Julie L. Crouch

The Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC): reliability and association with abuse exposure in a multi-site study

OBJECTIVE The Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC) is a 90-item caretaker-report measure of childrens trauma- and abuse-related symptomatology. It contains two reporter validity scales and eight clinical scales [Post-traumatic Stress-Intrusion (PTS-I), Post-traumatic Stress-Avoidance (PTS-AV), Post-traumatic Stress-Arousal (PTS-AR), Post-traumatic Stress-Total (PTS-TOT), Sexual Concerns (SC), Dissociation (DIS), Anxiety (ANX), Depression (DEP), and Anger/Aggression (ANG)], as well as an item assessing hours per week of caretaker contact with the child. This paper introduces the TSCYC and describes its psychometric properties in a multisite validity study. METHOD A total of 219 TSCYCs administered by six clinician/researchers across the United States were analyzed for scale reliability and association with several types of childhood maltreatment. RESULTS The TSCYC clinical scales have good reliability and are associated with exposure to childhood sexual abuse, physical abuse, and witnessing domestic violence. The PTS-I, PTS-AV, PTS-AR, and PTS-TOT scales were most predictive, followed by SC in the case of sexual abuse and DIS in the case of physical abuse. There were a small number of age, sex, and race effects on TSCYC scores. CONCLUSIONS The TSCYC appears to have reasonable psychometric characteristics, and correlates as expected with various types of trauma exposure. Subject to continued validation and the development of general population norms, its use as a clinical measure is supported.

INCOME, RACE/ETHNICITY, AND EXPOSURE TO VIOLENCE IN YOUTH: RESULTS FROM THE NATIONAL SURVEY OF ADOLESCENTS

This study examined the associations between household income, race/ethnicity, and exposure to violence in a nationally representative sample of youth. Participants included a national probability sample of adolescents (ages 12-17), who completed a telephone interview that assessed lifetime occurrences of witnessing violence, receipt of physically abusive punishment, physical assault, and sexual assault. Results indicated that as household income increased prevalence of witnessing violence, receipt of physically abusive punishment, physical assault, and sexual assault decreased for Caucasian but not African-American or Hispanic youth. In addition to the interaction of household income with race/ethnicity, a main effect of race/ethnicity across income groups was apparent for witnessing violence. More specifically, African-American and Hispanic youth reported significantly higher rates of witnessing violence at each income level relative to their Caucasian counterparts. Findings from this nationally representative sample of youth suggest that it may be simplistic to interpret high rates of violence exposure among minority youth as due to their disproportionate representation among the economically disadvantaged in the United States. This study illustrates the importance of examining risk and protective factors separately for each type of violence experienced by youth, and underscores the need to assess the generalizability of risk and protective factors across racial/ethnic groups. � 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Relationships among parental beliefs in corporal punishment, reported stress, and physical child abuse potential.

OBJECTIVE The present study examined the extent to which parental belief in the value of corporal punishment moderates the association between level of parenting stress and physical child abuse potential. Based on existing theory, it was expected that levels of parenting stress would be positively associated with physical child abuse potential among parents who reported high levels of belief in the value of corporal punishment. METHOD Forty-one parents (25 general population and 16 at-risk parents) were assessed for belief in the value of corporal punishment, level of parenting stress, and physical child abuse potential using self-report measures. After removal of respondents due to response distortion or missing data, the final sample consisted of 31 parents with valid and complete protocols. Based on their responses on the study measures, respondents were categorized as either high or low on belief in corporal punishment and parenting stress. RESULTS Level of parenting stress was positively associated with physical child abuse potential. As expected, the interaction of parenting stress and belief in the value of corporal punishment was significant. Level of parenting stress was positively associated with physical child abuse potential among parents who reported high levels of belief in the value of corporal punishment. In contrast, level of parenting stress was not associated with physical child abuse potential among parents who reported low belief in the value of corporal punishment. CONCLUSIONS The present findings are consistent social information processing and stress and coping models of the etiology of physical child abuse, and underscore the importance of considering both parental cognitions and levels of parenting stress in assessing potential for physical child abuse.

