Prior incest in mothers of abused children

Previous studies have shown that most abusing parents have a history of physical abuse or neglect in their own childhoods. There is little data on the frequency of prior sexual abuse among parents who physically or sexually abuse their children. Many case reports describe the uncovering of a prior incest experience in a parent during the investigation of the child's current incest accusation, but it is unclear how frequently this occurs. One hundred mothers of abused children were asked about sexual incidents that occurred before age 18; the control group consisted of 500 normal women from the same community who were surveyed during meetings of various voluntary organizations. Age and ethnicity did not differ in the two groups. Of the mothers of abused children, 24% reported a prior incest experience, whereas only 3% of the control women reported prior incest. This eightfold difference was highly significant. The 34 mothers from families where sexual abuse was occurring were no more likely to report prior incest than were the 66 mothers from families where physical abuse occurred. The one case of genital mutilation of a child occurred in a family where both parents had been incest victims. Case studies indicate that the parent who has been an incest victim has inhibitions and fears about tenderness, traceable to the childhood incest experience, which are important in the development of either physical abuse or sexual abuse in the family.     

Child sexual abuse and incest: community-based intervention

OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of this article is to determine the effectiveness of community intervention in the case of child sexual abuse. The article describes and analyses an actual case in a small urban community in Israel. METHOD: After several incidents of child sexual abuse, much of it incestuous, were brought to light in the community, they were discussed openly, contained, and punished. A community campaign, in which community activists as well as all the service providers were involved, was organized by community social workers. Individual, group, and community interventions were used. RESULTS: The continuation of the abuse has been checked, and, so far, there is no evidence to suggest its resurgence. Community apathy to child sexual abuse seems to have been halted and reversed. The involvement of community residents, particularly the activists, has increased, and this appears to be the major factor in changed community norms toward child sexual abuse. CONCLUSION: Implications of the individual, group, and community interventions are discussed. An integrated program of intervention practices is advocated to contain and prevent the incidence of child sexual abuse and incest.     

Convergent validity of the preliminary Spanish version of the Child Abuse Potential Inventory: depression and marital adjustment]

This paper studies the "convergent validity" of the preliminary spanish version of the Child Abuse Potential (CAP) Inventory. In relation to the ecological-systemic model of child maltreatment, this inventory evaluates individual, family, and social factors which facilitate the occurrence of physical child abuse. Depression and marital adjustment were measured in three groups of mothers: one group of mother-perpetrators of physical child abuse (n = 20), another group of mothers with a rate superior to cut-off (percentile = 95) in the CAP Inventory (n = 15), and a group of mothers with low punctuation (under percentile 25) in the CAP Inventory (n = 15). The two last groups (High CAP and Low CAP) come from a larger sample of 829 subjects which are a demographically representative sample of the population of País Vasco (in Spain). Because of variations in the detection of social services, the physically abused group is formed by the most extreme and severe cases. The three groups of mothers were matched as to socio-economic family status, education, civil status, age of the mother, sex of the child, number of children. It was expected that in these variables, depression and marital adjustment, the group with physical abuse would resemble the High CAP group and that both groups would be significantly different from the Low CAP group. Results partially confirm these hypothesis, supporting the possibilities of developing a Spanish version of the CAP Inventory for detection of physical child abuse.     

Childhood history of abuse and child abuse potential in adolescent mothers: a longitudinal study

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this research was to determine whether adolescent mothers of newborns are at higher risk for child abuse than adult mothers of newborns and to examine whether adolescent mothers with memories of child maltreatment have a higher risk for child abuse. METHOD: Two groups (adolescents and adults) of pregnant mothers were followed for 20 months beginning between the 5th and the 7th month of pregnancy until the child was 18 months old. Adolescent (N = 24) and adult (N = 24) mothers were matched on sociodemographic variables. During pregnancy, memories of child maltreatment were evaluated. When child was 1, 6, 12, and 18 months old, risk for child abuse was evaluated. RESULTS: Adolescent and adult mothers showed no differences in memories of childhood physical or emotional abuse. Nevertheless, adolescent mothers showed higher child abuse potential and depression scores than adult mothers. Mothers with memories of severe physical punishment showed higher child abuse potential scores and mothers with memories of physical punishment producing physical damage showed higher child abuse potential and depression scores. A statistically significant age of the mother by physical punishment producing physical damage interaction was found for depression. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this longitudinal study indicated that the potential for abuse was significantly greater in adolescent mothers than in adult mothers, and in mothers who had been victims of physical abuse than in those who had not. It also appeared that, among adolescent mothers, those who had been victims of childhood physical abuse constitute a higher risk group for child physical abuse.     

