Nature and Substantiation of Official Sexual Abuse Reports

• NCJ Number: 113653
• Journal: Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 12 Issue: 3 Dated: (1988) Pages: 311-319
• Author(s): J Eckenrode; J Munsch; J Powers; J Doris
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 9 pages
• Grant Number(s): 90-CA-1008
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Health and Human Services
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Third National Family Violence Conference, Durham, NH, July 7, 1987.

Annotation

This study examined 796 reports of child sexual abuse in New York State to identify those factors associated with the substantiation of the reports.

Abstract

Data on the age, gender, and ethnicity of each child were analyzed as was information on whether the report was filed by reporters legally mandated to report suspected sexual abuse incidents or by nonmandated reporters, such as relatives, concerned citizens, or neighbors. For all 796 cases, the substantiation rate was 40 percent. Seventy-nine percent of the reports involved female children. Forty-two percent of the 628 reports involving female children were substantiated following an investigation, and 31 percent of the 167 reports involving male children were substantiated. The average age of the children involved was 9.6 years. The ethnicity of the children showed no significant relationship to substantiation. However, reports filed by mandated reporters were substantiated at a rate 13 percent higher than reports from nonmandated sources. The study demonstrates that meaningful questions can be addressed by studying large samples. 12 references. 6 figures (Author abstract modified)