NCJ Number
177646
Date Published
1997
Length
43 pages
Annotation
This bulletin intends to raise awareness of the magnitude and gravity of adolescent maltreatment and to provide information on public health program and policy interventions.
Abstract
A section on adolescent populations at risk for abuse and neglect focuses on the need for through screening. This is followed by discussion of the ecology of adolescent maltreatment and a definition of abuse and neglect that encompasses physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, physical neglect, emotional neglect, and educational neglect. A section on data collection and analysis reviews sources of data on adolescent abuse and neglect, followed by a section that addresses limited recognition, reporting, and treatment of adolescent victimization. A separate section on sexual victimization considers risk factors for sexual abuse, perpetrators of sexual assault, and the extent of sexual abuse. The next section identifies links between sexual abuse and adolescent sexual behaviors. Two other sections focus on adolescent abuse and the justice system and victims of violence. A section on responses to victimization contains sub-sections on neglect, sexual abuse, the experience of violence, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Remaining sections discuss victimization at school, media and adolescent victimization, the prevention of adolescent maltreatment, identification, treatment, education and training for providers, and policy and program implementation. The latter section encompasses the judicial system, corporal punishment, family support and preservation, juvenile detention, child fatality review, and child protective services. The bulletin concludes with an outline for a public health framework for addressing adolescent maltreatment. A 147-item bibliography