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Objective: To estimate associations between all five types of child maltreatment (emotional abuse, neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and exposure to domestic violence) and health risk behaviours and conditions. Design, setting, participants: Nationally representative survey of Australian residents aged 16 years and older conducted by computer‐assisted telephone interviewing. Main outcome measures: Associations between child maltreatment and the following health risk behaviours and conditions: current smoker, binge drinking (at least weekly in past 12 months), cannabis dependence (according to the Cannabis Severity of Dependence Scale), obesity (based on body mass index), self‐harm in past 12 months, and suicide attempt in past 12 months. Results: A total of 8503 participants completed the survey. All five types of child maltreatment were associated with increased rates of all of the health risk behaviours and conditions that we considered. The strongest associations were in the youngest age group (16–24‐year‐olds). Sexual abuse and emotional abuse were associated with the highest odds of health risk behaviours and conditions. Cannabis dependence, self‐harm and suicide attempts were most strongly associated with child maltreatment. Experiencing more than one type of child maltreatment was associated with higher rates of health risk behaviours and conditions than experiencing one type of child maltreatment. Conclusions: Child maltreatment is associated with substantially increased rates of health risk behaviours and conditions. Prevention and intervention efforts should be informed by trauma histories, and holistic psychosocial care should be incorporated into programs focusing on behaviour change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence in Australia of each type of child maltreatment; to identify gender‐ and age group‐related differences in prevalence. Design, setting: Cross‐sectional national survey; mobile telephone interviews using random digit dialling (computer‐generated), Australia, 9 April – 11 October 2021. Retrospective self‐report data using validated questionnaire (Juvenile Victimisation Questionnaire‐R2 Adapted Version (Australian Child Maltreatment Study). Participants: People aged 16 years or more. The target sample size was 8500 respondents: 3500 people aged 16–24 years and 1000 respondents each from five further age groups (25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, 65 years or more). Main outcome measures: Proportions of respondents reporting physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, and exposure to domestic violence to age 18 years, assessed with the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire‐R2 Adapted Version (Australian Child Maltreatment Study), overall and by gender and age group, and weighted to reflect characteristics of the Australian population aged 16 years or more in 2016. Results: Complete survey data were available for 8503 eligible participants (14% response rate). Physical abuse was reported by 32.0% of respondents (95% confidence interval [CI], 30.7–33.3%), sexual abuse by 28.5% (95% CI, 27.3–29.8%), emotional abuse by 30.9% (95% CI, 29.7–32.2%), neglect by 8.9% (95% CI, 8.1–9.7%), and exposure to domestic violence by 39.6% (95% CI, 38.3–40.9%). The proportions of respondents who reported sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or neglect were each statistically significantly larger for women than men. The reported prevalence of physical abuse by respondents aged 16–24 years was lower than for those aged 25–34 years, and that of sexual abuse was lower than for those aged 35–44 years, suggesting recent declines in the prevalence of these maltreatment types. Conclusions: Child maltreatment is common in Australia, and larger proportions of women than men report having experienced sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect during childhood. As physical and sexual abuse may have declined recently, public health policy and practice may have positive effects, justifying continued monitoring and prevention activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To describe the aims, design, methodology, and respondent sample representativeness of the Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS). Design, setting: Cross‐sectional, retrospective survey; computer‐assisted mobile telephone interviewing using random digit dialling (computer‐generated), Australia, 9 April – 11 October 2021. Participants: People aged 16 years or more. The target sample size was 8500 respondents: 3500 people aged 16–24 years and 1000 respondents each from five further age groups (25–34, 35–44, 45–54, 55–64, 65 years or more). Main outcome measures: Primary outcomes: Emotional abuse, neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, exposure to domestic violence during childhood, assessed with the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire‐R2 Adapted Version (Australian Child Maltreatment Study). Secondary outcomes: selected mental disorder diagnoses (Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, MINI), selected physical health conditions, health risk behaviours, health service use. Results: The demographic characteristics of the ACMS sample were similar to those of the Australian population in 2016 with respect to gender, Indigenous status, region and remoteness category of residence, and marital status, but larger proportions of participants were born in Australia, lived in areas of higher socio‐economic status, had tertiary qualifications, and had income greater than $1250 per week. Population weights were derived to adjust for these differences. Associations between the number of calls required to recruit participants and maltreatment rates and health outcomes were not statistically significant. Conclusions: The ACMS provides the first reliable estimates of the prevalence of each type of child maltreatment in Australia. These estimates, and those of associated mental health and health risk behaviours reported in this supplement can inform policy and practice initiatives for reducing the prevalence of child maltreatment and its consequences. Our benchmark study also provides baseline data for repeated waves of the ACMS that will assess the effectiveness of these initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To determine the prevalence in Australia of multi‐type child maltreatment, defined as two or more maltreatment types (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect, or exposure to domestic violence) and to examine its nature, family risk factors, and gender and age cohort differences. Design: Retrospective cross‐sectional survey using a validated questionnaire. Setting and participants: Mobile phone random digit‐dial sample of the Australian population aged 16 years and older. Main outcome measures: National estimates of multi‐type child maltreatment up to age 18 years using the Juvenile Victimisation Questionnaire‐R2: Adapted Version (Australian Child Maltreatment Study). Results: Of 8503 participants, 62.2% (95% CI, 60.9–63.6%) experienced one or more types of child maltreatment. Prevalence of single‐type maltreatment was 22.8% (95% CI, 21.7–24.0%), whereas 39.4% (95% CI, 38.1–40.7%) of participants reported multi‐type maltreatment and 3.5% (95% CI, 3.0–4.0%) reported all five types. Multi‐type maltreatment was more common for gender diverse participants (66.1% [95% CI, 53.7–78.7%]) and women (43.2% [95% CI, 41.3–45.1%]) than for men (34.9% [95% CI, 33.0–36.7%]). Multi‐type maltreatment prevalence was highest for those aged 25–44 years. Family‐related adverse childhood experiences — especially mental illness and alcohol or substance misuse — increased risk. Exposure to domestic violence was the maltreatment type most often present in multi‐type maltreatment patterns. Conclusions: Multi‐type child maltreatment is prevalent in Australia and more common in women and gender diverse individuals. Child protection services, health practitioners, and prevention and intervention services must assess and manage multi‐type maltreatment in children and address its health consequences across the lifespan. Public health policy should consider prevention services or strategies that target multi‐type child maltreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To establish national prevalence of child maltreatment, reliable, valid and contextually appropriate measurement is needed. This paper outlines the refinement, adaptation and testing of child maltreatment sections of the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire (JVQ)-R2 for use in the Australian context. Three phases were undertaken: 1) Conceptual analysis of the five forms of child maltreatment (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional or psychological abuse, neglect, and experience of domestic violence), item mapping and review, item development, and independent expert review; 2) Cognitive testing with members of the general population, and individuals who have experienced maltreatment; and 3) Pilot testing and quantitative psychometric assessment with a random sample of Australians aged 16–65+ years. The final measure included a total of 17 child maltreatment screener items, assessing Physical Abuse (2 items), Sexual abuse (5 items (including 2 non-contact items and 3 contact items), Emotional Abuse (3 items), Neglect (3 items), and Experience of Domestic Violence (4 items). Screener items were also included on corporal punishment (1 item), and internet sexual victimization (2 items). The final 17-item revised JVQ had high face and conceptual validity and good internal reliability (α = 0.86 and Ω = 0.87). Test re-test reliability was moderate to high for individual screeners ranging from k = 0.45 to 0.89. Results indicate the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire-R2: Adapted Version (Australian Child Maltreatment Study) is a suitable instrument for assessing population-wide prevalence of maltreatment. It is congruent with conceptual models of maltreatment and shows good reliability and validity in this Australian sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]