Mothers' protection of their children after discovering they have been sexually abused: an information-processing perspective

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to understand why some non-offending mothers did not protect their children consistently after they knew they were sexually abused. METHODS: The sample included 85 mothers who were involved with child protective services: 48 mothers who protected their children consistently were compared to 37 mothers who did not. RESULTS: Several variables explained 47% of the variance in the multivariate analysis. If the mother did not ask the abuser whether the abuse occurred, attributed responsibility to the abuser, believed consistently that the abuse occurred, and was not a victim of domestic violence, then she was more likely to protect her child consistently. CONCLUSIONS: Some maternal characteristics believed to affect protectiveness, such as mothers' mental health and substance abuse, were not related to whether they protected their children consistently, whereas other variables, such as domestic violence, were. Researchers need to continue to examine these and other variables simultaneously, so that practitioners can better understand which children are most likely to receive inadequate protection. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Practitioners should ask mothers whether they believe the abusers' behavior was sexual and abusive. If mothers do not perceive sexual abuse, then they will not believe abuse occurred or attribute responsibility to the abusers. Helping mothers understand the nature of sexual abuse may change their beliefs and attributions. If the abuser is the mother's partner and he has physically assaulted her, practitioners need to assess her willingness and ability, with adequate services and support, to restrict his access to her child.     

Reported anxieties concerning intimate parenting in women sexually abused as children

OBJECTIVE: The study had two aims: (1) To investigate whether mothers with a history of contact child sexual abuse were anxious about the intimate aspects of parenting compared with a clinical comparison group. (2) To determine if there was any relationship between the mother's anxieties and the kind of parenting they recalled receiving themselves. METHOD: Two groups of mothers in mental health out-patient care were interviewed; 34 women with a history of contact child sexual abuse and 29 women with no history of sexual abuse. They completed the Intimate Aspects of Parenting Questionnaire, The Parenting Stress Index (Short form) The Parental Bonding Instrument and The General Health Questionnaire-28. The index group also completed a sexual abuse history questionnaire. RESULTS: Mothers with a history of child sexual abuse were significantly more anxious about intimate aspects of parenting than the comparison group. They also reported significantly more overall stress as parents. The index group recalled that their own parents were significantly less caring and that their fathers more controlling than the comparison group. A low score on Father Care was significantly associated with concerns about intimate parenting, but not with total parenting stress. By contrast, a low score on Mother Care was significantly associated with higher stress experienced as a parent, but not as strongly with anxieties about intimate parenting. CONCLUSIONS: Mothers with a history of contact child sexual abuse who attend mental health services are often worried that their normal parenting behaviors may be inappropriate or seen as such by other people. These anxieties seem associated with their history of childhood sexual abuse.     

Multi-level determinants of retention in a home-visiting child abuse prevention program

OBJECTIVE: This exploratory study investigated how attributes from multiple domains influence retention in a voluntary home-visiting child abuse prevention program. METHOD: A sample of 1093 "at-risk" families participated in a home-visiting child abuse prevention program. A total of 71 Family Support Workers (FSWs) provided home visitation services in 12 different communities. Hierarchical general linear modeling (HGLM) was used to examine the community, home visitor, and maternal attributes that predicted retention in the program beyond 1 year. RESULTS: Multi-level analyses (HGLM) revealed significant community, home visitor, and maternal level effects. Families were less likely to remain in a home-visiting child abuse prevention program for at least 1 year if they lived in an area with high community violence. Families were more likely to remain when the home visitor received more hours of direct supervision. Older mothers were more likely to remain for at least 1 year than were younger mothers. Hispanic mothers were more likely to remain than were White non-Hispanic mothers. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate the utility of looking across multiple levels of influence when examining retention in home-visiting child abuse prevention programs. To increase retention rates home visitors will need to be adaptable to fit the needs of families in violent communities. Supervisors can influence retention rates by providing more hours of direct supervision. Other strategies that may contribute to program retention include meeting the scheduling needs of younger mothers and involving the families of younger mothers more effectively.     

Childhood history of abuse and child abuse screening.

