DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

OFF ICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS

BJA NI J OJJDP BJS OVC

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Shay Bilchik, Administrator

From the Administrator

The victimization of the weak by the

strong—in this case, of children by

adults—is one of the most shameful

constants in human history. Unfortunately, contemporary American

society is not immune from this

repugnant behavior. The National

Committee to Prevent Child Abuse

estimates that 1 million children

suffered maltreatment in the United

States in 1995 alone. Because

countless cases of suspected child

abuse and neglect remain unreported, the actual number of abused

and neglected children is unknown.

What is known, however, is that

maltreatment in childhood increases

the risk of problems in adolescence,

including juvenile delinquency, drug

use, poor performance in school,

teen pregnancy, and emotional and

mental health disorders.

In the Wake of Childhood Maltreatment explores the connections

between childhood maltreatment and

subsequent problem behaviors. The

findings of the Rochester Youth

Development Study reported in this

Bulletin are particularly valuable

because they come from a general

population sample, which allowed the

researchers to examine how maltreated youth differ from the general

adolescent population. The study

results provide helpful insights into

the cost survivors of childhood

maltreatment often pay—a cost that

is always too high.

Shay Bilchik

Administrator

August 1997

In the Wake

of Childhood

Maltreatment

Barbara Tatem Kelley, Terence P. Thornberry, Ph.D.,

and Carolyn A. Smith, Ph.D.

This Bulletin is part of the Office of

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

(OJJDP) Youth Development Series, which

presents findings from the Program of Research on the Causes and Correlates of

Delinquency. Teams at the University at

Albany, State University of New York; the

University of Colorado; and the University

of Pittsburgh collaborated extensively in

designing the studies. At study sites in

Rochester, New York; Denver, Colorado;

and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the three

research teams have interviewed 4,000

participants at regular intervals for nearly

a decade, recording their lives in detail.

Findings to date indicate that preventing

delinquency requires accurate identification

of the risk factors that increase the likelihood of delinquent behavior and the protective factors that enhance positive

adolescent development.

This Bulletin presents findings on the

relationship between childhood maltreatment and subsequent adolescent problem

behaviors in the Rochester Youth Development Study. The researchers found that

the subjects who had experienced maltreatment during childhood were significantly more likely to display a variety of

problem behaviors during adolescence,

including serious and violent delinquency,

teen pregnancy, drug use, low academic

achievement, and mental health problems. Also, a history of childhood maltreatment appeared to be a significant

risk factor for the development of multiple problems in adolescence.

Throughout history, the lives of some

children have been diminished by their

exposure to various forms of maltreatment, such as physical abuse, neglect,

and sexual exploitation. As a new century

approaches, Americans need not look beyond their own backyards to see the faces

of children subjected to maltreatment,

most often at the hands of parents and

other caretakers.

National Estimates of

Child Maltreatment

How extensive is the problem of child

maltreatment in the United States? This

cannot be determined with certainty,

because a substantial but unknown

proportion of child maltreatment cases

are never brought to the attention of

State and local Child Protective Services.

Therefore, the following national estimates

of officially reported and substantiated

cases of child maltreatment undoubtedly

undercount the actual number of victimized children. The following estimates

were derived from annual surveys of all
2

50 States and the District of Columbia

conducted since 1986 by the National

Committee to Prevent Child Abuse

(NCPCA) (Lung and Daro, 1996).

First, how many cases of maltreatment

of children are reported in the United

States? In 1995, NCPCA estimated that:

◆ There were 3,111,000 children reported

to Child Protective Services as alleged

victims of maltreatment.

◆ Reports have steadily risen over the

past decade, with a 49% increase from

1986 to 1995.

◆ Forty-six out of every one thousand

American children (under 18 years old)

were victims of reported child maltreatment in 1995, reflecting fairly

steady growth from the reported rate

of 33 per 1,000 children in 1986.

Second, how many reports were substantiated? NCPCA estimated that:

◆ Approximately 1 million children were

found to be victims of maltreatment

each year from 1992 through 1995.

◆ Fifteen of every one thousand children

were substantiated victims of child

maltreatment in each of these years.

◆ About one-third of the reports of child

maltreatment were confirmed.

◆ Of the substantiated 1995 reports, 54%

involved neglect, 25% physical abuse,

11% sexual abuse, 3% emotional maltreatment, and the remainder involved

other forms of maltreatment. (The

breakdown of reported 1995 cases was

essentially identical.)

Third, how often do children die as a

result of abuse or neglect? NCPCA cautions

that the number of fatalities officially recorded as child maltreatment is considered

an undercount of the actual incidence.

The NCPCA survey estimates that:

◆ During the past 10 years, more than

three children died each day as a

result of parental maltreatment.

◆ Abuse is the most common cause of

death (48%), followed by neglect (37%)

and a combination of abuse and

neglect (15%).

◆ The majority of victims (85%) are under age 5, and nearly half (45%) of the

victims never reach their first birthday.

In a 1995 report, the U.S. Advisory

Board on Child Abuse and Neglect concluded that the most realistic estimate of

annual child deaths from abuse and neglect, known and unknown, is about 2,000

(or some 5 children every day) (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,

Administration for Children and Families,

1995).

The focus of this Bulletin is not on the

victims whose lives are tragically ended

as a direct result of child abuse and neglect. Rather, it concentrates on the majority of child maltreatment victims who

have experienced maltreatment during

critical stages of child development.

Adolescent

Consequences of

Child Maltreatment

In addition to the immediate and shortterm harm of child maltreatment, there

are long-term ramifications of childhood

victimization. Research has shown that

the consequences of child maltreatment

extend into adolescence and beyond

(Widom, 1994). Survivors of child maltreatment experience many problems in

the course of adolescent development. A

variety of negative teenage outcomes,

such as delinquency, pregnancy, alcohol

and drug abuse, school failure, and emotional and mental health problems, have

been identified.

Many researchers have utilized convenience samples of incarcerated delinquents, drug rehabilitation clients,

pregnant teenagers, or institutionalized

mental patients to conduct retrospective

analyses of child maltreatment. Such

studies have generally concluded that

these troubled populations more frequently report histories of child maltreatment than would be expected in the

general population.

Several methodological limitations affect the confidence that can be placed in

the conclusions drawn from these types

of studies, however. Few studies establish

an adequate comparison group in their

samples or measure an adequate range of

risk factors, protective factors, and problem behaviors.

Rochester Youth

Development Study

The Rochester Youth Development

Study, conducted by researchers at the

University at Albany, State University of

New York, is one of three collaborative

longitudinal projects under OJJDP’s Program of Research on the Causes and Correlates of Delinquency. To determine how

maltreated youth differ from the general

adolescent population, the researchers

asked:

◆ What is the range and extent of problems found among adolescents who

were maltreated as children, compared

with those who were not?

