Almost Half of U.S. Children Assaulted in Past Year
Monday, October 12, 2009
A comprehensive survey on children’s exposure to violence has revealed that nearly half (46.3%) of those interviewed were physically assaulted within the past year—and more than half (56.7%) have been assaulted during their lifetime. According to the report, “Physical assaults are extremely common across the entire span of childhood and peak during middle childhood.” These include physical confrontations involving siblings, which researchers determined are more common under the age of 10 than during latter years. As children get older, more serious assaults tend to rise in frequency.
The report, requested by the Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, reveals that almost 20% of those aged 14 to 17 claimed to have been injured within the past year from an attack of some kind.
Overall, assault rates are higher for boys than girls. Just over 60% of boys questioned said they had been victimized by an attack during their lifetime, while the rate for girls was 52.9%.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Children’s Exposure to Violence: A Comprehensive National Survey (U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention) (PDF)
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