Decomposing the National Rate of Child Abuse and Neglect: An Analysis of State-Level Trends Using the NCANDS

• In Event: Child Abuse Prevalence, Indicators, and Responses

Abstract

Several data sources, including the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) and the National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect have shown declines in the national rate of certain types of child maltreatment, specifically child physical and sexual abuse, over the past 20 years. These declines have not only been found across a variety of official data sources and self-reported surveys, but also in many other child welfare indicators. Most analyses of these data examine temporal variation in indicators of child maltreatment and child health at the national level. This study decomposes the national trends in child abuse and neglect by state using state-level substantiated reports of child physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect from the NCANDS from 1990-2008 to describe variation within and across states, and each state’s relative contribution to the national rate. In addition, this study compares state-level trends to other indicators of child harm, such as child homicide, assesses the reliability of the NCANDS data, and demonstrates how relevant state-level variations are to hypotheses about the national decline in child abuse and neglect over the past two decades.

Author

• Maribeth Rezey, University of Missouri - St. Louis