◆ To what extent is child maltreatment a

risk factor for the development of multiple problems in adolescence?

The researchers found that maltreatment during childhood significantly

increased the risk for a variety of adolescent problem behaviors, including delinquency, teen pregnancy, drug use, low

academic achievement, and mental health

problems.

Also, youth who had been victims of

child maltreatment were more likely than

nonmaltreated youth to exhibit multiple

problem behaviors.

Subsequent analyses are planned to

address additional research questions:

◆ What key risk factors appear to increase the likelihood that a maltreated

child will become a troubled youth?

◆ What protective factors serve to enhance youth resilience despite a history of child maltreatment?

This research clearly has implications

for policy and intervention efforts that

target those challenging cases of adolescents who have problems in more than

one area of life. The findings should be of

interest to all persons in a position to prevent child maltreatment and to those who

could intervene in the lives of victimized

children and youth. Therefore, this Bulletin is intended not only for policymakers

and practitioners but also for parents,

who are in the best position to protect

and nurture their children’s development.

Overview of the

Study Design

The Rochester investigation of maltreatment outcomes was designed to consider several different domains of

adolescent problem behavior utilizing a

general population sample. Specific problem areas that are measured include:

◆ Moderate, serious, and violent

delinquency.

◆ Teen pregnancy.

◆ Drug use.
3

◆ Low academic achievement.

◆ Mental health problems.

Sample

The sample of 1,000 youth (75% boys

and 25% girls) was drawn from public

school students attending seventh and

eighth grade in Rochester, New York, in

spring 1988. African-Americans make up

the majority of the sample (68%), while

17% are Hispanic and 15% are white. This

sample was stratified to proportionally

overrepresent those students considered

at high risk for delinquency and drug use,

based upon both their gender and their

residence in high-crime neighborhoods.

However, all data analyses presented here

have been statistically weighted to represent the general cohort of all seventh and

eighth graders in the Rochester public

schools.

Data Collection

Researchers commenced data collection in spring 1988 by privately interviewing youth and their primary caretakers.

The interviews were repeated every 6

months. (Each 6-month period is referred

to as a “wave.”) This report uses interview data collected in waves two through

eight. At wave two, the subjects were in

the fall semester of the eighth or ninth

grade and were 14 years old, on average.

At wave eight, they were in the fall semester of 11th or 12th grade and were 17

years old. In addition to data collected in

face-to-face interviews, data were collected from the Rochester public schools,

Police Department, Department of Social

Services, and other agencies that had

contact with the subjects.

Assessment of

Maltreatment

Data on maltreatment were obtained

from Child Protective Services records of

the Monroe County Department of Social

Services, the county of residence for all

subjects at the start of the project. For

each subject, the researchers recorded

any instance of substantiated abuse or

maltreatment from birth through 1992.

For the purposes of this analysis, the

term “child” refers to someone who has

not had his or her 12th birthday. The researchers established this cutoff so they

could more accurately assess the impact

of maltreatment during childhood on

subsequent adolescent behavioral outcomes. This analysis does not explore the

separate but related topic of adolescent

maltreatment (Garbarino, 1989), which

may have continued from childhood or

begun after age 12.

The term “child maltreatment” encompasses a fairly broad spectrum of abuse

and neglect scenarios. For the purposes

of this analysis, maltreatment included

seven subtypes: physical abuse, sexual

abuse, physical neglect, lack of supervision, emotional maltreatment, educational maltreatment, and moral-legal

maltreatment. The researchers utilized

the maltreatment classification and

5-point severity rating scales developed

by Cicchetti and Barnett (1991) to code

the maltreatment case records. Table 1

contains definitions of maltreatment subtypes and examples from the severity rating scales of the least and most serious

types of cases (Barnett et al., 1993).

The researchers recognize that reliance

on substantiated records of maltreatment

is likely to produce conservative estimates

of the prevalence and frequency of this

often undetected or unreported type of

victimization. Furthermore, although

most of the sample youth had resided in

Monroe County since birth, a small proportion had not. The researchers also

expect there may be a few child maltreatment victims lacking Monroe County

records who have been inaccurately

categorized as nonmaltreated in this

sample. Any bias that results from this

misclassification would be quite small

and would work against the study hypothesis. That is, it would make it harder, not

easier, to find that early maltreatment is

related to later delinquency.

Prevalence of Child

Maltreatment

Of the total sample of 1,000 youth, 14%

have a child maltreatment record and 86%

do not. These subjects were maltreated in

a total of 219 separate incidents (an average of 1.5 incidents per maltreated subject). This rate is somewhat higher than

prevalence rates reported in national data

(U.S. Department of Health and Human

Services, National Center on Child Abuse

and Neglect, 1997) and is probably related

to the urban population of youth in the

sample.

The 219 separate incidents of maltreatment constitute a large enough number to

investigate the adolescent outcomes of

maltreatment as a whole. However, the

researchers did not attempt to separate

the outcomes of the seven specific subtypes of maltreatment, as the number of

incidents in each subtype was insufficient

for meaningful statistical analysis. Furthermore, many of the victims were

subjected to more than one type of

maltreatment.

Recent research provides some indications that the overall experience of maltreatment, rather than the specific

subtype, is what has the greatest impact

on adolescent outcomes. For instance, in

Widom’s (1996) study of a larger sample

of 1,575 court cases of child maltreatment, the experience of neglect appeared

to be as damaging as physical abuse.

Child victims of neglect were almost as

likely as physically abused victims to be

arrested for violent crimes as teenagers

and young adults. Both neglect and abuse

victims were more likely to be arrested

for and involved in violent crimes than

members of the matched nonmaltreated

control group.

Table 2 presents the prevalence of

maltreatment for major demographic subgroups in the Rochester study. There are

no statistically significant differences in

the prevalence of maltreatment by sex or

race. Unfortunately, the total number of

maltreatment incidents was not large

enough to allow for sex-by-race comparisons. (Throughout this discussion

“statistical significance” is defined as the

probability that the observed relationship

would occur strictly by chance less than

5% of the time (probability, or p < .05).)

There are, however, significant differences

by social class and family structure.

Twenty percent of youth reared in disadvantaged families—those in which the

principal wage earner was unemployed,

welfare was received, or income was below the poverty level—were victims of

maltreatment, while only 8% of the

nondisadvantaged respondents were maltreated. The largest difference observed

is in family structure. Only 3% of the boys

and girls who resided with both biological

parents at the beginning of the Rochester

study (spring 1988) had a history of maltreatment, but 19% of those in other family situations had been maltreated.

