Publication: Crossing boundaries: a pilot study of maternal attitudes about child maltreatment in nine countries
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Program
KU-Authors
KU Authors
Co-Authors
Mesman, Judi
Branger, Marjolein
Woudstra, Mi-lan
Emmen, Rosanneke
Asanjarani, Faramarz
Carcamo, Rodrigo
Hsiao, Celia
Mels, Cindy
Soares, Isabel
Van Ginkel, Joost
Advisor
Publication Date
2020
Language
English
Type
Journal Article
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
Background: definitions of child maltreatment vary widely between studies, and even more so between different cultural contexts. Objective: in this pilot study, we examine between-country variations in maternal notions about what constitutes child maltreatment. Participants and setting: the sample consisted of 466 mothers recruited in Chile, China, Greece, Iran, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Turkey, and Uruguay. Methods: all mothers completed a new Q-sort measure, ranking 90 parenting behaviors linked to subtypes of maltreatment (emotional neglect, emotional abuse, physical neglect, and physical abuse) from least to most detrimental to child development. Results: between-country agreement regarding the harmfulness of the parenting behaviors was high (r=.45), but there were different patterns of reported harmfulness of subtypes of maltreatment (although driven mostly by deviating patterns in the South African sample). Further, there were significant country effects on the number and type of behaviors labeled as maltreatment (pre=.15), and the number of items labeled as requiring intervention (pre=.19). Conclusions: variations in conceptions of maltreatment need to be studied in larger more representative samples and taken into account in the assessment and treatment of child maltreatment across cultures.
Description
Source:
Child Abuse and Neglect
Publisher:
Elsevier
Keywords:
Subject
Family studies, Psychology, social, Social work