Elsevier

Child Abuse & Neglect

Volume 30, Issue 3, March 2006, Pages 231-245
Child Abuse & Neglect

Child maltreatment among school children in the Kurdistan Province, Iran

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2005.10.009Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

This study examines the determinants of three types of child maltreatment: physical maltreatment, mental maltreatment, and child neglect among school children in the Kurdistan Province of Iran. The analysis examines the impact of socioeconomic, familial, demographic, and household dynamic factors on the three child maltreatment outcomes, and compares the differential impact of these factors across the three types of child maltreatment. A greater understanding of the factors associated with child maltreatment has the potential to inform public health interventions aimed at reducing specific forms of maltreatment and at identifying at risk populations.

Methods

Data were collected from 1,370 school students, age 11–18. Separate logistic models are fitted for six binary outcomes examining self-reported experiences of physical maltreatment in the home or school, mental maltreatment in the home or school, and child neglect in the home or school.

Results

Male children were more likely to report experiencing any kind of child maltreatment than girls. Residency in a rural area, poor parental relationships and the use of addictive substances by household members were associated with increased odds of reporting child maltreatment. Poor school performance was associated with the reporting of experiencing maltreatment at school.

Conclusion

Each of the forms of child maltreatment is highly correlated with socioeconomic, demographic, and living condition factors. The results point to the strong influence that familial factors have in shaping a child's likelihood of reporting maltreatment. Characteristics of the mother were associated with maltreatment, but not characteristics of the father. The results highlight a number of mechanisms through which public health interventions may seek to reduce the prevalence of child maltreatment in Kurdistan; different approaches are needed to reduce child maltreatment in the home and school environments.

Résumé

French-language abstract not available at the time of publication.

Resumen

Objetivo

Se estudian los determinantes de tres tipos de maltrato infantil (maltrato físico, negligencia infantil y maltrato psicológico) en niños escolares del Kurdistan iraní. Se analiza el impacto de factores socioeconómicos, demográficos y familiares en los tres tipos de maltrato y se compara el efecto diferencial de estos factores en dichos tipos de maltrato. Un mayor entendimiento de los factores asociados con el maltrato infantil puede informar a las intervenciones de salud pública dirigidas a reducir formas específicas de maltrato y a identificar poblaciones de riesgo.

Método

Se recopilaron datos de 1370 niños escolarizados de 11 a 18 años. Se analizan autoinformes sobre experiencias de maltrato físico, negligencia física y maltrato emocional y se llevan a cabo modelos separados de regresión logística para cada uno de ellos.

Resultados

Los varones tienen más tendencia a experimentar cualquier tipo de maltrato que las mujeres. El hecho de vivir en el área rural, las relaciones negativas de los padres y el consumo de drogas por parte de algún miembro de la familia aumentan la probabilidad de que el niño informe haber experimentado maltrato infantil. El bajo rendimiento escolar estaba asociado con la notificación de haber experimentado maltrato en la escuela.

Conclusiones

Cada una de las formas de maltrato infantil está muy relacionada con factores socioeconómicos, demográficos y de condiciones de vida. Los resultados señalan que los factores familiares tienen una fuerte influencia en las posibilidades de que un niño informe o no sobre experiencias de maltrato infantil. Las características de la madre y no las del padre estaban asociadas con la experiencia de maltrato infantil. Los resultados subrayan una serie de mecanismos a través de los cuales las intervenciones de salud pública pueden intentar reducir la prevalencia del maltrato infantil en Kurdistán. Se señala que se necesitan aproximaciones diferentes para reducir el maltrato infantil en la escuela y en el hogar.

Introduction

Despite increased attention to child maltreatment as a cause of childhood injury, little is understood about the factors associated with child maltreatment in developing country settings. Although child maltreatment is often described as an important public health problem (MacMillan, 1998), research into its causes and prevention in developing country settings has been lacking. The fact that little data are available on the extent of this serious problem is a matter of concern; such data are essential to the development of public health interventions and policy for developing countries. The burden of suffering associated with child maltreatment should precipitate a drive towards a greater understanding of its determinants as a public health priority for developing countries (MacMillan, 1998).

