Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T18:11:29.150Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Dimensions of child maltreatment and their relationship to adolescent adjustment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 October 2008

David A. Wolfe  and
Robin McGee
David A. Wolfe*
Affiliation:
Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children, The University of Western Ontario
Robin McGee
Affiliation:
The University of Western Ontario
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: David A. Wolfe, Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Research in the broad area of child maltreatment has investigated the effects of these phenomena globally and without much attempt to distinguish the nature and extent of such experiences. This study sought to examine the underlying structure of child maltreatment and relate this structure to current adolescent adjustment. A principal components analysis was conducted with 162 adolescents who had backgrounds of child maltreatment, using a comprehensive measure of such experiences at two developmental time periods (birth to 6 years, and 7–12 years). This analysis resulted in interpretable factors that were used to create scales measuring maltreatment in a continuous, nonredundant manner. These scales were used to test main and interaction effects of each type of maltreatment on current adjustment of adolescent males and females. For males (N = 71), the relationship between early maltreatment and adjustment was significantly enhanced when interactions between physical and psychological abuse and between partner abuse and neglect were entered into the equation. For females (N = 91), current adjustment was significantly related to the developmental period in which neglect or psychological abuse had occurred. Results are discussed in relation to measurement and theoretical issues.

Type
Articles
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 6 , Issue 1 , Winter 1994 , pp. 165 - 181
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aber, J. L., & Cicchetti, D. (1984). The socio-emotional development of maltreated children: An empirical and theoretical analysis. In Fitzgerald, H., Lester, B., & Yogman, M. (Eds.). Theory and research in behavioral pediatrics (Vol. 2, pp. 147–205). New York: Plenum Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Achenbach, T., & Edelbrock, C. S. (1983). Manual for the Child Behavior Checklist and Revised Child Behavior Profile. Burlington: University of Vermont. Department of Psychiatry.Google Scholar
Ammerman, R., Cassissi, J. E., Hersen, M., & Van Hasselt, V. R. (1986). Consequences of physical abuse and neglect in children. Clinical Psychology Review, 6, 291–310.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barnett, D., & McGee, R. A. (Chairs). (1993, 03). Advances in the operationalization and quantification of child maltreatment: Implications for developmental theory and research. Symposium presented at the Society for Research in Child Development annual convention. New Orleans.Google Scholar
Belsky, J., Youngblade, L., & Pensky, E. (1989). Child-rearing history, marital quality, and maternal affect: Intergenerational transmission in a low-risk sample. Development and Psychopathology, 1, 291–304.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Besharov, D. J. (1981). Toward better research on child abuse and neglect: Making definitional issues and explicit methodological concern. Child Abuse and Neglect, 5, 383–390.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicchetti, D. (1989). How research on child maltreatment has informed the study of child development: Perspectives from developmental psychopathology. In Cicchetti, D. & Carlson, V. (Eds.), Child maltreatment: Theory and research on the causes and consequences of child abuse and neglect (pp. 377–431). New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicchetti, D., & Barnett, D. (1991). Toward the development of a scientific nosology of child maltreatment. In Cicchetti, D. & Grove, W. (Eds.), Thinking clearly about psychology: Essays in honor of Paul Meehl (pp. 346–377). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.Google Scholar
Cicchetti, D., & Carlson, V. (Eds.). (1989). Child maltreatment: Theory and research on the causes and consequences of child abuse and neglect. New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicchetti, D., & Howes, P. W. (1991). Developmental psychopathology in the context of the family: Illustrations from the study of child maltreatment. Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science, 23, 257–268.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cicchetti, D., & Lynch, M. (1993). Toward an ecological/transactional model of community violence and child maltreatment: Consequences for children's development. Psychiatry, 56, 96–118.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cicchetti, D., & Rizley, R. (1981). Developmental perspectives on the etiology, intergenerational transmission, and sequelae of child maltreatment. In Cicchetti, D. & Rizley, D. (Eds.), New directions for child development: Developmental perspectives on child maltreatment (pp. 31–55). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Cicchetti, D., Toth, S., & Bush, M. (1988). Developmental psychopathology and incompetence in childhood: Suggestions for intervention. In Lahey, B. B. & Kazdin, A. E. (Eds.), Advances in clinical child psychology (Vol. 11, pp. 1–71). New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar
Cohen, J., & Cohen, P. (1983). Applied multiple regression/correlational analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Compas, B. E. (1987). Stress and life events during childhood and adolescence. Clinical Psychology Review, 7, 275–302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dodge, K. A., Bates, J. E., & Pettit, G. (1990). Mechanisms in the cycle of violence. Science, 250, 1678–1683.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gaines, R., Sandgrund, A., Green, A. H., & Power, E. (1978). Etiological factors in child maltreatment: A multivariate study of abusing, neglecting, and normal mothers. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 87, 531–541.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Garmezy, N. (1983). Stressors of childhood. In Garmezy, N. & Rutter, M. (Eds.), Stress, coping, and development in children (pp. 43–84). New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Guadagnoli, E., & Velicer, W. F. (1988). Relation of sample size to the stability of component patterns. Psychological Bulletin, 103, 265–275.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoffman, M. L. (1977). Sex differences in empathy and related behaviors. Psychological Bulletin, 84, 712–722.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Howes, P. W., & Cicchetti, D. (1993). A family/relational perspective on maltreating families: Parallel processes across systems and social policy implications. In Cicchetti, D. & Toth, S. L. (Eds.), Child abuse, child development, and social policy (pp. 249–299). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.Google Scholar
Jaffe, P., Wolfe, D. A., Wilson, S., & Zak, L. (1986). Family violence and child adjustment: A comparative analysis of girls' and boys' behavioural symptoms. American Journal of Psychiatry, 143, 74–77.Google Scholar
Johnston, J. R., Kline, M., & Tschann, J. M. (1989). Ongoing postdivorce conflict: Effects on children of joint custody and frequent access. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 59, 576–591.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kalter, N., Kloner, A., Schreier, S., & Okla, K. (1989). Predictors of children's postdivorce adjustment. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 59, 605–618.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaufman, J., Jones, B., Stieglitz, E., Vitulano, L., & Mannarino, A. P. (in press). The use of multiple informants to assess children's maltreatment experiences. Journal of Family Violence.Google Scholar
Lewis, D. O., Lovely, R., Yeager, C., & Femina, D. B. (1989). Toward a theory of the genesis of violence: A follow-up study of delinquents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 28, 431–436.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Malamuth, N. M., Sockloskie, R. J., Koss, M. P., & Tanaka, J. S. (1991). Characteristics of aggressors against women: Testing a model using a national sample of college students. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 59, 670–681.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mash, E. J., & Wolfe, D. A. (1991). Methodological issues in research on physical child abuse. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 18, 8–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGee, R. A. (1989). Burnout and professional decision-making: An analogue study. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 36, 345–351.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGee, R. A., & Wolfe, D. A. (1991). Psychological maltreatment: Towards an operational definition. Development and Psychopathology, 3, 3–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGee, R. A., Wolfe, D. A., & Wilson, S. K. (1990). A Record of Maltreatment Experiences. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario & The Institute for the Prevention of Child Abuse, 25 Spadina Road, Toronto, Ontario.Google Scholar
McGee, R. A., Wolfe, D. A., & Yuen, S. (1991, 04). The measurement of maltreatment: A comparison of approaches. Paper presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Seattle, WA.Google Scholar
Shirk, S. R. (1988). The interpersonal legacy of physical abuse of children. In Straus, M. (Ed.), Abuse and victimization across the lifespan (pp. 57–81). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.Google Scholar
Starr, R., & Wolfe, D. A. (Eds.). (1991). The effects of child abuse and neglect: Issues and Research. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Starr, R. H., MacLean, D. J., & Keating, D. P. (1991). Life-span developmental outcomes of child maltreatment. In Starr, R. & Wolfe, D. (Eds.), The effects of child abuse and neglect: Issues and Research (pp. 1–32). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Straus, M. A. (1979). Measuring intrafamily conflict and violence: The Conflict Tactics (CT) Scales. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 41, 75–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Straus, M. A., & Gelles, R. J. (1986). Societal change and change in family violence from 1975 to 1985 as revealed by two national surveys. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 48, 465–479.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1988). Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 103, 193–210.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Windle, M. (1992). A longitudinal study of stress buffering for adolescent problem behaviors. Developmental Psychology, 28, 522–530.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolfe, D. A., & Jaffe, P. (1991). Child abuse and family violence as determinants of child psychopathology. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 23, 282–299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolfe, D. A., Jaffe, P. J., Wilson, S. K., & Zak, L. (1985). Children of battered women: The relation of child behaviour to family violence and maternal stress. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 53, 657–665.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wolfe, D. A., & McGee, R. (1991). Assessment of emotional status among maltreated children. In Starr, R. & Wolfe, D. (Eds.), The effects of child abuse and neglect: Issues and research (pp. 257–277). New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Wolfe, V., Gentile, C., & Bourdeau, P. (1986). The History of Victimization Form. Unpublished manuscript, Children's Hospital of Western Ontario, London, Canada.Google Scholar
Wolfe, V. V., Gentile, C., & Wolfe, D. A. (1989). The impact of sexual abuse on children: A PTSD formulation. Behavior Therapy, 20, 215–228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar