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Scientific article 17. FEB 2023
  • Children, Adolescents and Families
  • The Social Sector
  • Children, Adolescents and Families, The Social Sector

Physical violence against children with disabilities

A Danish national birth cohort prospective study

Authors:

  • Ask Elklit
  • Siobhan Murphy
  • Christian Skovgaard
  • Mette Lausten
  • Children, Adolescents and Families
  • The Social Sector
  • Children, Adolescents and Families, The Social Sector
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Background: Children with disabilities are at heightened risk of violence compared to their non-disabled peers. However, extant research suffers from several limitations, focusing on child abuse and one or few types of disability, ignoring conventional violent crimes.

Objective: The aim was to assess 10 disabilities and to examine whether different disabilities vary in their risk of criminal victimization.

Method: Using the Danish Psychiatric Case Register, the Criminal Register, and other population-based registers, we included nine birth cohorts (n = 570,351) and followed them until 18 years of age. We compared children exposed to violence with non-exposed children. We estimated odds ratios (ORs) for the disabilities and adjusted the ORs for several risk factors.

Results: We identified 12,830 cases of reported violence (2.25% of the population) towards children and adolescents. Children with disabilities were overrepresented, as were boys and ethnic minorities. After controlling for risk factors, four disabilities had heightened risk for criminal violence: attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), brain injury, speech, and physical disabilities. When we compared risk factors controlling for the various disabilities, parental history of violence, family break-up, out-of-home placement, and parental unemployment contributed especially to the violence, while parental alcohol/drug abuse was no longer a predictor. Having several disabilities increased the risk of violence.

Conclusions: Criminal victimization of children and adolescents with specific disabilities was common. However, compared to the previous decade, a considerable reduction of one-third has taken place. Four risk factors contributed particularly to the risk of violence; therefore, precautions should be taken to further reduce the violence.

Authors

  • Ask ElklitSiobhan MurphyChristian SkovgaardMette Lausten

About this publication

  • Published in

    European Journal of Psychotraumatology
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