NCJ Number
229020
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 33 Issue: 12 Dated: December 2009 Pages: 907-913
Date Published
December 2009
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This cross-sectional survey examined the prevalence, type, and intensity of abuse of street children in Jaipur City, India.
Abstract
Street children reported experiences of abuse in all five areas examined: general abuse, health abuse, verbal abuse, physical abuse, and psychological abuse. Larger numbers of children (61.8 percent) scored in the "moderate" category of abuse, and 36.6 percent of the children reported abuse in the "severe" and "very severe" categories of abuse intensity. The highest mean scores were obtained for the "verbal" and "psychological" types of abuse. Regarding health abuse and overall abuse, boys were significantly more abused than girls. There were significant positive correlations between abuse and the increasing age and income of the street children. The occurrence of multitypes of maltreatment and neglect in street children was clearly evident. Children identified as having experienced various "severe" and "very severe" types of abuse should be targeted for a follow-up study, with cooperation from governmental and nongovernmental agencies working in the field of child welfare. The study consisted of a purposive random sampling of 200 street children composed of an equal number of boys and girls selected from the streets of Jaipur City, India. The in-depth interview schedule included the five areas of abuse. Data were analyzed by using percentages, t-test, and correlations. 3 tables, 2 figures, and 52 references