Abstract
Child abuse in our multicultural society is a national emergency. As a nation, our approach to managing this societal crisis has been one of indifference to cultural variations among families and children, under the prevailing belief that cultural diversity does not play a part when serving a single society. Experience, however, shows that consideration of ethnocultural factors is warranted if we are to effectively treat and prevent child maltreatment. In this paper, a sociocultural perspective on child maltreatment in the United States Hispanic population is presented. Social stresses experienced by Hispanics along a continuum from emigration and migration, to arrival and adjustment to a new culture, and to the sociocultural and economic conditions they face in the United States are linked to factors of individual psychology. Traditional childrearing values and practices and factors of assessment and intervention are discussed with an emphasis on the changing characteristics of Hispanics.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aipert, J. (March 1991). Child Abuse and Neglect: A National Emergency. Paper presented at the St. John's University first annual conference “Child Abuse: Multi-Cultural and Multi-Ethnic Perspectives, Jamaica, NY.
Andrade, S. (1980). Family planning of Mexican Americans. In M. Melville (Ed.),Twice a minority: Mexican American women (pp. 17–32). St. Louis: C. V. Mosby.
Buriel, R., Mercado, R., Rodriguez, J., & Chavez, J. M. (1991). Mexican-American disciplinary practices and attitudes toward child maltreatment: A comparison of foreign- and native-born mothers.Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 13, 78–94.
Bumam, M. A., Stein, J. A., Goiding, J. M., Siegel, J. M., Sorenson, S. B., Forsythe, A. B., & Telles, C. A. (1988). Sexual assault and mental disorders in a community population.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 843–850.
Canino, I. A., Earley, B. F., & Rogler, L. H. (1980).The Puerto Rican child in New York City: Stress and mental health (Hispanic Research Center Monograph No. 4). New York: Fordham University.
Carroll, J. C. (1980). A cultural-consistency theory of family violence in Mexican-American and Jewish-ethnic groups. In M. A. Strauss & T. G. Hotaling (Eds.),The social causes of husband-wife violence. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minneapolis.
Children's Defense Fund (1990).Latino youth at a crossroad. Washington, D.C.: Author.
Dohrenwend, B. P., & Dohrenwend, B. S. (Eds.) (1974).Stressful life events. New York: Wiley.
Dornbusch, S. M., Ritter, P. L., Leiderman, P. H., Roberts, D. F., & Fraleigh, M. J. (1987). The relation of parenting style to adolescent school performance.Child Development, 58, 1244–1257.
Durrett, M. E., O'Bryant, S., & Pennebaker, J. W. (1975). Childrearing reports of white, black and Mexican-American families.Developmental Psychology, 11, 871.
Egeland, B., Jacobovitz, D., & Papatola, K. (1987). Intergenerational continuity of parental abuse. In R. Gelles & J. Lancaster (Eds.),Child abuse and neglect: Biosocial dimensions (pp. 255–276). New York: Jossey-Bass.
Escovar, P. L., & Lazarus, P. J. (1982). Cross-cultural child-rearing practices: Implications for school psychologists.School Psychology International, 3, 143–148.
Garbarino, J., & Crouter, A., (1978a). A note on the problem of construct validity in assessing the usefulness of child maltreatment report data.American Journal of Public Health, 68, 598–600.
Garbarino, J., & Crouter, A. (1978b). Defining the community context for parent-child relations.Child Development, 49, 604–616.
Garbarino, J., & Ebata, A. (1983). The significance of ethnic and cultural differences in child maltreatment.Journal of Marriage and the Family, 45, 773–783.
Garbarino, J., & Gilliam, G. (1980).Understanding abusive families. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Garrison, V., & Weiss, C. L. (1979). Dominican family networks and United States immigration policy: A case study.International Migration Review, 13, 264–282.
Gelles, R. J. (1973). Child abuse psychopathology: A sociological critique and reformulation.American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 43, 611–621.
Gil, D. (1970).Violence against children. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.
Giovannoni, J. M., & Becerra, R. M. (1979).Defining child abuse. New York: Free Press.
Giovannoni, J. M., & Billingsley, A. (1970). Child neglect among the poor: A study of parental adequacy in families of three ethnic groups.Child Welfare, 49, 196–204.
Gurak, D. T. (1981). Family structural diversity of Hispanic ethnic groups.Research Bulletin of the Hispanic Research Center, 4, 6–10.
Gurak, D. T., & Kritz, M. M. (1984). Kinship networks and the settlement process: Dominican and Colombian immigrants in New York City.Research Bulletin of the Hispanic Research Center, 7, 7–11.
Imber-Black, E. (1988).Families and large systems. New York: Guilford.
Inclan, J. (1990). Understanding Hispanic families: A curriculum outline.Journal of Strategic and Systemic Therapies, 9, 64–82.
Institute of Judicial Administration, American Bar Association (1977).Juvenile justice standards project: Standards relating to child abuse and neglect. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger Publishing.
Jenkins, S. (1981).The ethnic dilemma in social services. New York: Free Press.