Childhood physical abuse, early social support, and risk for maltreatment: current social support as a mediator of risk for child physical abuse☆

OBJECTIVE The study investigated whether perceptions of social support in adulthood partially mediated the associations between childhood experiences (i.e., receipt of physical abuse and levels of early social support) and adult risk for child physical abuse. METHOD Participants included 598 general population adults who completed self-report measures designed to assess childhood physical abuse, perceptions of early and current social support, and risk factors for child physical abuse. Structural equation modeling was used to test and cross validate a model that included the direct effects of child physical abuse and early social support on child physical abuse risk, as well as mediated effects through an influence on adult perceptions of social support. RESULTS Childhood physical abuse and early social support covaried, such that receipt of physical abuse was associated with lower levels of perceived early social support. Early support, but not child physical abuse, had an indirect effect (i.e., through current support) on child physical abuse risk. More specifically, levels of early support were directly related to adult perceptions of support, and adult perceptions of support were inversely associated with child physical abuse risk. Childhood physical abuse was directly related to child physical abuse risk. CONCLUSIONS Low levels of early support may impact risk for child physical abuse by affecting perceptions of others as supportive in adulthood. The receipt of physical abuse in childhood, however, does not appear to impact perceptions of support in adulthood. Research is needed to identify additional factors that may explain the association between receipt of physical abuse in childhood and increased risk of child physical abuse in adulthood.

Effects of child neglect on children

This article reviews empirical studies investigating the effects of child neglect on childrens development. A number of methodological problems inherent in the study of child neglect are described and discussed in terms of their impact on our ability to interpret existing findings. Empirical findings are organized according to domains of development, including physical, intellectual, social, behavioral, and affective functioning. Throughout the review, a developmental perspective is suggested as a means of conceptualizing neglect and understanding its impact on the developing child.

Do trauma symptoms mediate the relationship between childhood physical abuse and adult child abuse risk

OBJECTIVE Although the intergenerational transmission of family violence has been well documented, the mechanisms responsible for this effect have not been fully determined. The present study examined whether trauma symptoms mediate the relationship between a childhood history of child physical abuse (CPA) and adult CPA risk, and whether any such mediation was similar for women and men. METHOD Female and male US Navy (USN) recruits (N=5,394) and college students (N=716) completed self-report measures of their history of child abuse (i.e., CPA and child sexual abuse [CSA]), exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV), current trauma symptoms, and adult CPA risk. RESULTS As expected, there was a strong association between a childhood history of CPA and adult CPA risk. This association was significant even after controlling for demographic variables and childhood exposure to other forms of violence (CSA and IPV), and the strength of the relationship did not vary depending on demographics or exposure to other forms of violence. However, the association between a history of CPA and adult risk of CPA was stronger for individuals high in defensive avoidance compared to those low in defensive avoidance. The association between a history of CPA and adult CPA risk was largely, although not entirely, mediated by psychological trauma symptoms. Mediation was observed for both women and men in both the USN and college samples. CONCLUSIONS Trauma symptoms associated with a history of CPA accounted for a substantial part of the relationship between a history of CPA and adult CPA risk in both women and men. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS To the extent that trauma symptoms are a mechanism by which the intergenerational transmission of child abuse occurs, intervening to reduce trauma symptoms in CPA victims has the potential of reducing their risk of continuing the cycle of violence.

Ethnicity in child maltreatment research: a content analysis

The present study represents a content analysis, of 1,133 articles published between 1977 and 1998 in Child Abuse & Neglect, Child Maltreatment, and Journal of Child Sexual Abuse was performed. Although there were indications of increased attention to ethnicity in child maltreatment research published between 1977 and 1998, the improvements were modest. Of the 1,133 articles examined, 6.7% focused on ethnicity. The percentage of studies that provided information on the ethnic composition of samples increased across time; however, only half of the studies published in the most recent years examined (1995-1998) reported information on the ethnicity of the participants. Although the percentage of articles that used ethnicity in analyses or as a control variable increased across time, three quarters of the articles published in the most recent years examined (1995-1998) did not include ethnicity in their analyses or design.