This demographic information serves

as a backdrop for examining the central

issue of this analysis—the relationship

between earlier maltreatment and the

development of adolescent problem

behaviors.
4

Table 1: Defining Child Maltreatment and Rating Its Severity

Subtype of Maltreatment Brief Definition Examples of Least and

Most Severe Cases

Physical Abuse A caregiver inflicts a physical injury upon

a child by other than accidental means.

Least—Spanking results in minor

bruises on arm.

Most—Injuries require hospitalization,

cause permanent disfigurement, or lead

to a fatality.

Sexual Abuse Any sexual contact or attempt at sexual

contact that occurs between a caretaker

or responsible adult and a child for

the purposes of the caretaker’s sexual

gratification or financial benefit.

Least—A child is exposed to pornographic materials.

Most—A caretaker uses force to make a

child engage in sexual relations or

prostitution.

Physical Neglect A caretaker fails to exercise a minimum

degree of care in meeting a child’s

physical needs.

Least—Food is not available for regular

meals, clothing is too small, child is not

kept clean.

Most—A child suffers from severe

malnutrition or severe dehydration due

to gross inattention to his or her

medical needs.

Lack of Supervision A caretaker does not take adequate

precautions (given a child’s particular

emotional and developmental needs) to

ensure his or her safety in and out of the

home.

Least—An 8-year-old is left alone for

short periods of time (i.e., less than 3

hours) with no immediate source of

danger in the environment.

Most—A child is placed in a lifethreatening situation without adequate

supervision.

Emotional Maltreatment Persistent or extreme thwarting of a

child’s basic emotional needs (such as

the need to feel safe and accepted).

Least—A caretaker often belittles or

ridicules a child.

Most—A caretaker uses extremely

restrictive methods to bind a child or

places a child in close confinement

such as a closet or trunk for 2 or more

hours.

Educational Maltreatment A caretaker fails to ensure that a child

receives adequate education.

Least—A caretaker allows a child to miss

school up to 15% of the time (when he or

she is not ill and there is no family

emergency).

Most—A caretaker does not enroll a child

in school or provide any educational

instruction.

Moral-Legal Maltreatment A caretaker exposes or involves a child in

illegal or other activities that may foster

delinquency or antisocial behavior.

Least—A child is permitted to be present

for adult activities, such as drunken

parties.

Most—A caretaker causes a child to

participate in felonies such as armed

robbery.

Source: Adapted from Barnett et al. (1993).
5

Maltreatment and

Delinquency

It is commonly observed in research

literature that “lives containing delinquent behavior often seem to contain

maltreatment as well” (Garbarino and

Plantz, 1985). Most research on the relationship of maltreatment to delinquency

either relied exclusively on official

records to measure delinquency or used

retrospective designs requiring subjects

to recall their juvenile misdeeds. Results

have varied regarding whether a maltreated individual is more likely to engage

in specific categories of delinquency such

as minor, serious, or violent crimes.

Measurement of

Delinquency

The Rochester researchers distinguished

their study from previous investigations

of the relationship of maltreatment to

delinquency by utilizing a general population sample with measurement of official

records of delinquency (both “current”

self-reported offenses). (See Smith and

Thornberry (1995) for a detailed presentation of these results.)

The official measure of delinquency is

based on the number of times each subject had an official contact with police as

a juvenile or an arrest as an adult. Official

contacts include cases in which the juvenile was “warned and released” by the

police and an official record of the event

was maintained and cases in which the

juvenile was referred to family court. Data

were collected from the files of the Rochester Police Department, which maintains

a registry of all such contacts from all

police agencies in Monroe County. The

official data cover the time from the

subject’s first official contact through

1992, when the subjects averaged 17

years of age.

Self-reported delinquency was assessed in the face-to-face interviews. At

each of seven interview waves, the subjects were asked to report their delinquent activities for the previous 6 months

(the period between interviews). Prior to

analyzing these data, the researchers

screened out any reports of trivial actions

that would be ignored by local law enforcement officials. In this analysis, the

researchers examine responses by youth

to questions that were assigned to five

categories of delinquency: minor, moderate, serious, violent, and general. Table 3

lists the actual interview questions. In the

table, the minor, moderate, and serious

items are mutually exclusive; the general

delinquency index includes all of these

items and is, therefore, not included in

the table. The violent offenses are also

categorized in either the moderate or the

serious index.

Findings Regarding the

Prevalence of Delinquency

Based upon examination of official police records and self-reports, maltreated

children in this sample were significantly

more likely to become involved in delinquency at some time. Figure 1 displays

the relationship between prevalence rates

for child maltreatment and delinquency.

While 32% of the nonmaltreated youth

have official records of delinquency, a history of maltreatment raises this figure to

45%. Maltreated youth also give higher

self-reports of having been involved (at

any time) in each delinquency category:

minor, moderate, serious, violent, and

general.

The researchers further analyzed the

prevalence data, controlling for the following variables generally considered to

influence delinquency rates: the subject’s

sex, race/ethnicity, family disadvantage,

family structure, and mobility. In other

words, the researchers wanted to see if

the effect of maltreatment on delinquency

outcomes was spurious and would be

“washed out” if the maltreated subjects

were comparable to the nonmaltreated

subjects along these variables. With these

variables held constant, maltreated youth

still displayed significantly higher prevalence rates of delinquency in terms

of three measures: official records, selfreported moderate delinquency, and

self-reported violence.

Findings Regarding the

Frequency of Delinquency

Do maltreated subjects commit delinquent acts more often than nonmaltreated

subjects? In all of the measured categories—

that is, official records and self-reports

(minor, moderate, serious, violent, and

general)—maltreated subjects engaged in

delinquent activities significantly more

frequently.

Again, the researchers controlled for

sex, race/ethnicity, family disadvantage,

family structure, and mobility. Even with

these controls in place, maltreated subjects

displayed significantly higher frequencies

Table 2: Prevalence of Reported Maltreatment Prior to Age 12

by Demographic Characteristics

Reported

Maltreatment

No

Maltreatment

Total Sample 14% 86%

Demographic Characteristics

Sex

Male 13% 87%

Female 14% 86%

Race

White 16% 84%

African American 14% 86%

Hispanic 9% 91%

Disadvantaged Family

Yes 20% 80%

No 8% 92%

Family Structure

Two Biological Parents 3% 97%

Other Family Structures 19% 81%
6

Table 3: Interview Items for Self-Reported Delinquency Indexes*

Since we interviewed you last time, have you . . . Minor

Delinquency

Moderate

Delinquency

Serious

Delinquency

Violent

Delinquency

* This table lists the actual interview questions. The minor, moderate, and serious items are mutually exclusive; all 26 items are

included in the general delinquency index and, therefore, it is not shown.

1. Carried a hidden weapon?

2. Been loud or rowdy in a public place where someone complained

and you got in trouble?

