Abstract
The victimization of children remains a substantial problem in the United States. Past studies have documented both a high prevalence of victimization exposure (Finkelhor and Dziuba-Leatherman 1994; Hashima and Finkelhor 1999) and damaging mental health consequences of victimization among youth (Augoustinos 1987; Beitchman et al. 1991; Kaufman 1991; National Research Council 1993; Wolfe 1987).
The stress process model developed and expanded by Leonard Pearlin and colleagues (Pearlin 1989, 1999; Pearlin et al. 1981) is implicit in much of the research on child victimization. Victimization experiences, such as maltreatment by parents, physical and emotional bullying by peers, and sexual assault represent important sources of stress for youth, often having both short and long term effects on mental health. But more explicit applications of the stress framework that seek to specify victimization pathways over time and incorporate broader contextual factors are less common. Research into child victimization has been fragmented and largely detached from traditional social stress research, often having a narrow focus on individual types of victimization and ignoring nonvictimization stressors (Turner et al. 2006). I argue that attention to stress processes, particularly as they pertain to stress proliferation and how stress exposure histories represent contexts for subsequent victimization, is a fruitful avenue for research on child victimization and mental health.
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Notes
- 1.
Cook’s D and DF Beta diagnostic tests were conducted to determine whether any potential outlier observations were having an unusual influence on the significant interaction coefficients. Only a very small number of observations fell within the recommended size-adjusted cut-offs (Cook and Weisberg 1982; Fox 1991; Hamilton 2005) and when excluded did not change the results.
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Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my colleagues David Finkelhor and Richard Ormrod for their valuable assistance on an earlier draft of this paper. This project was supported by Grant Nos. 1999-JP-FX-1101 and 2002-JW-BX-0002 awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice.
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Appendix A. Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire: Basic Screen Questions
Appendix A. Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire: Basic Screen Questions
Child Maltreatment
Next, we ask about grown-ups who take care of you. This means parents, babysitters, adults who live with you or others who watch you.
(M1) Physical Abuse by Caregiver
Not including spanking on your bottom, in the last year, did a grown-up in your life hit, beat, kick, or physically hurt you in any way?
(M2) Psychological/Emotional Abuse
In the last year, did you get scared or feel really bad because grown-ups in your life called you names, said mean things to you, or said they didn’t want you?
(M3) Neglect
When someone is neglected, it means that the grown-ups in their life didn’t take care of them the way they should. They might not get them enough food, take them to the doctor when they are sick, or make sure they have a safe place to stay. In the last year, did you get neglected?
(M4) Custodial Interference/Family Abduction
Sometimes a family fights over where a child should live. In the last year, did a parent take, keep, or hide you to stop you from being with another parent?
Peer and Sibling Victimization
(P1) Gang or Group Assault
Sometimes groups of kids or gangs attack people. In the last year, did a group of kids or a gang hit, jump, or attack you?
(P2) Peer or Sibling Assault
(If yes to P1, say: “Other than what you just told me about…..”) In the last year, did any kid, even a brother or sister, hit you? Somewhere like at home, at school, out playing, in a store, or anywhere else?
(P3) Nonsexual Genital Assault
In the last year, did any kid try to hurt your private parts on purpose by hitting or kicking you there?
(P4) Bullying
In the last year, did any kid, even a brother or sister, pick on you by chasing you or grabbing your hair or clothes or by making you do something you didn’t want to do?
(P5) Emotional Bullying
In the last year, did you get scared or feel really bad because kids were calling you names, saying mean things to you, or saying they didn’t want you around?
(P6) Dating Violence
In the last year, did a boyfriend or girlfriend or anyone you went on a date with slap or hit you?
Sexual Victimizations
(S1) Sexual Assault by Known Adult
In the last year, did a grown-up YOU KNOW touch your private parts when you didn’t want it or make you touch their private parts? Or did a grown-up YOU KNOW force you to have sex?
(S2) Nonspecific Sexual Assault
In the last year, did a grown-up you did NOT KNOW touch your private parts when you didn’t want it, make you touch their private parts or force you to have sex?
(S3) Sexual Assault by Peer
Now think about kids your age, like from school, a boy friend or girl friend, or even a brother or sister. In the last year, did another child or teen make you do sexual things?