Korbin, J. E. (Ed.) (1981).Child abuse and neglect: Cross-cultural Perspectives. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Lacay, G. (1981). The Puerto Rican in mainland United States. In A. L. Clark (Ed.),Culture and childrearing. Philadelphia: Davis.
Landau-Stanton, J. (1990). Issues and methods of treatment for families in cultural transition. In M. P. Mirkin (Ed.),The social and political context of family therapy (pp. 251–275). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Landy, D. (1959).Tropical childhood. New York: Harper & Row.
Laosa, L. M. (1981). Maternal behavior: Sociocultural diversity in modes of family interaction. In R. W. Henderson (Ed.),Parent-child interactions: Theory, research, and prospects. New York: Academic Press.
Larson, O. W., Ill, Doris, J., & Alvarez, W. F. (1990). Migrants and maltreatment: Comparative evidence from central register data.Child Abuse & Neglect, 14, 375–385.
Lauderdale, M. A., Valiunas, A., & Anderson, M. (1980). Race, ethnicity, and child maltreatment: An empirical analysis.Child Abuse and Neglect, 4, 163–169.
Lindholm, K. J., & Willey, R. (1986). Ethnic differences in child abuse and sexual abuse.Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 8, 111–125.
Long, K. A. (1986). Cultural considerations in the assessment and treatment of intrafamilial violence.American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 56, 131–136.
Lyons-Ruth, K., Zoll, D., Connell, D., & Grunebaum, H. U. (1989). Family deviance and family disruption in childhood: Associations with maternal behavior and infant maltreatment during the first two years.Development and Psychopathology, 1, 219–236.
Minturn, L. B., & Lambert, W. (1964).Mothering in six cultures: Antecedents of child rearing. New York: Wiley.
New York State Central Register (1989).Highlight Reports: 1974–1989. Albany, NY: NYS Bureau of Services Information Systems.
Ogbu, J. U. (1981). Origins of human competence: A cultural-ecological perspective.Child Development, 52, 413–429.
Ogbu, J. U. (1988). Cultural diversity and human development.New Directions in Child Development, 42, 11–28.
Penalosa, F., & McDonagh, E. C. (1966). Social mobility in a Mexican-American community.Social Forces, 44, 498–505.
Rauh, V. A., Wasserman, G. A., & Brunelli, S. A., (1990). Determinants of maternal child-rearing attitudes.Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 29, 375–381.
Reid, S. (1984). Cultural difference and child abuse intervention with undocumented Spanish speaking families in Los Angeles.Child Abuse and Neglect, 8, 109–112.
Reid, J. D., Kavanagh, K., & Baldwin, D. Z. (1987). Abusive parents' perception of child problem behaviors: An example of parental bias.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 15, 457–466.
Rodriguez, O., & Zayas, L. H. (1990). Hispanic adolescents and antisocial behavior. In A. R. Stiffman & L. E. Davis (Eds.),Ethnic issues in adolescent mental health (pp. 147–171). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Rogler, L. H., & Cooney, R. S. (1984).Puerto Rican families in New York City: Intergenerational Processes (Hispanic Research Center Monograph No. 11). New York: Fordham University.
Rogler, L. H., & Hollingshead, A. B. (1985).Trapped: Families and schizophrenia. New York: Krieger.
Rutter, M., Quinton, D., & Little, C. (1983). Parenting in two generations: Looking backwards and looking forwards. In N. Madge (Ed.),Families at risk (pp. 60–98). London: Heinemann.
Siegel, J. M., Sorenson, S. B., Golding, J. M., Burnam, M. A., & Stein, J. A. (1987). The prevalence of childhood sexual assault: The Los Angeles Epidemiologie Catchment Area Project.American Journal of Epidemiology, 126, 1141–1153.
Sue, S., & Zane, N. (1987). The role of culture and cultural technique in psychotherapy: A critique and reformulation.American Psychologist, 42, 37–45.
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1986).Projections of the Spanish origin Population in the United States. 1983–2080. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1988a). The Hispanic population in the United States.Current Population Reports (P-20, No. 438). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1988b). Marital status and living arrangement.Current Population Reports (P-20, No. 433). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Wasserman, G. A., Rauh, V. A., Brunelli, S. A., Garcia-Castro, M., & Necos, B. (1990). Psychosocial attributes and life experiences of disadvantaged minority mothers: Age and ethnic variation.Child Development, 61, 566–580.
Weiler, S. C., Romney, K., & Orr, D. P. (1987). The myth of a sub-culture of corporal punishment.Human Organization, 46, 39–47.
Zayas, L. H., & Bryant, C. (1984). Culturally sensitive treatment of adolescent Puerto Rican girls and their families.Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 1, 235–253.
Zayas, L. H., & Palleja, J. (1988). Puerto Rican familism: Implications for family therapy.Family Relations, 37, 260–264.
Zeanah, C. H.,& Zeanah, C. H. (1989). Intergenerational transmission of maltreatment: Insights from attachment theory and research.Psychiatry, 52, 177–196.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zayas, L.H. Childrearing, social stress, and child abuse: Clinical considerations with Hispanic families. J Soc Distress Homeless 1, 291–309 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01073955
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01073955