3. Been drunk in a public place?

4. Damaged, destroyed, marked up, or tagged somebody else’s

property on purpose?

5. Set fire or tried to set fire to a house, building, or car on purpose?

6. Gone into or tried to go into a building to steal or

damage something?

7. Tried to steal or actually stolen money or things worth $5 or less?

8. Tried to steal or actually stolen money or things worth $5–$50?

9. Tried to steal or actually stolen money or things worth $50–$100?

10. Tried to steal or actually stolen money or things worth more

than $100?

11. Tried to buy or sell things that were stolen?

12. Taken someone else’s car or motorcycle for a ride without

the owner’s permission?

13. Stolen or tried to steal a car or other motor vehicle?

14. Forged a check or used fake money to pay for something?

15. Used or tried to use a credit card, bank card, or automatic teller

card without permission?

16. Tried to cheat someone by selling them something that was not

what you said it was or that was worthless?

17. Attacked someone with a weapon or with the idea of seriously

hurting or killing them?

18. Hit someone with the idea of hurting them?

19. Been involved in gang or posse fights?

20. Thrown objects such as rocks or bottles at people?

21. Used a weapon or force to make someone give you money

or things?

22. Made obscene phone calls?

23. Been paid for having sexual relations with someone?

24. Physically hurt or threatened to hurt someone to get them to

have sex with you?

25. Sold marijuana/reefer/pot?

26. Sold hard drugs such as crack, heroin, cocaine, or LSD/acid?

Total Number of Items 2986
7

of delinquency in the following four measures: official records and moderate, serious, and violent self-reported delinquency.

With the control variables held constant, the researchers concluded that

childhood maltreatment is a significant

and nonspurious risk factor for officially

recognized delinquency, violent selfreported delinquency, and moderate

self-reported delinquency. Maltreatment

is inconsistently related to serious delinquency, being a significant predictor for

the frequency but not for the prevalence

of serious delinquency. Finally, childhood

maltreatment is not a significant risk

factor for minor delinquency or general

delinquency, the overall index containing

the full range of delinquency. In short,

maltreatment appears to be a risk factor

for the more serious, but not the less serious, forms of delinquency.

Variations in the Maltreatment Experience and

Delinquency Outcomes

To this point, maltreatment has been

measured as a simple dichotomy, comparing adolescents who had official records

of maltreatment as children with those

who did not. This measure ignores the

fact that maltreatment can vary along

such dimensions as frequency, severity,

duration, and type. The researchers hypothesize that children exposed to more

extreme maltreatment will have higher

rates of delinquency than children exposed to less extreme maltreatment.

Therefore, whatever causal mechanisms

link early maltreatment to later delinquency ought to be strongest as the frequency, severity, duration, and variety of

maltreatment increase.

To test this hypothesis, the researchers

identified the top third of their maltreated

sample along each of the following four

dimensions:

◆ Number of maltreatment incidents.

◆ Severity of all incidents.

◆ Duration of all incidents.

◆ Number of subtypes of maltreatment

across all incidents.

These more-maltreated subjects were

then compared with the remaining lessmaltreated subjects and the nonmaltreated subjects.

The strongest support for the hypothesis was found in analyzing official

records of the frequency of delinquency

outcomes. For each of the four dimensions

cited above, there were significant increases in officially recorded delinquency

when comparing the nonmaltreated subjects with the less-maltreated subjects

and when comparing the less-maltreated

subjects with the more-maltreated subjects. The more-maltreated subjects were

arrested about twice as often as the lessmaltreated subjects along each of the four

dimensions.

In terms of frequency of self-reported

serious and violent crime, the researchers

observed incremental increases from

nonmaltreated subjects to less-maltreated

subjects to more-maltreated subjects

across all four dimensions of maltreatment: frequency, severity, duration, and

variety. Significant increases appear between the nonmaltreated subjects and

more-maltreated subjects. However, the

distinctions between the less-maltreated

and more-maltreated subjects are fairly

modest in terms of self-reported serious

and violent crime.

Overall, the Rochester study data confirm the general finding that there is a

relationship between childhood maltreatment and later delinquency. Furthermore,

this analysis offers some support for the

strength of the relationship between

childhood maltreatment and later serious

or violent delinquency, which increases

as the seriousness of the maltreatment

increases.

Maltreatment and Teen

Pregnancy

Vobejda (1996) reports that, according

to the National Center for Health Statistics, births to teenage mothers increased

in every State from the mid-1980’s until

1990. Beginning in 1991, rates have dropped

in 46 States, with national birth rates for

teenage mothers declining for 4 straight

years. The number of births per 1,000

girls ages 15 to 19 has fallen from 62 in

1991 to 57 in 1995. Nevertheless, birth

rates for teenage mothers remain much

higher in the United States than in other

industrialized nations.

Experiencing pregnancy as a teenager

has serious and often deleterious consequences on the lives of both the young

mother and her baby. Teenage mothers

and fathers are usually ill equipped to

provide effective parenting and often draw

heavily upon the resources of their extended families and communities. For

teenage parents raised in dysfunctional or

abusive families, parenting problems may

be even more evident, and family support

limited. Therefore, it is important to

Figure 1: Relationship Between Prevalence of Child Maltreatment

and Delinquency

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

General

Delinquency

Violent

Delinquency

Serious

Delinquency

Moderate

Delinquency

Minor

Delinquency

Official

Delinquency

32%

45%

37%

45%

56%

71%

42%

56%

70%

79%

70%

33%

Nonmaltreated

Youth

Maltreated

Youth

Percentage
8

identify risk factors associated with teen

pregnancy.

Research on the effects of maltreatment on child development suggests a

number of pathways through which maltreatment could heighten the risk for teen

pregnancy (Smith, 1996a). Although studies following maltreated children have not

generally found evidence linking maltreatment with subsequent teen pregnancies, a

small body of retrospective research with

pregnant girls suggests that a high proportion of them have histories of abuse.

Most researchers have focused on investigating the link between childhood

sexual abuse and teen pregnancy, hypothesizing that the trauma of this particular

type of maltreatment may lead to sexual

preoccupation, precocious sexual behavior, and sexual offending. However, many

victims of childhood maltreatment are

exposed to multiple types of maltreatment. This implies that researchers

should not focus solely on sexual abuse

but should examine the broad range of

maltreatment experiences, resulting developmental disruptions, and possible

links to teen pregnancy.

The few studies directly exploring the

relationship between childhood maltreatment and subsequent teen pregnancy all

have drawn samples on the basis of maltreatment or pregnancy. The Rochester

study provides a unique opportunity to

examine the link between childhood maltreatment and teen pregnancy among a

general population sample.