(S4) Rape: Attempted or Completed
In the last year, did anyone TRY to force you to have sex; that is, sexual intercourse of any kind,
even if it didn’t happen?
(S5) Flashing/Sexual Exposure
In the last year, did anyone make you look at their private parts by using force or surprise, or by “flashing” you?
(S6) Verbal Sexual Harassment
In the last year, did anyone hurt your feelings by saying or writing something sexual about you or your body?
(S7) Statutory Rape and Sexual Misconduct
In the last year, did you do sexual things with anyone 18 or older, even things you both wanted?
Witnessing and Indirect Victimization
Sometimes these things don’t happen to you but you see them happen to other people. This means to other people in real life. Not people on TV, video games, movies, or that you just heard about.
(W1) Witness to Domestic Violence
In the last year, did you SEE one of your parents get hit by another parent, or their boyfriend
or girlfriend? How about slapped, punched, or beat up?
(W2) Witness to Parent Assault of Sibling
In the last year, did you SEE your parent hit, beat, kick, or physically hurt your brothers or sisters, not including a spanking on the bottom?
(W3) Witness to Assault with Weapon
In the last year, in real life, did you SEE anyone get attacked on purpose WITH a stick, rock, gun, knife, or other thing that would hurt? Somewhere like at home, at school, at a store, in a car, on the street, or anywhere else?
(W4) Witness to Assault without Weapon
In the last year, in real life, did you SEE anyone get attacked or hit on purpose WITHOUT using a stick, rock, gun, knife, or something that would hurt?
(W5) Burglary of Family Household
In the last year, did anyone steal something from your house that belongs to your family or someone you live with? Things like a TV, stereo, car, or anything else?
(W6) Murder of Family Member or Friend
When a person is murdered, it means someone killed them on purpose. In the last year, was anyone close to you murdered, like a friend, neighbor or someone in your family?
(W7) Witness to Murder
In the last year, did you SEE someone murdered in real life? This means not on TV, video games, or in the movies?
(W8) Exposure to Random Shootings, Terrorism, or Riots
In the last year, were you in any place in real life where you could see or hear people being shot, bombs going off, or street riots?
(W9) Exposure to War or Ethnic Conflict
In the last year, were you in the middle of a war where you could hear real fighting with guns or bombs?
Lifetime Adversity
(KA1) In your whole life, were you ever in a VERY BAD fire, explosion, flood, tornado, hurricane, earthquake or other disaster?
(KA2) Were you ever in a VERY BAD accident (at home, school, or in a car) where you had to be in the hospital for many days? This would be a time that you were very hurt and needed to spend a long time in the hospital. Has that ever happened?
(KA3) Did you ever have a VERY BAD illness when you had to be in the hospital for many days? This could be a time when you were so sick that you had to be in the hospital a lot? Has that ever happened?
(KA4) Has someone you were really close to ever had a VERY BAD accident where he or she had to be in the hospital for many days? This would be someone important to you, like a parent, brother or sister, or best friend.
(KA5) Has someone you were really close to ever had a VERY BAD illness where he or she had to be in the hospital a lot? Again, this would be someone important to you, like a parent, brother or sister, or best friend.
(KA6) Was there ever a time in your life when your family had to live on the street or in a shelter because they had no other place to stay?
(KA7) Did you ever have to do a school year over again?
(KA8) Have there ever been times when your mother, father, or guardian lost a job or couldn’t find work?
(KA9) Were you ever sent away or taken away from your family for any reason?
(KA10) At any time in your life did either of your parents, a stepparent, or guardian ever have to go to prison?
(KA11) Have you ever seen a dead body in someone’s house, on the street, or somewhere in your neighborhood (other than at a funeral)?
(KA12) Has there ever been a time that a family member drank or used drugs so often that it caused problems?
(KA13) Has there ever been a time when your parents or stepparents were ALWAYS arguing, yelling, and angry at one another most of the time?
(KA14) Has anyone really close to you ever died?
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Turner, H.A. (2009). Stress Process Applications in Child Victimization Research. In: Avison, W., Aneshensel, C., Schieman, S., Wheaton, B. (eds) Advances in the Conceptualization of the Stress Process. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1021-9_12
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