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Influential papers in child abuse
1Sydney University Department of Paediatrics & Child Health, Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children, Westmead, Australia.
Child Abuse & Neglect
|March 1, 1997
Summary
Child protection professionals identified key literature on child abuse. "The Battered Child Syndrome" and "The Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome" were most influential, confirmed by citation analysis.
Area of Science:
- Child Protection Studies
- Pediatric Social Medicine
- Criminology
Background:
- Identifying seminal works in child protection is crucial for understanding the field's evolution.
- Previous research has not systematically compared expert opinion with citation impact in child abuse literature.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the most influential papers and book chapters in child protection literature based on expert rankings and citation analysis.
- To compare the consensus of child protection professionals with bibliometric data.
Main Methods:
- A two-round survey of child protection professionals to identify and rank influential publications.
- A citation analysis of the identified publications to assess their impact in the academic literature.
Main Results:
- "The Battered Child Syndrome" (Kempe et al., 1962) and "The Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome" (Summit, 1983) received the highest rankings from professionals.
- "The Battered Child Syndrome" also had the highest citation count.
- Eight publications appeared in the top 15 of both professional rankings and citation analysis, indicating significant consensus on influential works.
Conclusions:
- Expert opinion and citation counts largely align on the most impactful child abuse literature.
- Key papers like "The Battered Child Syndrome" have had a lasting influence on the field of child protection.
- While limitations exist, this review highlights enduring contributions to child abuse scholarship.