Measurement of Teen

Pregnancy

Teen pregnancy, for the purposes of

this discussion, refers to subjects’ selfreports of having been pregnant at

any time. If female subjects answered

positively in any interview in waves five

(when the average age was 15.3 years)

through nine (when the average age was

17.3 years), the female subjects were classified as having been pregnant. Male subjects were asked if they had ever made a

female pregnant. Thus, in this presentation, teen pregnancy involves subjects’

reports of pregnancies up to the average

age of 17.3 years (high school age).

Findings Regarding the

Prevalence of Teen

Pregnancy

For the purposes of this analysis,

males and females were separated.

Maltreated boys did not report higher

rates of impregnating girls than nonmaltreated boys. Precursors of teen fatherhood merit further inquiry, as this

experience is likely to have negative consequences in the lives of the fathers and

their children. Researchers in the Rochester study are examining a broader range

of factors that appear to increase the risk

of adolescent fatherhood (Smith, 1996b;

Thornberry et al., forthcoming).

The balance of this discussion focuses

on the findings regarding pregnancy outcomes among the female subjects. Rates

of teen pregnancy are significantly higher

among girls with a history of childhood

maltreatment. The prevalence of pregnancy among maltreated girls is 52% compared with 34% among nonmaltreated

girls. The risk of becoming pregnant is

therefore approximately 50% higher

among high school girls who experience

maltreatment during their childhood.

These prevalence rates are shown in figure 2 (which also highlights key findings

regarding self-reported serious delinquency, violence, drug use, lower grade

point averages (GPA’s), and mental health

problems).

A Closer Look at

Maltreatment Subtypes

and Pregnancy

It is interesting to note several key

findings from the extended analysis of

this topic conducted by Smith (1996a)

utilizing Rochester study data. Approximately one-half of the maltreated females

(21 out of 40) had been exposed to more

than one type of maltreatment. In this

general population sample, meaningful

comparisons of pregnancy outcomes

could not be conducted across maltreatment subtypes. There were simply too

few “single-type” maltreatment cases. For

example, among the five sexually abused

female subjects, four became pregnant

as teenagers; however, three were also

exposed to other forms of maltreatment.

Therefore, it cannot be determined from

these data whether it is sexual abuse or

other forms of abuse that increase the

risk of pregnancy in female adolescents.

Girls exposed to multiple types of maltreatment are significantly more likely to

become pregnant than girls who experienced one type of maltreatment. In addition to maltreatment per se, it may be the

range of developmental domains affected

Figure 2: Relationship Between Prevalence of Child Maltreatment

and Various Negative Outcomes During Adolescence

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Mental 

Health 

Problems

Pregnancy Drug Use Lower GPA

(Females)

Serious Violence

Delinquency

33%

42%

56%

70%

34%

52%

43%

23%

33%

26%

15%

32%

Nonmaltreated

Youth

Maltreated

Youth

Percentage
9

by maltreatment that is associated with

pregnancy risk. Fortunately, not all maltreated girls report pregnancies. Maltreated

teenage girls who become pregnant are

more likely to display a constellation of

risk factors in early adolescence, including early substance use, early sexual intimacy, and poor academic performance.

Maltreatment and

Other Problem

Behaviors

The most complete analysis of the

consequences of maltreatment using the

Rochester data has been conducted with

delinquency and teen pregnancy as the

outcome variables. As discussed above,

the analyses examine different forms of

delinquency, evaluate the role of confounding variables, and address different

dimensions of maltreatment.

Recently, the researchers on the Rochester project have begun to explore the

relationship of childhood maltreatment to

other adolescent outcome variables, but

not yet in as much detail as for the delinquency and pregnancy analyses. For

these other outcomes, more complete

multivariate models will be tested in the

future. Following are highlights of the

analyses conducted to date on the relationship of maltreatment to drug use, low

academic achievement, and mental health

problems.

Maltreatment and

Drug Use

The catalysts for the onset of drug

abuse in adolescence are many. Teenage

drug users frequently cite the following

current problems in their lives: peer pressure to use drugs, difficulties in school,

rebellion against adult authority, lack of

impulse control, desire for immediate

gratification, and low self-esteem. When

researchers (Dembo et al., 1992) interviewed teenage drug users about earlier

childhood experiences, the youth frequently reported histories of physical

child abuse and sexual victimization.

Dembo concluded that developmental

damage caused by child maltreatment

increases the likelihood of adolescent

drug use and other problem behaviors.

A number of explanations have been

offered as to why a maltreated child

would use drugs in subsequent years

(Ireland and Widom, 1994). For instance,

the maltreated victims may seek escape

from the harsh realities of their lives,

even after the abuse has ended. Those

feeling socially isolated might be willing

to use drugs in order to be part of a group.

Other victims may seek to alleviate suffering from low self-esteem or mental disorders by self-medicating.

Although reasonable rationales have

been put forth as to why maltreatment

victims would use drugs, the research on

this issue is inconclusive. When Ireland

and Widom (1994) reviewed the literature,

they found both ambiguous and conflicting findings. Research designs typically

are cross-sectional, rather than longitudinal, so it is difficult to draw any causal

inferences. There are few adequate control or comparison groups. Many studies

have focused on adult female samples,

and there is evidence that gender may

affect the drug-use outcomes of child

maltreatment.

The impact of child maltreatment on

drug use may not be fully realized until

the adult years. In Ireland and Widom’s

(1994) study, after controlling for relevant

demographic variables, child maltreatment was a significant predictor of adult,

but not juvenile, arrests for alcohol and/

or other drug-related offenses.

The Rochester longitudinal design

provides an excellent opportunity to

measure self-reported drug use among a

general population sample of adolescents.

The researchers can now examine whether

childhood maltreatment predicts adolescent drug use. As the subjects age, the

researchers will be able to assess whether

the drug-related consequences of child

maltreatment extend into or emerge during adulthood.

Measurement of Drug Use

The Rochester study conducted faceto-face interviews to assess drug use. At

each of seven interview waves, the subjects were asked to report their drug use

during the previous 6 months. Table 4

provides the 10 interview items for drug

use. The drug-use index does not include

alcohol or cigarette use.

Findings Regarding the

Prevalence of Drug Use

Youth with a history of childhood maltreatment are more likely to use drugs

than nonmaltreated subjects. Based upon

self-reports, 43% of the Rochester study

adolescents who were maltreated as children have used drugs, compared with

32% of those who were not maltreated.

Thus, the risk of using drugs is about onethird higher among youth who have a

maltreatment history. These drug-use

rates are displayed in figure 2.

Table 4: Interview Items for Self-Reported Drug Use

Since we interviewed you last time, have you . . .

