains. These adverse effects may begin in childhood and continue into adolescence and adulthood (for example, Bank & Burraston, 2001; Hecht & Hansen, 2001; Kilpatrick, Saunders, & Smith, 2003; Smith & Thornberry, 1995). Although maltreated youths' internalizing behavior may manifest as mild to severe symptoms such as anxiety, depression, or suicidal behavior, if recognized, these symptoms are most often accurately assessed and treated as mental health issues in response to trauma (Stanger, Achenbach, & McConaughy, 1993; Votta & Manion, 2004). In contrast, maltreated youths who exhibit externalizing behaviors (for example, rule-breaking behavior and aggression) (with or without underlying internalizing behavior) may easily be mislabeled as delinquent and then "treated" almost solely for antisocial behavior in the juvenile justice system. These youthful victims may miss the opportunity for a thorough social work assessment and intervention planning that addresses emotional, cognitive, psychological, and behavioral issues related to processing child maltreatment victimization. Behavioral issues that place youths at risk of juvenile justice involvement might even further complicate the use of assessment and intervention efforts that use an ecological and strengths-based approach consistent with social work.
The majority of the research exploring the link between traumatic experiences and juvenile delinquency has investigated the impact of child maltreatment before the age of 12 and its impact on adolescent delinquency (for example, Ireland, Smith, & Thornberry, 2002; Lemmon, 1999). Other research studies examining the multilevel risk factors for child maltreatment also have recognized a constellation of adverse consequences in intrapersonal and interpersonal domains (for example, Connor, Doerfler, Toscano, Volungis, & Steingard, 2004; Greenwald, 2002; Jonson-Reid, 1998; Malinosky-Rummell & Hansen, 1993; Margolin, 1998). Criminological research has been more active in exploring the intervening mechanism that links adverse life experience to maladaptive behavior, possibly because of the link to juvenile delinquency (for example, Agnew, 1985, 2001; Aseltine, Gore, & Gordon, 2000; Benda & Corwyn, 2002; Ireland et al., 2002). For example, studies testing general strain theory have found moderate support for a mediating role of maladaprive emotions or internalizing symptoms among adolescents in the link between experiences of strain or adverse life experiences (for example, being a victim of violence) and juvenile delinquency (for example, Agnew & White, 1992; Aseltine et al., 2000; Benda & Corwyn, 2002; Brezina, 1998). However, a gap in knowledge that can explain the short-term or proximal emotional or psychological experience of maltreated youths and its impact on adverse or externalizing behaviors remains. Information on the mediating mechanism that links child maltreatment to maladaptive behavior among children needs to be more fully understood with both cross-sectional and longitudinal data (English, 2003).
Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the short- and long-term influence of child maltreatment (that is, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional maltreatment, and neglect) on internalizing symptoms (for example, affective and somatic problems) and externalizing behavior (for example, rule-breaking behavior and aggressive behavior) among young children. It builds on the extant literature by exploring the early childhood origins of internalizing and externalizing behavior among a young cohort of maltreated children and using a more rigorous research design. In particular, this study used a longitudinal comparison group design of 300 youths between the ages of seven and 12 who are matched by geographic location, age, income, race, and class; four waves of data; multiple data sources (for example, official case records, parents, children, and camp counselors); standardized measures (for example, Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL]); and advanced statistical methods (that is, structural equation modeling).
To explore the relationship between child maltreatment and internalizing and externalizing behavior, the following hypotheses were tested: Hypothesis 1:Children who experience child maltreatment will exhibit higher levels of internalizing and externalizing behaviors compared with children who were not maltreated. Hypothesis 2:Internalizing behavior will mediate the relationship between being a victim of child maltreatment and externalizing behavior among children.
Using a longitudinal comparison group design (waves 1 to 4) and the CBCL, independent t test results revealed statistically significant mean differences between maltreated (n = 168) and non-maltreated youths (n = 132) on internalizing and externalizing behavior. Mediation analysis results revealed that initial (time 1) internalizing behavior had a longitudinal residual effect on externalizing behavior (times 1 to 4).
Research investigating the causal mechanism linking child maltreatment and juvenile delinquency has important practice and policy implications and applications for social work. Identifying the causal pathways that link...
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