Hostility ratings by parents at risk for child abuse: Impact of chronic and temporary schema activation

OBJECTIVE Two studies examined whether accessibility of hostility-related schema influenced ratings of ambiguous child pictures. Based on the social information processing model of child physical abuse (CPA), it was expected that CPA risk status would serve as a proxy for chronic accessibility of hostile schema, while priming procedures were used to manipulate temporary accessibility of hostility-related schema. METHODS Participants included 108 parents (79 low and 29 high CPA risk) in Experiment 1 and 88 parents (43 low and 45 high CPA risk) in Experiment 2. Parents were randomly assigned to either hostile or neutral priming conditions. Following the priming procedures, all parents rated pictures that depicted children who appeared ambiguous with regard to the extent to which they were being hostile/cooperative. RESULTS In both experiments, high, compared to low, CPA risk parents rated the ambiguous child pictures as more hostile. Further, both supraliminal (Experiment 1) and subliminal (Experiment 2) exposure to hostility-related words independently increased hostility ratings. In both experiments, the influence of chronic and temporary activation of hostile schema was additive and not interactive. CONCLUSION Findings from these experiments are consistent with the proposition that high CPA risk parents are more likely to infer hostility in response to ambiguous child cues. Further, accessibility of hostility-related schema in parents increases the likelihood of hostile inferences, which in turn may increase attributions of hostile intent and aggressive parenting behaviors.

Parental Responses to Infant Crying: The Influence of Child Physical Abuse Risk and Hostile Priming.

OBJECTIVE Managing a crying infant is a challenge universally faced by new parents. This study examined whether parental interpretations, feelings, and behaviors following exposure to a 2-minute videotaped segment of a crying infant varied as a function of child physical abuse (CPA) risk and exposure to cues of hostility (i.e., hostile priming). METHOD Participants included 84 general population parents (52 low and 32 high CPA risk) with valid and complete protocols. It was predicted that (1) negative trait ratings, (2) feelings of hostility, and (3) ability to modulate grip strength would differ across CPA risk groups (high vs. low) and priming conditions (hostile vs. neutral). RESULTS As expected, high, compared to low, CPA risk parents rated the crying infant more negatively and reported higher levels of hostile feelings after watching the crying infant video. Hostile priming independently increased feelings of hostility, such that high CPA risk parents who were primed with hostile words reported higher levels of hostile feelings relative to all other conditions. Hostile priming also was modestly associated with increased use of excessive force when parents attempted to produce a half-strength grip; however this difference was apparent only among high CPA risk parents. CONCLUSIONS High, compared to low, CPA risk parents rated the crying infant more negatively and reported higher levels of hostile feelings after watching the crying infant video. Hostile priming independently increased hostile feelings and was modestly associated with use of excessive force in the hand grip task among high CPA risk parents.

Risk for Intimate Partner Violence and Child Physical Abuse: Psychosocial Characteristics of Multirisk Male and Female Navy Recruits:

This study examined psychosocial characteristics of individuals at risk for perpetrating both intimate partner violence (IPV risk) and child physical abuse (CPA risk). The sample consisted of 775 female and 592 male Navy recruits. The psychosocial variables assessed included symptoms of dysphoria, posttraumatic stress, self-dysfunction, alcoholrelated problems, and drug use. IPV risk and CPA risk were positively associated with approximately9% of the total sample considered multirisk (i.e., positive for both IPV risk and CPA risk). Results of regression analyses revealed that patterns of predictors (demographic and psychosocial variables) for IPV-risk only and CPA-risk only differed with multirisk individuals characterized by the combined predictors of both types of violence risk. Nearly half (47.2%) of the multirisk individuals were characterized by multiple (i.e., two or more) clinical elevations on the psychosocial characteristics assessed.