Survey Finds Much Victimization of Children Goes Unreported

Percentage of cases revealed to authorities has risen, experts say, but many remain hidden

URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_107309.html (*this news item will not be available after 04/04/2011)

By Randy Dotinga

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

TUESDAY, Jan. 4 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly 60 percent of 10-to-17-year-olds surveyed in a new study say they were victims of violence, abuse or crime in the past year. However, fewer than half said that authorities ever learned about what happened.
Researchers led by David Finkelhor of the University of New Hampshire surveyed youths 10 to 17 years old and parents of children up to 9 years old in 2008. More than 4,500 children were involved in the survey.

More than 58 percent of the kids said they'd been victimized in the past year, including reports of bullying. Of these, just shy of 46 percent said authorities knew of at least one of the incidents.

Authorities were more likely to know about incidents that were more serious, such as certain cases of sexual assault, kidnapping and gang or group assaults, the survey found.

"However, even emotional bullying (51.5 percent), neglect (47.8 percent) and theft (46.8 percent) were often known to authorities," the authors wrote. Kids were less likely to report assaults by peers and siblings, dating violence, sexual exposure (such as flashing) and statutory rape.

"Childhood/adolescent abuse is frequently described as a hidden problem, and victimization studies regularly have shown that much abuse goes undisclosed," the study authors wrote. "The hidden nature of childhood victimization has multiple sources. Clearly, children and adolescents are easily intimidated by offenders and fear retaliation."

The authors added that, in many cases, young people and their families choose to deal with incidents "informally," fearing the consequences of police and court involvement.

The study did find, though, that authorities are more aware of victimization than during an earlier survey, conducted in 1992.

"However, the study also shows that a considerable portion of childhood/adolescent exposure to victimization is still unknown to authorities," the authors wrote. "The study suggests that outreach needs to be particularly enhanced toward boys, Hispanics and higher-income groups. It also suggests that disclosure promotion should be directed toward episodes that involve family members and peer perpetrators."

The study is published in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

SOURCE: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, news release, Jan. 3, 2011

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STRYVE to Prevent Youth Violence

From:  CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.   

Youth violence is preventable. Learn how STRYVE helps communities build comprehensive strategies that are based on the best available evidence and implemented through multisector action.  

STRYVE, or Striving To Reduce Youth Violence Everywhere, is a national initiative led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to prevent youth violence before it starts. 

STRYVE provides community tools through mechanisms such as STRYVE Online. STRYVE Online offers community leaders and others working to prevent youth violence

• Effective strategies based upon the best available evidence;
• Training and technical assistance;
• Online community workspaces; and
• Connections to other communities.

More Information

• STRYVE to Prevent Youth Violence
• STRYVE Online
• Violence Prevention

Teen Dating Violence is Common, Study Finds

URL of this page: Medline Plus  (*this news item will not be available after 03/06/2011) Monday, December 6, 2010

It occurs in almost 1 in 5 couples, and perpetrators also often assault family, friends

MONDAY, Dec. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Almost one-fifth of high-school students admit they physically abused someone they were dating, and those same students were likely to have abused other students and their siblings, a new study finds.

The study provides new details about the links between various types of violence, said study lead author Emily F. Rothman, an associate professor at the Boston University School of Public Health.

"There's a huge overall connection between perpetration of dating violence and the perpetration of other forms of youth violence," she said. "The majority of students who were being violent with their dating partners were generally violent. They weren't selecting their dating partners specifically for violence."

For the study, published in the December issue of the journal Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the researchers surveyed 1,398 urban high school students at 22 schools in Boston in 2008 and asked if they had physically hurt a girlfriend or boyfriend, sibling or peer within the previous month.
The authors define physical abuse as "pushing, shoving, slapping, hitting, punching, kicking, or choking." Playful aggression was excluded.

More than forty-one percent said they'd physically hurt another kid on at least one occasion the previous month; 31.2 percent reported that they'd physically abused their siblings, and nearly 19 percent said they'd abused their boyfriend, girlfriend, someone they were dating or someone they were simply having sex with.
Among those admitted to dating violence, 9.9 percent reported kicking, hitting, or choking a partner; 17.6 percent said they had shoved or slapped a partner, and 42.8 percent had cursed at or called him or her "fat," "ugly," "stupid" or a similar insult.

Proportionately more girls than boys (27 percent versus 10 percent) reported they'd abused dating partners.
After adjusting for factors including age and specific schools, the researchers found that abuse of dating partners was strongly linked to abuse of other students, especially among boys.

Students who used drugs, carried knives or had been in trouble with the law were also more likely to abuse their dating partners. And those who had witnessed community violence were also more likely to engage in violence.

These findings are consistent with research on adult male batterers, which has shown that domestic violence often accompanies other violent and criminal behavior, the authors said.

The study has some caveats, however. The students -- nearly 80 percent of whom were black or Hispanic -- only came from public high schools. Those who weren't recently dating were excluded, and the findings were self-reported. Also, motives were not examined, so it's unknown if any teens acted in self-defense.

Still, the results can help people who work with teenagers detect dating violence, Rothman said. "This study supports the idea that we should go to those kids who are being violent with siblings and peers and address their violent behavior in general," she said.

Monica Swahn, an associate professor at Georgia State University's Institute of Public Health whose research includes violence and injury epidemiology, said the study findings give researchers insight into how they may reduce teens' abusive behavior by targeting more than one type of violence.

However, few anti-violence programs for school children have been shown to be effective, she said.


SOURCES: Emily F. Rothman, Sc.D., associate professor, Boston University School of Public Health; Monica Swahn, Ph.D., associate professor, Institute of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta; December 2010 Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine
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