The epidemiology of child abuse: Findings from the Second National Incidence and Prevalence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect

Abstract

The epidemiology of child abuse was investigated with data from the Second National Incidence and Prevalence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect. A statistical comparison of incidence rates suggested that age, family income, and ethnicity were risk factors for both sexual abuse and physical abuse, but county metrostatus was not. Gender was a risk factor for sexual abuse but not for physical abuse. A logistic regression analysis showed that ethnicity, county metrostatus, and a gender-by-income interaction distinguished sexual abuse from physical abuse.