Although a childhood history of abuse is related to parental child abuse, many parents with a history of abuse are not abusive. To determine the effects of a childhood history of abuse on adult child abuse potential, a modified Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS) and the Child Abuse Potential (CAP) Inventory were administered to matched groups of physically abusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse, nonabusive comparison mothers with a childhood history of abuse, and nonabusive comparison mothers without a childhood history of abuse. The modified CTS asked about childhood events and was used to confirm a childhood history of abuse. As expected, the CTS verbal and violence scales were higher for the abusive and nonabusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse. None of the CTS scores were different for the abusive and nonabusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse. In contrast, the CAP abuse scores distinguished between all three study groups. However, on the CAP factor scales, only the rigidity and unhappiness factors discriminated between abusive and nonabusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse. Nonabusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse were less rigid in their child expectations and were happier in their interpersonal relationships than abusive mothers with a childhood history of abuse.     

Changing patterns in community attitudes to child abuse

Tasmania is the island state of Australia with a population of 416,000 people. A statewide programme on child abuse was commenced with the passing of a Child Protection Act in 1974. The results of the introduction of education programmes for professional groups and of providing information for the community have been analysed. Since 1972 notifications of suspected cases of child abuse have risen sixfold, but even now there are fewer cases reported in areas away from the main professional centre in the state. In the types of abuse being reported, there has been a sharp rise in self referrals and children deemed to be at risk. Sexual abuse may have been dealt with by other agencies before, but is now being notified. There has been a change in the age groups of children coming under notice with an increase in those between 2 and 12 years and a fall in those 0–2 years. The proportions of notifications from the various agencies have changed with considerably more coming from self referrals, from community referrals and from the education services. These trends would seem to indicate that both the professionals and the community are more aware of child abuse than formerly.     

Parental perceptions of neighborhood processes,stress, personal control,and risk for physical child abuse and neglect

ObjectiveThis study set out to examine whether mothers’ individual perceptions of their neighborhood social processes predict their risk for physical child abuse and neglect directly and/or indirectly via pathways involving parents’ reported stress and sense of personal control in the parenting role.MethodsIn-home and phone interview data were examined cross-sectionally from a national birth cohort sample of 3,356 mothers across 20 US cities when the index child was 3 years of age. Mothers’ perceptions of neighborhood social processes, parenting stress, and personal control were examined as predictors, and three subscales of the Parent-To-Child Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS-PC) were employed as proxies of physical child abuse and neglect risk. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to test direct and indirect pathways (via parenting stress and control) from perceived neighborhood processes to proxy measures of physical child abuse and neglect. Multiple group SEM was conducted to test for differences across major ethnic groups: African American, Hispanic, and White.ResultsAlthough perceived negative neighborhood processes had only a mild direct role in predicting risk for physical child abuse, and no direct role on child neglect, these perceptions had a discernable indirect role in predicting risk via parenting stress and personal control pathways. Parenting stress exerted the clearest direct role on both physical abuse and neglect risk. This predictor model did not significantly differ across ethnic groups.ConclusionsAlthough neighborhood conditions may not play a clear directly observable role on physical child abuse and neglect risk, the indirect role they play underscores the importance of parents’ perceptions of their neighborhoods, and especially the role they play via parents’ reported stress and personal control.Practice implicationsSuch findings suggest that targeting parents’ sense of control and stress in relation to their immediate social environment holds particular potential to reduce physical child abuse and neglect risk. Addressing parents’ perceptions of their neighborhood challenges may serve to reduce parenting risk via improving parents’ felt control and stress.     

Child abuse by mothers' boyfriends: why the overrepresentation?

This study showed that although mothers' boyfriends perform relatively little child care, they are responsible for substantially more child abuse than other nonparental caregivers. Using data drawn from interviews with single mothers and records of child abuse substantiated through child protection investigation, mothers' boyfriends' overrepresentation in child abuse was traced to five conditions: (a) the location of their child care in single parent families; (b) their gender; (c) the absence of genetic relationship between mothers' boyfriends and their partner's children; (d) mothers' boyfriends' perceived illegitimacy as caregivers and family members; and (e) mothers' boyfriends' rivalry with their partner's children. The limitations of these findings and implications for future research are discussed.     

