The Impact of Child Neglect Among Early Head Start Participants

• In Event: 3-199 - Toward a More Nuanced Understanding of Child Abuse and Neglect: Timing, Type, and Intervention Effectiveness

Integrative Statement

Introduction. Child neglect is the most common form of child maltreatment, affecting approximately three-quarters of children who are maltreated (USDHHS, 2018). Children age three and under and from low-income families—the population served by Early Head Start (EHS)—are at disproportionately high risk for neglect (Sedlak et al., 2010; USDHHS, 2018). Nevertheless, the impacts of child neglect on EHS participants has not been examined over time, nor have the effects of various dimensions of neglect (e.g., type, severity, timing, disposition). Previously documented effects of neglect on young children include serious disturbances in cognitive, social-emotional, physical, and brain development, yet outcomes are rarely differentiated for disparate neglect experiences, which may provide critical information to programs on how to tailor services to support resilience among young children (DeBellis, 2005; Hussey et al., 2005 Manly et al., 2001). To address this gap, the current study examines academic/cognitive and social-emotional outcomes of neglect in an EHS sample, focusing on differences by type and substantiation status.

Sample. This low-income sample included 2,794 children in 16 of 17 EHS programs (15 states) included in the National Early Head Start National Research Project. Children were less than 1 year old at enrollment. Sample demographics were as follows: 62.9% single mothers; 54.2% unemployed; 48.3% had no high school diploma; 37.1% were white, 34.3% were black; and 22.7% were Hispanic.

Methods. Child identifiers were provided to child welfare agencies for matching with administrative records. Agencies returned report dates, maltreatment type, and disposition (substantiated or unsubstantiated). To assess neglect by type, we coded case files using the Modified Maltreatment Classification System (English & the LONSCAN Investigators, 1997). Primary outcomes were children’s academic/cognitive development and social-emotional development at Prekindergarten (PreK). Measures (see Table 2) were collected in the original EHS national study through face-to-face parent interviews, direct child assessments, and coded observations of parent-child interactions. Linear regression analyses were conducted using STATA 13 controlling for child age, gender, demographic risk, EHS/control, and site.

Results. Approximately 8.8% (n=241) of children had at least one substantiated report of neglect, and 15.2% (n=417) had any neglect report (substantiated or not). See Table 1 for frequencies of neglect types; see Table 2 for regression results). Clear differences emerged for both children’s academic/cognitive and social-emotional outcomes by neglect type. For example, abandonment/supervisory neglect predicted poor receptive vocabulary, letter-word recognition, and book comprehension, whereas the relation between failure to protect and these outcomes was nonsignificant. In addition, child outcomes varied by substantiated status. For instance, substantiated neglect predicted withdrawal, but any neglect (substantiated or unsubstantiated) did not.

Discussion. Findings indicate that, as expected, different forms of neglect lead to disparate child outcomes, with particular developmental sequelae dependent on a child’s specific neglect experience. Moreover, substantiation status—perhaps a proxy for neglect severity—may indeed have salience to child outcomes, contrary to prior studies (e.g., Hussey et al., 2005). This presentation will highlight these and other findings and include a discussion of implications for how programs can adapt their services for children who experience different forms of neglect.

Authors

• Jessica Dym Bartlett, Child Trends
  Presenting Author

• Katherine Buttita, Childrens Hospital Boston, Harvard University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Katie Kao, Boston University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Catherine Ayoub, Childrens Hospital Boston, Harvard University
  Non-Presenting Author