1. Used marijuana/reefer/pot?

2. Inhaled things (other than cigarettes) like glue to get high?

3. Tried LSD/acid/cubes?

4. Tried cocaine/coke/snow (other than crack)?

5. Tried crack?

6. Tried heroin/smack?

7. Tried angel dust/PCP?

8. Tried tranquilizers such as ludes (Quaaludes) or Valium?

9. Tried downers such as yellow jackets or red or blue devils?

10. Tried uppers/speed such as bennies or black beauties?
10

Maltreatment and Low

Academic Achievement

Does the childhood experience of maltreatment increase the likelihood of academic difficulties and failure during

middle school? Some research has been

conducted on adolescent learning problems, school failure, and truancy among

abused populations (Malinosky-Rummell

and Hansen, 1993). Several studies have

noted that maltreated children and adolescents exhibit intellectual and academic

delays and lower scores on tests of intelligence. Considerably more is known about

the immediate childhood consequences

of maltreatment on academic success

than about the long-term adolescent and

adult outcomes.

Because the experience of maltreatment can delay or disrupt normal child

development, research literature often

emphasizes that maltreated children

exhibit problems in concentration and

achievement in school. Researchers

(Erickson et al., 1989) examined the kindergarten experience of maltreated and

nonmaltreated children. Maltreated children displayed a host of difficulties in

adapting to the social environment and

task demands of school. For instance,

children who were maltreated were significantly more likely than their nonmaltreated peers to need special assistance,

create classroom disturbances, perform

poorly, and comprehend less and to be

inattentive, overactive, unpopular, and

aggressive.

Do such negative outcomes continue

to impede academic success in adolescent years? Due to the sequential nature

of the academic learning process, it is

likely that maltreated children who never

mastered basic skills would have difficulty applying these skills to the more

complex tasks found in middle school

curriculums. Furthermore, adolescents

with a history of maltreatment might have

less personal capacity to meet social challenges in the middle school setting.

There are indications (Smith, 1996a)

that girls with histories of child maltreatment are less likely to become pregnant if

they aspire to and achieve academic success. Other researchers (Zingraff et al.,

1994) have noted that adequate school

performance appears to substantially reduce the risk of delinquency among maltreated children. Performing well at school

may indeed be key to adolescent resilience following childhood maltreatment.

Measurement of Academic

Achievement

To assess how well subjects performed

at school, researchers computed their

cumulative GPA’s from 1986 to 1989 Rochester City School District records. In 1989,

the mean age was 14.4 years, and subjects

were in the spring semester of either the

eighth or ninth grade. Therefore, the cumulative GPA is basically a measure of a

student’s grades during middle or junior

high school. In this analysis, a GPA of less

than 2.0 (less than “C”) is categorized as

low.

Findings Regarding

Academic Achievement

The Rochester study shows that school

achievement by maltreated children is

significantly lower than that of youth who

do not have a history of childhood maltreatment. Poor grades are evident among

33% of the maltreated group, compared

with 23% in the group who were not maltreated. The prevalence rates for low

GPA’s are presented in figure 2.

According to the study, then, students

performing poorly in middle school are

considered at increased risk for continued academic failure in high school, low

educational aspirations, premature

school dropout, and reduced educational

and economic opportunities. The Rochester researchers plan additional data collection and analysis to compare the high

school experiences of maltreated youth

with those of nonmaltreated youth.

Maltreatment and

Mental Health Problems

In considering the possible links between maltreatment and subsequent mental health problems, it is useful to employ

a developmental approach to psychopathology (Cicchetti, 1989). Psychopathology

occurs when there is a lack of integration

of the various social, emotional, and cognitive competencies that underlie healthy

or normal adaptation at a particular level

of child and adolescent development. Interruption of healthy childhood development by maltreatment may ultimately

lead to much larger disturbances at subsequent developmental stages. The timing,

chronicity, and severity of the maltreatment are critical factors in assessing their

potential impact on an individual child’s

psychosocial development.

Healthy development requires nurturing, encouragement, supervision, and

support by parents or other primary caretakers. Obviously, a child traumatized by

maltreatment, particularly chronic and

severe maltreatment within the family

setting, suffers (at minimum) a temporary

setback in his or her positive psychological development. More is known about

short-term consequences than long-term

consequences of maltreatment, particularly in instances where Child Protective

Services are notified and mental health

assessments are conducted.

Although each child responds differently

to life circumstances and maltreatment

experiences, child victims often have a

wide range of maladaptive emotional and

interpersonal symptoms in common. The

negative attributes associated with this

victimized population include anxiety,

inattentiveness, impulsiveness, anger,

aggression, passivity, withdrawal, depression, self-destructiveness, obsessivecompulsive behavior, and unpopularity

(Erickson et al., 1989). Such child victims

are further described as lacking selfconfidence, empathy, and perhaps most

telling, joy.

What is known about the long-term

consequences of child maltreatment for

victims in adolescence? Maltreatment has

been linked to a number of mental health

problems among adolescents, including

increased self-destructive and suicidal

behavior, fewer interpersonal competencies, and more mood disorders, such as

anxiety and depression (MalinoskyRummell and Hansen, 1993; Downs, 1993).

For at least some victims, the impact of

childhood maltreatment extends beyond

adolescence, as documented by both researchers and clinicians working with

adults with alcoholism and mental illness.

Measurement of Mental

Health Problems

In the Rochester study, parents were

asked to assess whether their children

exhibited certain emotional and behavioral responses symptomatic of mental

illness. The Rochester study investigators collaborated with their colleagues

at the Pittsburgh Causes and Correlates

of Delinquency study site to develop a

shortened version of the Achenbach

Child Behavior Checklist without compromising the reliability and validity of the

longer, 118-item form. The abbreviated

checklist was advantageous in terms of

reducing longitudinal survey costs, interview time, and subject attrition (Lizotte

et al., 1992). The shortened behavioral
11

checklist adopted for use at Rochester

includes seven scales that fall under one

of two broad dimensions:

(1) Externalizing syndrome—aggressive,

delinquent, hostile/withdrawn, and hyperactive.

(2) Internalizing syndrome—immature,

somatic (physical) complaints, and uncommunicative.

As shown in table 5, quite a few of the

behaviors included in this checklist are

not particularly uncommon among adolescents. What is of clinical concern is not

an occasional positive response but

rather a significant loading on a particular

scale or syndrome. The checklist is typically used as a diagnostic tool to identify

subjects who fall at the behavioral extremes on these scales. For the purposes

of this analysis, adolescents who score in

the top 10% on either the externalizing or

internalizing syndrome scale are counted

as having problems suggesting psychopathology and/or behavioral disturbances.

