Individual, Family, and Culture Level Contributions to Child Physical Abuse and Neglect: A Longitudinal Study in Nine Countries

Authors

Jennifer E. Lansford, Duke UniversityFollow
Jennifer Godwin, Duke UniversityFollow
Liliana Maria Uribe Tirado, Universidad San BuenaventuraFollow
Arnaldo Zelli, University of Rome "Foro Italico"
Suha M. Al-Hassan, Hashemite UniversityFollow
Dario Bacchini, Second University of NaplesFollow
Anna Silvia Bombi, University of Rome La Sapienza
Marc H. Bornstein, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human DevelopmentFollow
Lei Chang, Hong Kong Institute of EducationFollow
Kirby Deater-Deckard, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State UniversityFollow
Laura Di Giunta, University of Rome La SapienzaFollow
Kenneth A. Dodge, Duke UniversityFollow
Patrick S. Malone, University of South CarolinaFollow
Paul Oburu, Maseno UniversityFollow
Concetta Pastorelli, University of Rome La SapienzaFollow
Ann T. Skinner, Duke UniversityFollow
Emma Sorbring, University West
Sombat Tapanya, Chiang Mai UniversityFollow
Liane Peña Alampay, Ateneo de Manila UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-2015

Abstract

This study advances understanding of predictors of child abuse and neglect at multiple levels of influence. Mothers, fathers, and children (N = 1,432 families, M age of children = 8.29 years) were interviewed annually in three waves in 13 cultural groups in nine countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States). Multilevel models were estimated to examine predictors of (a) within-family differences across the three time points, (b) between-family within-culture differences, and (c) between-cultural group differences in mothers’ and fathers’ reports of corporal punishment and children’s reports of their parents’ neglect. These analyses addressed to what extent mothers’ and fathers’ use of corporal punishment and children’s perceptions of their parents’ neglect were predicted by parents’ belief in the necessity of using corporal punishment, parents’ perception of the normativeness of corporal punishment in their community, parents’ progressive parenting attitudes, parents’ endorsement of aggression, parents’ education, children’s externalizing problems, and children’s internalizing problems at each of the three levels. Individual-level predictors (especially child externalizing behaviors) as well as cultural-level predictors (especially normativeness of corporal punishment in the community) predicted corporal punishment and neglect. Findings are framed in an international context that considers how abuse and neglect are defined by the global community and how countries have attempted to prevent abuse and neglect.

Recommended Citation

Lansford, J. E., Godwin, J., Uribe Tirado, L. M., Zelli, A., Al-Hassan, S. M., Bacchini, D., Bombi, A. S., Bornstein, M. H., Chang, L., Deater-Deckard, K., Di Giunta, L., Dodge, K. A., Malone, P. S., Oburu, P., Pastorelli, C., Skinner, A. T., Sorbring, E., Tapanya, S., & Peña Alampay, L. (2015). Individual, family, and culture level contributions to child physical abuse and neglect: A longitudinal study in nine countries. Development and psychopathology, 27(4 Pt 2), 1417–1428. https://doi.org/10.1017/S095457941500084X