Association between parental recognition and engagement in child maltreatment: an Internet-based cross-sectional...

Child maltreatment, traditionally considered a maternal issue in Japan, increasingly involves fathers. Despite the rise in paternal participation, the recognition of and engagement in child maltreatment remains poorly investigated in Japan. We explored the association between parental recognition and engagement in maltreatment, stratified by parental sex.

An Internet survey was conducted in Japan from July to August 2021, involving 8,819 parents (1,671 fathers, and 7,148 mothers) with children under 24 months of age. A self-report questionnaire assessed recognition of and engagement in maltreatment behaviors, including physical and psychological maltreatment and neglect. Poisson regression analysis estimated prevalence ratios of engagement in maltreatment behaviors by recognition status, stratified by parental sex.

Harsh behaviors widely recognized as maltreatment (unrecognition was less than 15% for both sexes) included beating the child (fathers: 13.5%, mothers: 6.9%), repeatedly insulting the child (fathers: 13.3%, mothers: 7.7%), and not feeding the child (fathers: 13.1%, mothers: 6.3%). Engagement in any form of maltreatment was reported by 14.2% of fathers and 9.6% of mothers in this sample. The overall prevalence of physical maltreatment was 10.5% among fathers and 5.7% among mothers. Similarly, fathers reported 6.1% overall neglect and mothers reported 1.9%. The prevalence of psychological maltreatment was 4.4% among fathers and 3.5% among mothers. For both sexes, lack of recognition of maltreatment was associated with a higher prevalence of engagement in such behaviors (fathers: adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] 2.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.43-2.99; mothers: aPR 1.88, 95% CI 1.53-2.33). This association was consistent across all subtypes, with the strongest for neglect (physical maltreatment [fathers: aPR 2.49, 95% CI 1.63-3.79; mothers: aPR 2.06, 95% CI 1.59-2.66], psychological maltreatment [fathers: aPR 2.22, 95% CI 1.30-3.78; mothers: aPR 1.43, 95% CI 1.09-1.88], and neglect [fathers: aPR 4.28, 95% CI 2.71-6.78; mothers: aPR 4.75, 95% CI 3.23-6.99]).

Lack of recognition was associated with greater engagement in maltreatment, particularly neglect, for both parents, based on these findings. Findings underscore the need for parenting education and support targeting both parents.