Introduction
This study takes a deeper examination of SED and child maltreatment. We aim to further examine the variation in which biopsychosocial factors and experience of maltreatment in combination influence SED for children reported for maltreatment.
Method
Data from the National Survey of Children and Adolescent Well-Being II or NSCAW II (RTI International, 2014) were used for this study. The data is from the NSCAW II, a nationally (United States of America) representative longitudinal study of 5,872 children and adolescents aged 0 to 17.5 years referred to US child welfare agencies where an investigation of potential maltreatment was completed during the sampling period, February 2008 to April 2009. For our purposes, Wave 1 or the baseline data were used. The current study focused on the sample of younger children aged 12 to 18 months old (N=622) because data on socio-emotional development outcomes of interest were collected only for this age sample.
Results
- Four-classes emerged: Class 1, Socioemotional Group without competency delay (n=152; 25%); Class 2, Competency Delay Group without socioemotional issues (n=99; 16%); Class 3, Socioemotional issues and Competency Delay present Group (n=48; 8%), and Class 4, No socioemotional issues and competency delay group (n=315; 51%).
Significant predictors for Class 1 group membership included being male, the experience of neglect and domestic violence, having a non-legal guardian, being separated or single caregivers compared to married parents, and being in foster care or out-of-home placement. Class 2 membership showed significant predictors to include children who were sexually maltreated compared to those who were physically abused and having divorced caregivers. The Class 3 group predictors indicated males, being Black/Non-Hispanic, having divorced or single caregivers, physical abuse compared to neglect or domestic violence or substance-related abuse and having a non-legal guardian. Finally, membership predictors for the Class 4 group included being male, having married parents, and being placed with parents.
Conclusions
The impact of the child maltreatment experience on aspects of the SED of children varies depending on biopsychosocial factors. However, all those factors contribute to the SED of children, making it a significant issue for the social sciences. It is vital to investigate further the connection between SED and childhood maltreatment to identify potential methods of confronting the problem and facilitating the consequences.
Recommendations
- It is essential to appropriately assess children’s social-emotional development as it will guide relevant service provisions.
- Types of maltreatment, in addition to biopsychosocial factors, are essential to consider as they impact different aspects of SED.
- To better understand resilience in children, additional research is necessary to further explore children who have reports of maltreatment, who do not show social and emotional problems or competency delays early on.
References
Palmer, F.B., et al (2013). Early Adversity, Socioemotional development, and stress in urban 1 year old children. The Journal of Pediatrics, 163 (6), 1733-1740.
Young, J. C., & Widom, C. S. (2014). Long-term effects of child abuse and neglect on emotion processing in adulthood. Child abuse & neglect, 38(8), 1369–1381.