Promoting Mother–Infant Book Sharing and Infant Attention and Language Development in an Impoverished South African Population: A Pilot Study

The low rates of child literacy in South Africa are cause for considerable concern. Research from the developed world shows that parental sharing of picture books with infants and young children is beneficial for child language and cognitive development, as well as literacy skills. We conducted a pilot study to examine whether such benefits might extend to an impoverished community in South Africa, by evaluating the impact of training mothers in book sharing with their 14–18 month old infants. Seventeen mothers received book sharing training; and 13 mothers did not, but instead received a comparison training in toy play. We assessed the mothers’ behavior during both book sharing and toy play before and after training, and we also assessed infant attention and language. Mothers receiving book sharing training engaged well with it, and they also benefited from it; thus, compared to the comparison group mothers, they became more sensitive, more facilitating, and more elaborative with their infants during book sharing, and they also became more sensitive to their infants during toy play. In addition, infants whose mothers received the book sharing training showed greater benefits than the comparison group infants in both their attention and language. Training in book sharing for families living in conditions of marked socio-economic adversity in South Africa has the potential to be of considerable benefit to child developmental progress. A large scale controlled trial is required to confirm this.     

Unwanted by whom?

Unwanted pregnancies bother various groups in the US. Many pregnant teenagers want to be pregnant, even though the pregnancies are often not planned. A childbirth educator in Boston, Massachusetts, wonders who considers adolescent pregnancies as unwanted, the young mothers or the middle class, white, well-educated, and well-meaning adults. Adolescents want babies for the same reasons adults want babies. The difference is that adolescents do not have the same personal, financial, and community resources as adults. A child cannot rob teenagers of a future they do not have; a child provides some joy and hope. These teenagers tend not to see a better life in their future. Education can generate a vision of the future and provide a path out of poverty. Yet, educational opportunities are not always available or inviting. Teenagers need childcare, financial support, and supportive role models or mentors. Many people erroneously believe that poor women have children to be on welfare or to receive subsidized food. Yet, public assistance does no hand out enough money to sustain a family. Besides, it is unpleasant. Some states are starting to deal with the broader problems linked to poverty and lack of education. For example, the welfare system in Florida requires young women to be in high school, to prepare for the GED, or to undergo technical training. If they fail to comply, they lose benefits. Role models and financial, practical, and emotional support allow teen fathers to stay close to their children, to earn a living, and to be responsible. Poverty, immigration, transience, substance abuse, and distance from family result in insufficient support and poor parenting models for teenage mothers. They still are developing physically and emotionally. Teenage mothers need the same support, encouragement, and assistance that adult mothers need. Freedom of choice, education, and responsibility will result in healthier teen mothers and children.     

The effects of sexual abuse as a child on the risk of mothers physically abusing their children: a path analysis using systems theory

OBJECTIVE: The potential path from sexual abuse as a child to the current risk of physical abuse by mothers was assessed. Ontogenic variables including the experience of the parent's sexual abuse as a child and current depression or substance abuse were expected to have a greater impact on the risk of child abuse than microsystem and exosystem variables such as family functioning, domestic violence, income, community safety, and social support. METHOD: A path analysis using secondary data was conducted to examine these systemic impacts. The sample consisted of 265 women, the majority of whom were African-American with a high school education or GED. The majority of these women were employed, lower socio-economic status, and over 50% of the sample had never been married. RESULTS: Sexual abuse as a child was found to impact maternal depression. Maternal depression and locus of control impacted risk of physical abuse. These two variables accounted for 22% of the variance in the dependent variable. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that it may not be the experience of sexual abuse itself that has an impact on a mother's risk of physical abuse, but rather whether she is able to resolve that trauma. Her locus of control appears to be important in this resolution. The majority of these women were low-income, urban African-American women; it may be important to focus on locus of control for this population.     

