Child Abuse and Juvenile Deliquency: A Prospective Study
| Author | Suman Kakar |
| Published date | 01 March 1996 |
| Date | 01 March 1996 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/000486589602900104 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Child Abuse and Juvenile Deliquency:
AProspective Study'
Suman Kakart
Child abuse has emerged as a central theme in efforts to understand a wide
variety of problems, including delinquency. This study utilises the
computerised records of substantiated abuse in the Florida Protective
Services System's Department
of
Children,
Youth,
and
Families to examine
the effects of child abuse on early onset
of
delinquency. Acontrol group
matched on racial group, gender, age, and socioeconomic status is used to
compare the delinquency rates among the abused
and
non-abused. The
abusedchildren had ahigherdelinquency referral rate than the control group
children and the relationship between abuse and delinquency was found to
be statistically significant at .038 level. Age was found to be significant at
.091 level. Abused children were found being referred more for personal and
status offences.
Child Abuse and Delinquency
Child abuse has emerged as a central theme in efforts to understand a wide
variety
of
problems, including delinquency. A great deal of research (Curtis
1963; Garbarino 1976, 1989, 1990; Kratcoski 1982, 1985; Garbarino &Plantz
1986; Kaufman and Zigler 1987; Kaufman &Cicchetti 1989; Garbarino and
Gilliam 1980; Straus et al 1980; Widom 1989; Kakar 1994) shows that
children who are the victims
of
abuse during the early years of their lives are
at an increased risk of engaging in violent acts
of
delinquency and crime.
However, the extent to which child abuse is associated with delinquency is
controversial. Some studies assert a very significant relationship, while others
claim amodest one.
This paper examines the extent to which child abuse is associated with
delinquent behavior through research that improves on prior studies in several
areas including: (1) the use
of
aprospective design; (2) incorporation
of
a
control group matched for age, racial group, gender, and socioeconomic status
(SES); (3) clear operationalisation
of
abuse, using only officially reported and
validated cases': and (4) examination
of
the types
of
offences committed by
the abused as compared with matched controls. It seeks to address the
following specific questions: (1) Is the risk
of
delinquency among abused
children higher than non-abused children of the approximately same SES? (2)
Do the differences between abused and non-abused vary by race, gender, and
age? (3) Are there any differences in the types
of
offences committed by
abused and non-abused subjects?
Method
The state
of
Florida implemented an on-line computerised data base system in
June 1988 for recording and investigating child abuse in Florida. 2This abuse
*Received: December 20 1994; accepted in revised form: June 13 1995.
tAssistant Professor, Department of Criminal Justice, Florida International University, North
Miami, Florida, 33181, USA.
47
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