NCJ Number
222947
Journal
Child Abuse Review Volume: 17 Issue: 2 Dated: March-April 2008 Pages: 108-118
Date Published
March 2008
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This report presents the victim rates and severity of child maltreatment in U.S. Army families for 1990-2004 by the gender of the child and parent.
Abstract
Child neglect rates decreased from a high in 1991 to a low in 2000; however, by 2004 the rates had increased to approximately the 1991 level. During two large-scale deployments of the U.S. Army to the Middle East (1991 and 2002-2004), the rates of neglect increased. Neglect rates were highest for the youngest children and decreased as age increased. Physical abuse rates decreased from 1990-2004, but the decline slowed during 2001-04. Physical abuse by male offenders was more severe. Rates of emotional abuse fluctuated widely. Emotional abuse rates were similar for boys and girls up to age 11, but the rates for older girls were higher. Sexual abuse had the lowest rates throughout the study period, decreasing from approximately 0.5/1,000 to approximately 0.1/1,000. Rates of physical abuse and neglect were generally higher for boys than for girls up to the teen years, when the rates reversed. Male offenders were more likely to maltreat children (even when excluding sexual abuse) than were female offenders. Offenders of both sexes were more likely to abuse male children. Suggestions are offered for practice, prevention, and research in child maltreatment. The statistical procedures used in this research were tabulation of numbers of cases and computation of rates of maltreatment based on the at-risk population of military children under 18 years old. Data from the Army Central Registry of child and spouse abuse were tabulated by victim, offenders, sex of both child and parent, and type and severity of maltreatment by year. 2 tables, 6 figures, and 8 references