Child maltreatment and childhood injury research: a cognitive behavioral approach

Both child maltreatment and childhood injuries affect large numbers of children each year. In a seminal paper, Peterson and Brown (1994) drew parallels in the antecedents of both forms of harm and suggested a more unified approach in research efforts and intervention development. This article provides a unified cognitive model that would both guide research and inform interventions directed at parents.

This article overviews information-processing elements that may explain parental oversights that would increase risk to children, including maladaptive parental schema, executive functioning problems, and maladaptive appraisals. Contextual variables that may negatively impact on information processing are also included.

Studies supporting the validity of the model are presented, and implications for interventions are drawn. Data supporting the effectiveness of cognitive enhancements to current interventions are given.

The promise of such a unified model is discussed, and obstacles to its dissemination are presented.