Findings Regarding Mental

Health Problems

Mental health problems that affect

teenagers include externalized conduct

problems such as aggressive, hostile, and

hyperactive behavior and internalized

problems such as social isolation, anxiety,

and physical distress. One might expect

such symptoms to be linked with prior

maltreatment, as indeed figure 2 suggests.

Of subjects whose parents report the

highest number of either externalizing

or internalizing problems, 15% of

nonmaltreated teenagers are in this

group, compared with 26% of the maltreated teens.

Maltreatment and

Multiple Problem

Behaviors

Thus far, this Bulletin has attempted to

sort out or isolate specific problem areas

in the lives of adolescents. Traditionally,

this is the way research on adolescent

problems has been conducted. It is now

time to consider the process of youth development from a holistic perspective.

Some teenagers have multiple and overlapping problems that increase the likelihood that they will not be able to make

successful transitions to adult roles and

responsibilities.

Youth who become involved in the

juvenile justice system often carry more

baggage than just their presenting offenses.

Researchers conducted a longitudinal

examination of the troubled lifestyles

of juveniles originally held in a Florida

detention facility (Dembo et al., 1991).

Among this high-risk sample, multiple

problems were the norm, rather than the

exception. The majority of the detained

youth came from physically abusive

homes, engaged in delinquency and drug

abuse, and experienced academic difficulties or school failure.

Assessment of Multiple

Problem Behaviors

This analysis looks at whether childhood maltreatment is a risk factor for having multiple problems during adolescence

and utilizes measurement procedures previously described for the following five

categories of negative outcomes:

◆ Serious delinquency.

◆ Teen pregnancy.

◆ Drug use.

◆ Low academic achievement.

◆ Mental health problems.

Findings Regarding Multiple

Problem Behaviors

Figure 3 illustrates the proportion of

maltreated youth and nonmaltreated

youth with no negative outcomes, one to

two negative outcomes, or three or more

negative outcomes.

First, the figure shows that a lower

proportion of maltreated youth than

nonmaltreated youth have no problem

outcomes. Still, it is somewhat encouraging to see that more than one-fourth

(28%) of youth with histories of childhood maltreatment are not presenting

any negative adolescent outcomes, as

measured in this analysis. In contrast,

40% of the nonmaltreated youth fall into

this category; they are more likely to

progress through adolescence unscathed

by serious problems.

Next, maltreated youth (40%) and

nonmaltreated youth (42%) are almost

equally likely to have only one or two

problems. This suggests that many youngsters, not just those who have official

records of childhood maltreatment, have

a problem in some area of their lives.

Finally, the figure depicts the group of

most concern—youth experiencing three

or more of the five problem areas examined here. Maltreatment is a significant

risk factor for multiple problem outcomes.

Of the maltreated youth, 32% have three

or more negative outcomes, compared

with only 18% in the nonmaltreated

group. The risk of multiple negative outcomes increases by nearly 80% among the

maltreated subjects.

Summary and

Discussion

In the past few decades, increasing attention has been paid to the phenomenon

of child maltreatment and its long-term

impact on youth development. A growing

body of research suggests that being maltreated as a child increases the chances

of a variety of developmental problems

during childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. This presentation of the Rochester

study data has examined the consequences

of childhood maltreatment in terms of

subsequent adolescent problem behaviors.

Overall, these results indicate that having a history of childhood maltreatment

serious enough to warrant official intervention by Child Protective Services increases the likelihood of problems

during adolescent development. Specifically, subjects with a history of maltreatment were more likely to engage in

serious and violent delinquency, use

drugs, perform poorly in school, display

symptoms of mental illness, and (for

girls) become pregnant. Childhood maltreatment is associated with an increased

risk of at least 25% for each of these investigated outcomes. Any one of these

problems jeopardizes a teenager’s potential for making a successful transition to

adulthood.

Maltreatment diminishes the likelihood

that children will come through adolescence with no serious problems. Moreover, a history of childhood maltreatment

nearly doubles the risk that teenagers will

experience multiple problems during

adolescence.

In view of the link between maltreatment and various problem outcomes, it is

critical for practitioners and researchers

to consider youth holistically, across a

range of areas in which maltreatment may

be manifested developmentally. This is

particularly critical for youth who are

already experiencing multiple problems.

Implementation of a holistic intervention

approach will necessitate a high level of

coordination among service systems,

targeting maltreated children and families
12

Table 5: Assessment of Mental Health Problems: Rochester Youth Development Study’s Shortened

Child Behavior Checklist

Externalizing Scales Internalizing Scales

Parental Assessment

of the Following Child

Behaviors:

Aggressive Delinquent Hostile/

Withdrawn

Hyperactive Immature Somatic

Complaints

Uncommunicative

Source: Adapted from Lizotte et al. (1992).

Acts too young

Can’t concentrate

Is hyperactive

Cries a lot

Is cruel to animals

Is cruel to others

Demands attention

Destroys others’ things

Is disobedient at school

Has poor peer relations

Feels persecuted

Feels worthless

Fights

Has bad friends

Is impulsive

Lies, cheats

Is disliked

Is anxious

Has pains

Has headaches

Has nausea

School work is poor

Prefers young kids

Screams

Is secretive

Is self-conscious

Is shy/timid

Steals outside home

Is stubborn

Is moody

Has temper tantrums

Threatens people

Is sad

Whines

Is withdrawn

Worries

Total Number of Items 12 6 8 6 5 4 8
13

and working with teenagers experiencing

several related problems.

Obviously, not every possible adverse

outcome was detected or assessed in this

presentation of the Rochester data. For

instance, alcohol use, school truancy,

school dropout incidents, serious conflicts with parents, running away from

home, and teenage parents’ maltreatment

of their own children were not included in

this analysis of adolescent problem behaviors. Practitioners and researchers are

urged to consider assessment of a full

spectrum of adolescent consequences

when dealing with victims of maltreatment.

The Rochester research strengthens

and clarifies the empirical link between

maltreatment and later problem behaviors among a general population sample

of teens. However, these data do not imply that maltreatment leads directly or

inevitably to later problems. An important

theoretical and practical issue for future

research is the identification of the pathways connecting early maltreatment to

various adolescent problem behaviors.

Such pathways may be affected by intervening factors, including the emergence

of protective factors and the provision

of effective services. There is evidence of

great variation in official responses to

maltreated children and their families,

within and across jurisdictions, ranging

from no service provision to placement of

children outside the home (Lung and

Daro, 1996). Information on service responses and other intervening factors is

vital to the enhancement of efforts to accurately assess and effectively deal with

maltreatment victims.

When researchers look for indicators

that increase the risk of negative outcomes for maltreated youth, they should

also identify protective factors or buffers

that boost resiliency. As noted in the presentation of findings, 28% of maltreated

subjects had no detected problem. This

is the most encouraging finding: long-term

developmental damage does not appear

to be inevitable, as assessed across five

problem areas. This finding is important.

