Violence, Crime, and Abuse Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth

TLDR

Childhood exposure to violence, crime, and abuse has serious health and societal consequences, yet epidemiologic data remain fragmented and limited in scope. The study aimed to update national estimates and trends of childhood victimization by conducting the second wave of the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence. Researchers administered a cross‑sectional, national telephone survey in 2011 to 4,503 children and youth (1 month–17 years) and their caregivers, collecting data on a broad range of victimization experiences. In 2011, 41.2 % of children experienced a physical assault, 10.1 % sustained assault‑related injury, 2 % suffered sexual assault or abuse (10.7 % of girls 14–17 years), and 13.7 % endured caregiver maltreatment, with little change since 2008 but declines in peer flashing, school bomb threats, sibling assault, robbery, and property victimization.

Abstract

vidence continues to accumulate that there are serious consequences to health and well-being and society from childhood exposure to violence and abuse. 1,24][5][6] However, the epidemiology of child victimization remains fragmented, 7 with published studies 8,9 on limited portions of the age and exposure spectrum and only occasionally with a national scope.][12] In an effort to improve the epidemiology and make it more comprehensive, the US Department of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have combined resources to support a more regular and systematic national assessment of children's exposure to violence, crime, and abuse.In 2008, the first such assessment, the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence I (NatSCEV I), was conducted. 13The next wave in this assessment, conducted in 2011, has been completed.This article provides updated epidemiology on the exposure of children to violence, crime, and abuse based on those data. Methods ParticipantsThe NatSCEV II was designed to obtain up-to-date incidence and prevalence estimates of a wide range of childhood victimiza-IMPORTANCE Because exposure to violence, crime, and abuse has been shown to have serious consequences on child development, physicians and policymakers need to know the kinds of exposure that occur at various developmental stages.OBJECTIVES To provide updated estimates of and trends for childhood exposure to a broad range of violence, crime, and abuse victimizations.DESIGN The National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence was based on a cross-sectional, US national telephone survey conducted in 2011. SETTING Interviews by telephone.PARTICIPANTS The experiences of 4503 children and youth aged 1 month to 17 years were assessed by interviews with caregivers and with youth in the case of those aged 10 to 17 years.RESULTS Two-fifths (41.2%) of children and youth experienced a physical assault in the last year, and 1 in 10 (10.1%) experienced an assault-related injury.Two percent experienced sexual assault or sexual abuse in the last year, but the rate was 10.7% for girls aged 14 to 17 years.More than 1 in 10 (13.7%) experienced maltreatment by a caregiver, including 3.7% who experienced physical abuse.Few significant changes could be detected in rates since an equivalent survey in 2008, but declines were documented in peer flashing, school bomb threats, juvenile sibling assault, and robbery and total property victimization. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEThe variety and scope of children's exposure to violence, crime, and abuse suggest the need for better and more comprehensive tools in clinical and research settings for identifying these experiences and their effects.