Primary Submission Category: Place/Communities
Assessing Norms, Attitudes, and Readiness to Adress Child Maltreatment in a Rural Community
Authors: Erin VanEnkevort, Lisa Bailey-Davis,
Presenting Author: Erin VanEnkevort*
A Prevent Child Abuse American (PCAA) funded nation-wide telephone poll of 1,500 American adults in 2014 and 2015 assessed actual and perceived norms related to child maltreatment and its prevention. Results suggested that awareness, readiness, knowledge, and barriers are key areas of focus. Although this poll samples a small proportion of the American adult population, as we develop a clinic-to-community response to prevent child maltreatment, it is important to understand the norms, attitudes, and readiness within our community that consists of 7 counties. The purpose of this study is to understand the attitudes and perceptions towards child maltreatment and child maltreatment prevention within a rural Pennsylvania population to help gauge the efforts of engaging our community in preventing child maltreatment.
Methods. Utilizing the survey in the PCAA poll, we randomly selected patients to receive the survey to assess their attitudes and norms of the population within our catchment area so we can tailor our efforts to address the gaps and barriers within our population. 333 patients completed the survey. The majority were female and 43% indicated that they were mandatory reporters. Most were between the ages of 30-49 years.
Results. 90% of all respondents believed child abuse is a serious problem, 82% think it is preventable, and 98% reported willingness to act if they suspected child abuse. Interestingly, compared to those who were not mandatory reporters, those who are were more likely to believe child abuse is a problem, believe abuse is preventable, and think that most adults would not act if they suspected child abuse. When asked what actions they would take, mandatory reporters indicated being more likely to talk to the victim than those who were not mandatory reporters.
Conclusion. Respondents indicated awareness of child maltreatment being a problem and indicated readiness to act if abuse was suspected.