This study examines the prevalence of and factors associated with three different types of child maltreatment: mental maltreatment, physical maltreatment and neglect, among school children between 11 and 18 years old (individuals older than 14 are repeating academic years) in the Kurdistan Province of Iran. The aim of this study is to understand the differing factors associated with three types of child maltreatment in order to facilitate the development of more targeted interventions. The study will also improve knowledge about the severity of child maltreatment problems at both home and school and provide useful measures for classifying at risk populations.

Section snippets

Background: the determinants of child maltreatment

Previous studies of child maltreatment show that it is commonly associated with familial, demographic, socioeconomic, and familial factors. A number of familial characteristics have been found to be associated with child maltreatment (Cox, Kotch, & Everson 2003). These include both the quality and quantity of the family structure. Family structure refers to the presence of the father's or mother's partner and the family size (Coohey & Braun, 1997). The increases in physical and psychological

Methods

Data were collected from school students (11–18 years old) from both urban and rural areas of the Kurdistan Province of Iran. Middle school includes ages 11–14, so children 15–18 are those who are repeating school years. Children completed a semistructured questionnaire and were asked to report their experience of physical and mental maltreatment in both the home and at school. Data were collected in 2003 via a school-based questionnaire conducted in eight cities (Sanandaj, Saghez, Baneh,

Definition of child maltreatment

Previous studies have distinguished psychological maltreatment from emotional maltreatment based on the degree of damage the maltreatment is thought to inflict (O’Hagan, 1993, O’Hagan, 1995; Moran, Bifulco, Ball, Jacobs, & Benaim, 2002). However, it is clear from the literature that many use the term interchangeably. In the present article, the two labels are not distinguished, but the term mental maltreatment preferred; the term child maltreatment is used to refer to any of the three types of

Data analysis

Six logistic models are fitted: physical maltreatment in the home, physical maltreatment at school, mental maltreatment at home, mental maltreatment at school, neglect at home, and neglect at school. Each of the models uses a binary outcome coded one if the respondent reports ever experiencing this type of maltreatment. Among 1,370 respondents, 130 children had lost one or both of the parents. This high rate of parental loss is attributed to the combination of high maternal mortality and

Results

Table 1 shows the frequency distribution of the variables: the majority of the respondents were 11–14 years old (83.1%), Kurd (90%), male (62.6%), and living in urban areas (61.9%).

Associations with physical maltreatment

Among the sample, 38.5% (477) and 43.3% (537) of the students reported physical maltreatment at home and school, respectively. Table 2 shows the results of the modeling of physical child maltreatment in the home and school, controlling for all independent variables. Relative to urban residents, students of rural areas had significantly greater odds of reporting physical maltreatment, either at home or at school (home OR = 1.60; CI = 1.21, 2.12) and school (OR = 1.37; CI = 1.04, 1.81). Ethnicity was not

Associations with mental maltreatment

Of the respondents, 74.5% reported being mentally maltreated at home while the prevalence of reporting mental maltreatment at school was 59.9%. Table 3 shows the results of modeling of mental child maltreatment. The child's age displayed a significant positive relationship with the odds of reporting being mentally maltreated at school. Relative to children aged 11–14, the age group 15–18 had significantly greater odds of reporting being mentally maltreated (OR = 1.74; CI = 1.20, 2.51), but there

Associations with neglect

Of the respondents, 80.1% and 54.4% reported experiencing some kind of neglect at home and school, respectively. Table 4 shows the results of the modeling of neglect. Both the child's age (15–18 OR = 1.64; CI = .00, 2.67) and place of residence (rural OR = 1.77; CI = 1.20, 2.60) were significantly associated with a student's greater odds of reporting neglect at home. Girls were less likely to report being neglected in the home (OR = .47; CI = .35, .65). Children from families with more than four children

Discussion

The study found that levels of self-reported child maltreatment in the Kurdistan province of Iran are high, ranging from 19.6% for physical maltreatment to 80.2% for neglect at home. The factors determining each of the types of maltreatment examined showed considerable variation. Key risk factors for the reporting of child maltreatment were residence in a rural area, Kurdish ethnicity, being a male child, being 15–18, poor school performance, the use of addictive substances by family members,

Conclusion

The data show a high prevalence of each of the types of child maltreatment in the Kurdistan Province. The most prevalent type of maltreatment was neglect, which, although not physically apparent, has a significant effect on the child's personality development and mental health.

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