Child maltreatment typologies within intergenerational contexts: A latent class study

Child maltreatment (CM) in one generation can predict CM in the next, a concept known as the intergenerational continuity of CM. However, the specific forms of intergenerational CM remain unclear, and fathers are largely absent from this body of literature. This study examined second-generation CM typologies in families where intergenerational continuity was present and assessed the impact of parental CM on these typologies using multilevel latent class analyses.

Child protection data from families with confirmed intergenerational CM in Montreal were analyzed (n = 5,861 children). Two models were examined, one based on intergenerational CM on the mother's side and the other on the father's side.

In both models, four latent classes were identified: (a) sexual abuse, physical abuse, and neglect, (b) risk of CM, (c) psychological abuse and exposure to intimate partner violence, and (d) high polyvictimization. Child age and maternal histories of sexual and physical abuse were associated with child class membership, while no paternal CM experiences were associated.

These findings clarify the co-occurrence of CM types and how parental CM influences child typologies of CM in a two-generation sample, providing crucial insights for CM prevention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).