Detection of intrafamilial child abuse: children at intake at a children's observation home in India.
Cross-cultural studies have brought awareness that child abuse is a global problem. This study sought to assess whether the abuse of children by caregivers/parents is a phenomenon that is prevalent in Indian society, where social workers and other human service professionals traditionally have not been sensitive to its occurrence. Interviews with 515 children brought to a Children's Observation Home in Bombary resulted in self-reports of physical violence from approximately 50% of the sample, and of these, over two-thirds reported the use of abusive violence. In addition, over 60% of the children who had run away from home cited violence by parents as the primary reason for their leaving, suggesting that this may be one of the variables adding to the numbers of street children in India. Feelings about perpetrators and implications of findings are discussed.
Department of Social Work, University of Missouri-St. Louis 63121.
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Ashtekar
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D012114:Residential Treatment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012923:Social Class; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014754:Violence