Child Maltreatment in Residential Care: History, Research, and Current Practice

About this Book: 

This data-rich volume reviews short- and long-term consequences of residential or institutional care for children across the globe as well as approaches to reducing maltreatment. Up-to-date findings from a wide range of developing and developed countries identify forms of abuse and neglect associated with institutionalization and their effects on development and pathology in younger children, adolescents, and alumni. The sections on intervention strategies highlight the often-conflicting objectives facing professionals and policymakers balancing the interests of children, families, and facilities. But despite many national and regional variations, two themes stand out: the universal right of children to live in safety, and the ongoing need for professionals and community to ensure this safety.

Included among the topics:

• Maltreatment and living conditions in long-term residential institutions for children
• Outcomes from institutional rearing
• Recommendations to improve institutional living
• Historical, political, socio-economic, and cultural influences on Child Welfare Systems
• Latin American and the Caribbean, African, Asian, Middle-Eastern, Western and Eastern European countries and the United States of America are presented.

Child Maltreatment in Residential Care will inform psychology professionals interested in the role of residential care in the lives of children, and possibilities for improved outcomes. It will also interest social workers and mental health practitioners and researchers seeking evidence-based interventions for families adopting children from residential care.  

Table of Contents

1. An Introduction to Maltreatment of Institutionalized Children
2. Institutional Neglect in Romania’s Long-Term Residential Centers in the 1990s from the Perspective of Children’s Rights
3. Punishment, Peer Exploitation, and Sexual Abuse in Long-Term Romanian Residential Centers: Findings from a Nationally Representative Sample of Institutionalized Children
4. Academic Achievement of Romanian Institutionalized Children: A Social–Ecological Approach
5. The Prevalence of Stunting Among the Romanian Institutionalized Children Placed in Long-Term Institutional Settings in the 1990s
6. Psychopathology Following Severe Deprivation: History, Research, and Implications of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project
7. Poly-victimization and Mental Health Problems Among Adolescents in Residential Facilities in Spain
8. Child Sexual Abuse in Religiously Affiliated and Secular Institutions in Germany
9. Research on Child Sexual Abuse in Institutions in German-Speaking Countries: A Summary
10. Family Environment in Institutions for Young Children in Russia: Mental Health and Development Versus Medical Care
11. Institutional Care in Ukraine: Historical Underpinnings and Developmental Consequences
12. Divergent Developmental Pathways of Children and Adolescents Reared in Long-Term Residential Protective Care in Turkey
13. Experiences of Victimization by Peers and Staff in Residential Care for Children at Risk in Israel from an Ecological Perspective
14. Structural Neglect in Orphanages: Physical Growth, Cognition, and Daily Life of Young Institutionalized Children in India
15. Child Maltreatment and Prevention Practices in Chinese Orphanages
16. Child Abuse and Neglect in Charitable Children’s Institutions in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya: A Challenge of Context
17. Interaction Competencies with Children (ICC): An Approach for Preventing Violence, Abuse, and Neglect in Institutional Care in Sub-Saharan Africa
18. Why Institutions Matter: Empirical Data from Five Low- and Middle-Income Countries Indicate the Critical Role of Institutions for Orphans
19. Institutional Care Environments for Infants and Young Children in Latin America and the Caribbean
20. Experiences and Outcomes of Adults Who Endured Maltreatment as Children in Care in Australia in the Twentieth Century
21. Congregate Care Settings in the United States
22. Best Practices for Residential/Institutional/Group Care of Children: A Harm Reduction Framework
23. Interventions Designed for Children with Histories of Institutionalization and Placed in Foster or Adoptive Families
24. Child Maltreatment in Residential Centers: Summing Up