Abstract
In the 60 years, since Kemp and colleagues coined the phrase “The Battered Child Syndrome”, there has been considerable progress as well as some misconceptions that led to errors. Misconceptions and errors include not being aware that children from as young as six years give reliable accounts of things that have seen or been involved in, not being aware that alcohol abuse and domestic violence may have strong links with child abuse and should trigger further enquiry and not always having an open mind when seeing a suspected case of abuse. There are still opportunities for making things safer for children. New information from genetics can help us understand higher risk groups as well as identify new treatments. There are opportunities to learn from other areas outside health and welfare where major improvements have been achieved. And, there is the importance of taking an ecological view which looks beyond abuse being seen mainly as an individual family problem and involves the broader community and the society. Underlying everything is that the more we do to recognize the rights of children, the more we will have done to protect them.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andrews, G. (2004). Comparative quantification of health risk, global and regional burden of disorders attributable to selected major risk factors. In: Ezzati et al. (Eds.), Chapter 23 in global health risk. WHO.
Australian Institute for Family Studies. (2018). https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/publications/economic-costs-child-abuse-and-neglect. Accessed June 21, 2021
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence/family-domestic-sexual-violence-in-australia-2018. Accessed June 19, 2021
Binder, E. B., Bradley, R. G., Liu, W., Epstein, M. P., Deveau, T. C., Mercer, K. B., et al. (2008). Association of FKBP5 polymorphisms and childhood abuse with risk of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in adults. JAMA, 299, 1–1510. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.299.11.1291
Caffey, J. (1946). Multiple fractures in the long bones of infants suffering from subdural hematoma. American Journal of Roentgenology, 56, 163–173.
Caffey, J. (1972). On the theory and practice of shaking infants. American Journal of Diseases of Children, 124, 161–169. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.1972.02110140011001
Cantwell, H. (1983). Vaginal inspection as it relates to child sexual abuse in girls under thirteen. Child Abuse and Neglect, 7, 171–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/0145-2134(83)90069-8
Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2019). Long-term consequences of child abuse and neglect. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau.
Davis, S. (1998). Social and scientific influences on the study of children’s suggestibility: A historical perspective. Child Maltreatment, 3, 186–194. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559598003002011
Dubowitz, H. (Ed.). (2012). World perspectives on child abuse, international society for prevention of child abuse and neglect. Denver Co.
Edmiston, E. E., Wang, F., Mazure, C. M., Guiney, J., Sinha, R., Mayes, L. C., & Blumberg, H. P. (2011). Corticostriatal–limbic gray matter morphology in adolescents with self-reported exposure to childhood maltreatment. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 165, 1069–1077.
Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., & Marks, J. S. (1998). The relationship of adult health status to childhood abuse and household dysfunction. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245–258.
Finkel, M. (2009). Medical evaluation of child sexual abuse (p. 63). American Academy of Pediatrics.
Finkelhor, D., & Jones, L. (2006). Why have child maltreatment and child victimization declined? Journal of Social Issues, 62, 685–716. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.2006.00483.x
Finkelhor, D., Saito, K., & Jones, L. (2015). Updated trends in child maltreatment, 2013. Crimes against Children Research Center.
Finkelhor, D., Turner, H., Ormrod, R., & Hamby, S. L. (2010). Trends in childhood violence and abuse exposure. Evidence from 2 national surveys. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 164, 238–242.
Garbarino, J. (1978). The elusive crime of emotional abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 2, 89–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/0145-2134(78)90011-X
Gershoff, E. T. (2002). Corporal punishment by parents and associated child behavior experiences: A meta-analytic and theoretical review. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 539–579. https://doi.org/10.1037//0033-2909.128.4.539
Gesrhoff, E. T., Goodman, G. S., Miller-Perrin, C. I., et al. (2018). The strength of the causal evidence against physical punishment of children and its implications for parents, psychologists and policymakers. American Psychologist, 73, 626–638.
Gilbert, R., Fluke, J., O’Donnell, M., Gonzalez-Izquierdo, A., Brownell, M., Gulliver, P., & Sidebotham, P. (2012). Child maltreatment: Variation in trends and policies in six developed countries. Lancet, 379, 758–772. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2214.2012.01375_4.x.
Goodman, G. S., Bottoms, B. L., Rudy, L., Davis, S. L., & Schwartz-Kenney, B. M. (2001). Effect of past abuse experiences on children’s eyewitness memory. Law and Human Behavior, 25, 269–298.
Helmreich, R. L. (2000). On error management: Lessons from aviation. BMJ (Clinical Research Edition), 320(7237), 781–785. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.320.7237.781
Herrenkohl, T. I., Jung, H., Lee, J. O., & Kim, M.-H. (2017). Effects of child maltreatment, cumulative victimization experiences, and proximal life stress on adult crime and antisocial behavior. https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/250506.pdf
Jaffe, P. G., Campbell, M., Hamilton, L. H., & Juodis, M. (2012). Children in danger of domestic homicide. Child Abuse and Neglect, 36(1), 71–74.
Kempe, C. H. (1978). Sexual abuse, another hidden problem. Pediatrics, 62, 382–389.
Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F. N., Steele, B. F., Droegemueller, W., & Silver, H. K. (1962). The battered child syndrome. JAMA, 1962(181), 17–24.
Leventhal, J. M., & Gaither, J. R. (2012). Incidence of serious injuries due to physical abuse in the United States, 1997 to 2009. Pediatrics, 130, e847–e852.
London, K., Bruck, M., Wright, D. B., & Ceci, S. J. (2008). Review of the contemporary literature on how children report sexual abuse to others: Findings, methodological issues, and implications for forensic interviewers. Memory, 16(1), 29–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658210701725732 PMID: 18158687.
McGowan, P. O., Sasaki, A., D’Alessio, A. C., Dymov, S., Labonté, B., Szyf, M., & Meaney, M. J. (2009). Epigenetic regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor in human brain associates with childhood abuse. Nature Neuroscience, 12(3), 342–348.
McTavish, J. R., Kimber, M., Devries, K., Colombini, M., MacGregor, J., Wathen, N., & MacMillan, H. L. (2019). Children’s and caregivers’ perspectives about mandatory reporting of child maltreatment: A meta-synthesis of qualitative studies. British Medical Journal Open, 9(4), e025741. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-025741
Meadow, R. (1977). Munchausen syndrome by proxy: The hinterland of child abuse. Lancet, 2, 343–345.
Meredith, V., & Price-Robertson, R. (2011). Alcohol misuse and child maltreatment. Australian Institute for Family Studies.
Mishori, R., Ferdowsian, H., Naimer, K., Volpellier, M., & McHale, T. (2019). The little tissue that couldn’t—Dispelling myths about the Hymen’s role in determining sexual history and assault. Reproductive Health, 16(1), 74. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12978-019-0731-8
Morton, C. M., Simmel, C., & Peterson, N. A. (2014). Neighborhood alcohol outlet density and rates of child abuse and neglect: Moderating effects of access to substance abuse services. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38(5), 952–961. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2014.01.002
Oates, R. K., & Cohn-Donnelly, A. (1997). Influential papers in child abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 21, 319–326. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0145-2134(96)00169-X
Oates, R. K., Jones, D. P. H., Denson, D., Sirotnak, A., Gary, N., & Krugman, D. (2000). Erroneous concerns about child sexual abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 24, 140–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0145-2134(99)00108-8
Parkinson, P., Shrimpton, S., Oates, R. K., Swanston, H., & O’Toole, B. (2004). Non-sex offences committed by child molesters. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 48, 28–39. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X03257246
Ramo-Fernandez, L., Boeck, C., Koenig, A. M., et al. (2019). The effects of childhood maltreatment on epigenetic regulation of stress-response associated genes: an intergenerational approach. Science and Reports, 9, 983. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-36689-2
Roberts, A. L., Gladish, N., Gatev, E., et al. (2018). Exposure to childhood abuse is associated with human sperm DNA methylation. Translational Psychiatry, 8, 194. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-018-0252-1
Seth, R., & van Niekerk, J. (2012). Delhi declaration, E10 Green Park Main.
Sidebotham, P. (2011). An ecological approach to child abuse: A creative use of scientific models in research and practice. Child Abuse Review, 10, 97–112.
Simons, D. A., & Wurtele, S. K. (2010). Relationships between parents’ use of corporal punishment and their children’s endorsement of spanking and hitting other children. Child Abuse and Neglect, 34(9), 639–646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2010.01.012
Taylor, C. A., Mangarella, J. A., Lee, S. J., & Rice, J. C. (2010). Mothers’ spanking of 3 year old children and subsequent risk of children’s aggressive behavior. Pediatrics, 125, 1057–1065. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2009-2678
United Nations. (1989). Convention on the rights of the child. High Commissioner for Human Rights.
United Nations. (2006). World report on violence against children. United Nations Publishing Services.
United Nations, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children. (2015). https://violenceagainstchildren.un.org/economic_costs_of_vac_viewpoint. Accessed June 21, 2021
Van Wert, M., Anreiter, I., Fallon, B. A., & Skolowski, M. B. (2019). Intergenerational transmission of child abuse and neglect: A transdisciplinary analysis. Gender and the Genome, 3, 1–21.
Woolley, P. V., & Evans, W. A. (1955). Significance of skeletal lesions in infants resembling those of traumatic origin. Journal of the American Medical Association, 158, 539–543. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.1955.02960070015005
Yang, B.-Z., Zhang, H., Wenjing, G., et al. (2013). Child abuse and epigenetic mechanisms of disease risk. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 44, 101–107.
Yarmey, A. D., & Jones, H. P. (1983). Is the psychology of eyewitness identification a matter of common sense? In S. M. A. Lloyd-Bostock & B. R. Clifford (Eds.), Evaluating eyewitness evidence (pp. 13–40). Wiley.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Oates, K. (2022). Sixty Years of Child Abuse Awareness: Achievements, Errors and Opportunities. In: Deb, S. (eds) Child Safety, Welfare and Well-being. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9820-0_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9820-0_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-16-9819-4
Online ISBN: 978-981-16-9820-0
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)