Children and Teens Program

HOW COMMON IT THIS?
NATIONAL AND LOCAL STATISTICS

National Child Abuse Statistics:

During a one-year period, 60.6 percent of children and youth from birth to 17 years of age experienced at least one direct or indirect (as a witness) victimization. (David Finkelhor et al, “Violence, Abuse, and Crime Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth,” Pediatrics 124, no. 5 (2009): 3, http://www.sp2.upenn.edu/fieldctr/current_issues/documents/ ViolenceAbuseandCrimeExposureinaNationalSampleofChildrenandYouth.pdf (accessed September 23, 2010).

Almost half (46.3 percent) of children and youth from birth to 17 years of age experienced a physical assault, one in four (24.6 percent) a property offense, 1 in 10 (10.2 percent) child maltreatment, and 6.1 percent a sexual victimization. (Ibid)

The youngest children, from birth to 3 years of age, had the highest rate of abuse and neglect and accounted for the largest percentage of child victims at 33 percent. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Child Maltreatment, 2008,” (Washington, DC: 2009), 25, http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm08/cm08.pdf (accessed September 23, 2010).

Just under one-half (45 percent) of all child victims of maltreatment were white, 22 percent were African American, and 21 percent were Hispanic. African American children, American Indian or Alaska Native children, and children of multiple races had the highest rates of victimization.(Ibid, 26)

Mothers were the sole abuser in 39 percent of substantiated child abuse cases and fathers in 18 percent. In 18 percent of child abuse cases, both parents were perpetrators of child maltreatment, and child victims maltreated by a non-parental perpetrator accounted for 19 percent of the total. (Ibid, 28)

Fifteen percent of child abuse victims had a reported disability. (Ibid, 27)

Fifty-seven percent of children will be victims of some form of physical assault during their lifetime, 51 percent will be victims of bullying (emotional or physical) or teasing, and 10 percent of children will be victims of assault with a weapon. (David Finkelhor et al, “Violence, Abuse, and Crime Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth,” 3.)

In 2008, child protective services found approximately 772,000 children to be victims of maltreatment. (“Child Maltreatment, 2008,” 23.)

During 2008, approximately 1,740 children died due to child abuse or neglect. More than three-quarters (80 percent) of children who were killed were younger than 4 years of age. (Ibid, 55-56)

During 2008, 71 percent of child victims experienced neglect, 16 percent were physically abused, 9 percent were sexually abused, 7 percent were psychologically maltreated, and 2 percent were medically neglected. In addition, 9 percent of child victims experienced
other types of maltreatment such as abandonment, threats of harm, or congenital drug addiction. (Ibid, 25-26)

Fifty-one percent of child abuse or neglect victims were girls, and 48 percent were boys. (Ibid, 25)

Ten percent of children have experienced some form of sexual violence (sexual assault, rape, harassment, or flashing) during their lifetime. (David Finkelhor, “Violence, Abuse, and Crime Exposure in a National Sample of Children and Youth,” 4.)

A meta-analysis of 61 studies found that 12.7 percent of child molesters were convicted for a new sex offense within 4 to 5 years. (R. Karl Hanson and Monique T. Bussiere, “Predicting Relapse: A Meta-Analysis of Sexual Offender Recidivism Studies,” Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 66, no. 2 (1998): 9, http://home.wanadoo.nl/ipce/library_two/han/hanson_98_text.PDF (accessed September 22, 2010).

The most significant predictor of whether a battered woman will physically abuse her child is having been physically abused by her own mother, not whether she has been battered by her partner. (Carol Coohey, “Battered Mothers Who Physically Abuse Their Children,” Journal of Interpersonal Violence 19, no. 8 (August 2004): 943, 949.)

The direct cost of child abuse and neglect in the United States totals more than $33 billion annually. (This figure includes law enforcement, judicial system, child welfare, and health care costs.) When factoring in indirect costs (special education, mental health care, juvenile delinquency, lost productivity, and adult criminality), the figure rises to more than $103 billion annually. (Ching-Tung Wang and John Holton, “Total Estimated Cost of Child Abuse and Neglect in the United States,” (Washington, DC: Prevent Child Abuse America, 2007), 4, 5, http://www.preventchildabuse.org/about_us/media_releases/pcaa_pew_economic_ impact_study_final.pdf (accessed September 22, 2010).

Hands of Hope Resource Center local child abuse statistics:

During a one-year period from October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012, Hands of Hope Resource Center worked with 543 new abused children within Morrison and Todd Counties. These cases also involved working with 300 new secondary victims.

• 361 children living in homes with domestic violence
• 61 child physical abuse victims
• 66 child sexual abuse victims
• 44 victims of child neglect
• 9 victims of another violent crime, such as dating violence