Outcome of abuse during childhood among pregnant low income women

The outcome of experiencing abuse as a child was studied by comparing pregnant women who did recall versus those who did not recall this type of maltreatment. Fourteen hundred low income women were interviewed in prenatal clinic; those who said they were both punished by abuse and beaten by caretakers as children were considered abused. Abuse was recalled by more white than black women but families were followed after delivery and protective service reports of abuse for their offspring were equal. Because of low numbers, black subjects were dropped and the 95 white women who recalled abuse during childhood were compared to the remaining 832 white subjects. The groups did not differ in attitude about current pregnancy, age or marital status, and no differences were found for their children at birth. Abused mothers were more likely to have felt unwanted and unloved as children and to have lower self-images and more isolation than controls. Abused mothers had greater stress, and many of their stresses reflected disturbances in interpersonal relationships. Thus, women abused as children had some characteristics similar to those of known child abusers. Although abused women had more aggressive tendencies, their children were reported to protective services for abuse at the same frequency as control children. Intergenerational transmission of abuse was therefore not demonstrated prospectively. Classic theories of child abuse suggest a special child, special parent and stress act as independent agents to cause abuse. The above data suggest, alternatively, that abuse during childhood may lead to other risk characteristics and to greater stress. These may act together to increase risk for abuse. The special child may have an independent influence on abuse.     

Child abuse history in teen mothers and parent–child risk processes for offspring externalizing problems

This study examined whether child abuse history in teen mothers impacts offspring externalizing problems indirectly, through its influence on attachment and maternal hostility. In a longitudinal sample of 112 teen mother–child dyads, mothers reported on their own abuse experiences, attachment and maternal hostility were assessed via direct observations, and externalizing problems were measured using maternal reports. Compared with mothers with no abuse history, mothers with a history of sexual and physical abuse were more likely to have an insecurely attached infant, which predicted higher externalizing problems in preschool, which in turn predicted subsequent increases in externalizing problems in Grade 3. Furthermore, relative to the no abuse history group, mothers with a history of sexual and physical abuse showed more hostility toward their child at preschool, which in turn predicted elevated externalizing problems in Grade 3. Mothers’ history of either sexual or physical abuse alone did not have significant indirect effects on externalizing problems. Fostering secure attachment and reducing risk for maternal hostility might be important intervention goals for prevention programs involving at-risk mothers with abuse histories.     

Factors influencing mothers' reactions to intrafamily sexual abuse

A mother's question of whether to believe her child's disclosure of intrafamily child sexual abuse is complex, with many factors influencing her conclusion. Variables related to the abuse and to the family's functioning are examined to determine if particular circumstances are too threatening to mothers, resulting in their disbelief. The findings indicate that the age of the victim, nature of the abuse, presence of the mother in the home during the abuse, relationship of the victim to the offender, prior physical abuse of the child, and alcohol abuse by the offender all contribute to mother's conclusion regarding the reported abuse. The majority of mothers do believe their child, with difficult situations and other family stressors occasionally detracting from a mother's willingness to accept the report.     

Community interaction and child maltreatment

The way in which parents interact with their environment may have implications for their likelihood of abuse and neglect. This study examines the parent–environment relationship through community involvement and perception, using social disorganization theory. We hypothesize mothers who participate in their communities and have positive perceptions of them may be less likely to maltreat their children because of the potential protective capacity of neighborhood supports. Using information from the 5 year Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (n = 2991), the mother's self-reported acts of psychological and physical maltreatment and neglect are measured. A mother's community involvement index is the number of community activities a mother was involved in, and community perception is measured by two five-item Likert scales assessing perception of community collective efficacy. We analyze the relationship between community variables and each of mother's maltreatment behaviors as well as the interaction between community factors using a series of nested logistic regressions. Higher levels of community involvement are associated with lower levels of psychological aggression. More positive perception of community social control is associated with lower levels of physical assault. A moderation effect of community perception suggests that a mother's perception of her community changes the relationship between community involvement and psychological child abuse. The results provide important policy and empirical implications to build positive and supportive communities as a protective factor in child maltreatment. Getting parents involved in their communities can improve the environment in which children and families develop, and decrease the likelihood that maltreatment will occur.     

An experimental evaluation of in-home child abuse prevention services

Perinatal child abuse prevention projects are rarely rigorously evaluated. Women were referred to the Child Parent Enrichment Project (CPEP) project during or just after pregnancy if identified as at-risk of engaging in child abuse by community professionals. Clients were randomly assigned to CPEP services (n = 97) or traditional community services (n = 94). CPEP services are based on ecological theory and involve six months of home visiting by paraprofessional women and linkage to other formal and informal community resources. No advantages on self-report measures for the CPEP group were measured at posttest, and follow-up reports of child abuse were similar for both groups. Consumer satisfaction indicates that clients highly valued the program. Some indication of greater success with families with less serious problems was observed. The results argue for caution regarding the capacities of perinatal child abuse prevention services to serve the high-risk clientele they often receive.