Research

Hope Shining aims to support the development and distribution of cutting edge research, public opinion surveys and other efforts to assess the state of child abuse awareness, prevention and support services in the United States. A number of enlightening studies by respected organizations committed to addressing the impact of violence and abuse are included in this section as a resource.

Safe Horizon released the findings of the Bystanders and Child Abuse National Survey in the fall of 2008. The intent of the survey is to benchmark public perceptions about the prevalence of child abuse, knowledge of the signs, and attitudes toward reporting it. The data yielded by this survey is informing and shaping our Hope Shining public awareness campaigns and shedding light on some misconceptions that the general public may have regarding what abuse is and how to effectively respond to it.

Below are links to select research that has been done in the field:

Bystanders and Child Abuse Survey (2008)
Safe Horizon
In March 2008, Safe Horizon commissioned a nationwide survey of over 500 adults to gauge public knowledge of the signs of child abuse and attitudes toward reporting it. The results of this "Bystanders and Child Abuse" survey, released in September 2008, show a surprising lack of knowledge about the warning signs, a prohibitive fear of the consequences of reporting, and uncertainty about how to report suspected abuse. The results shed light on major reasons why significant numbers of people do not recognize or report child abuse when they encounter it.

Evaluating Children's Advocacy Centers' Response to Child Sexual Abuse (2008)
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Program
This bulletin describes an evaluation of the effectiveness of four prominent Children's Advocacy Centers and comparison communities in coordinating child abuse investigations and providing victim services. The bulletin examines the role these centers play in child abuse investigations and suggests ways that the centers could improve services in the future. The evaluation was based on 1,452 randomly selected between 2001 and 2003.

Child Maltreatment 2006 (2008)
Children's Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
The most recent report of data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, providing national and state data and trends on sources of reports; time for response; victimization rates; types of maltreatment; age, race, and gender of victims; age and gender of perpetrators; relationship of perpetrators to the victim; child fatalities; and types of services provided.

Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect (2006) *Also available in Spanish*
Child Welfare Information Gateway
This factsheet provides an overview of some of the most common physical, psychological, behavioral, and societal consequences of child abuse and neglect, while acknowledging that much crossover among categories exists.

Children and Domestic Violence (2003)
Child Welfare Information Gateway
A bulletin for professionals focusing on domestic violence as a devastating social problem that impacts every segment of the population; discusses the point that while system responses are primarily targeted toward adult victims of abuse, increased attention is now being focused on the children who witness domestic violence

Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (1998)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
One of the largest investigations ever conducted on the links between childhood maltreatment and later-life health and well-being.