If the processes that lead to resilience can

be identified, youth-serving professionals

will be in a better position to develop effective intervention programs for other

maltreated youth. In doing so, it will be

important to consider factors such as the

following:

◆ The developmental stage(s) at which

victimization occurred.

◆ Variations in the frequency, severity,

duration, and type of maltreatment.

◆ The relationship of the victim to the

victimizer.

◆ The question of whether maltreatment

was reported and, if so, the agency’s

response.

◆ The range of developmental areas affected by experiences of maltreatment.

With a better understanding of how

maltreatment disrupts or derails healthy

development in children and adolescents,

those who work with young people will be

far better positioned to help guide them

onto productive pathways to the future.

Practitioners providing such guidance

represent fields such as Child Protective

Services, education, pediatrics, juvenile

justice, substance abuse treatment, and

mental health. These practitioners are

urged to foster two interdisciplinary

approaches:

◆ A comprehensive assessment of

troubled adolescents to determine if a

history of maltreatment continues to

negatively impact their lives.

◆ Individualized treatment of victimized

youth to strengthen protective factors

that help minimize their involvement

in detrimental behaviors.

As maltreated children grow older,

their status as victims may be overlooked

as their behavior becomes more disruptive and problematic. There is evidence

that some institutionalized delinquent

and substance-abusing youth may have

experienced considerable trauma in connection with early maltreatment (Dembo

et al., 1992). When a child victim becomes

a juvenile offender, legitimate concerns

about protecting public safety and holding

youth accountable for their behavior can

easily overshadow issues of continued

trauma from childhood maltreatment. As

the Nation seeks to provide a balanced

approach to juvenile justice, policymakers,

practitioners, and the public must recognize that a punitive response such as secure detention or incarceration may place

the youth at risk of further victimization.

Punitive responses also may exacerbate

previous emotional and developmental

problems resulting from maltreatment.

In this connection, it is particularly important to provide comprehensive assessment services to identify problem areas

and develop responsive services for

juveniles.

Practitioners attempting to design and

implement effective individualized treatment plans must consider the context of

Figure 3: Relationship Between Prevalence of Child Maltreatment

and Number of Negative Outcomes During Adolescence

0

10

20

30

40

50

3 or More

Negative Outcomes

1 to 2

Negative Outcomes

Zero

Negative Outcomes

40%

28%

42%

40%

18%

32%

Nonmaltreated

Youth

Maltreated

Youth

Percentage
14

the victim’s family and community environment. As noted by Briscoe (1995):

. . . if we understand that a child who

is not nurtured is a child who never

learns to trust, never develops empathy, never accepts responsibility for

his behavior, and hurts others with

impunity, then we will figure out a way

to collaboratively make children and

families a priority and support and empower them to take responsibility to

rear healthy and productive children.

Traditionally, less emphasis has been

placed on preventing child maltreatment

than reporting and intervening in these

cases. Rather than merely responding to

reports of child maltreatment, Child Protective Services must also dedicate their

resources to screening and developing

resources (preferably those that begin

during the prenatal period) for at-risk

parents.

Educating all future parents, not just

those at high risk for maltreating their

children, should be a national priority.

The United States currently places more

emphasis on educating and licensing drivers than on preparing the next generation

of parents. Few new parents are fully cognizant of just how much time and energy

are involved in nurturing newborns. Many

parents lack familiarity with the normal

difficulties and stresses inherent in the

care and supervision of developing infants, children, and adolescents. Parents

should be advised that stress factors

such as financial concerns, fatigue, alcohol consumption, and drug use can reduce their tolerance for normal infant and

child behavior and increase their propensity to abuse their children. To prevent

child maltreatment, parents need to understand not only the immediate but also

the long-term consequences of their

actions.

Furthermore, parents must recognize

that their dependents need extensive

adult supervision and care for the duration of their childhood. Social and workrelated commitments do not relieve a

parent of the responsibility to provide

adequate nurturing and supervision. The

task of raising a child is particularly difficult for parents who are isolated and lack

an extended family or social network from

which to draw support. Merely educating

parents about their responsibilities will

not suffice—communities must also develop adequate resources, such as affordable and accessible daycare, to support

parents’ efforts to provide the emotional,

social, and physical support their children need.

Admittedly, some mothers and fathers

will not be receptive to even the most intensive support and training, perhaps

because of their own lack of maturity,

mental illness, alcoholism, drug addiction, criminal involvement, or history of

abuse. In certain instances, the best interests of a child would necessitate at least

temporary removal from the biological

parents, before the child’s normal development is severely compromised by maltreatment.

While far more is known about the

symptoms of maltreatment than ways to

deal with it, research is providing more

information about both. Ultimately, the

degree to which the Nation safeguards

children’s futures will be measured in

terms of how effectively society responds

to abuse and neglect when it occurs and

how committed the American people are

to prevention in the first place.

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Briscoe, J. 1995. Cycle of violence and

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Acknowledgments

This Bulletin was prepared by Barbara Tatem Kelley, M.A., an independent

consultant with extensive experience in juvenile justice research and program

development; Terence P. Thornberry, Ph.D., Professor and former Dean at the

School of Criminal Justice, University at Albany, State University of New York; and

Carolyn A. Smith, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at the School of Social Welfare,

University at Albany, State University of New York. Dr. Thornberry is Director of the

Rochester Youth Development Study; Dr. Smith is coprincipal investigator of the

study.

The authors would like to express appreciation to their colleagues on the Rochester Youth Development Study. Particular thanks are due to the Monroe County

Department of Social Services, especially the Commissioner, Diane Larter, and

the Research Director, Daniel Ross, for providing access to the records on

maltreatment and for helping us properly interpret the data. We would also like to

thank Dante Cicchetti of the University of Rochester for his advice about measuring maltreatment. Most important, of course, we thank the participants in the

Rochester Youth Development Study for sharing so much of their time with us over

the years.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes

the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau

of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of

Justice, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

Widom, C.S. 1994. Childhood victimization and risk for adolescent problem behavior. In M.E. Lamb and R. Ketterlinus

(eds.), Adolescent Problem Behaviors.

New York, NY: Lawrence Erlbaum

Associates.

Widom, C.S. 1996. The Cycle of Violence

Revisited. Research Preview. Washington,

DC: National Institute of Justice.

Zingraff, M.T., J. Leiter, M.C. Johnsen,

and K.A. Myers. 1994. Mediating effect

of good school performance on the

maltreatment-delinquency relationship.

Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 31(1):62–91.

Points of view or opinions expressed in this

document are those of the author(s) and do

not necessarily represent the official position

or policies of OJJDP or the U.S. Department of

Justice.
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