Between 1981 and 1990 abuse reports accounted for approximately ten percent of all reports registered. In 1990, abuse reports accounted for only 8.7 percent of the total, while various forms of maltreatment accounted for 91.3 percent. According to the New York State Central Register, less than 1 percent of all reports to state child welfare agencies indicated severe physical abuse in 1990. These trends continued on into 1995. New York State Central Register reporting highlights, 1974-1990.
Similar trends are to be found elsewhere.
In Canada, only 3.2 percent of all reports in 1978 made to the Alberta Child Protection Registry indicated child abuse. Various forms of neglect accounted for the remaining 96.8 percent. In Quebec, only 2.3 percent of all cases involved child abuse. In 1977, Dr. Pelton sent a letter to various agencies asking them to provide their guidelines. In New York state, the Commission on Expenditure Review provided twenty-three hotline operators in three cities a series of hypothetical cases, asking them if they would classify them as maltreatment.