How Are We Measuring Resilience Following Childhood Maltreatment? Is the Research Adequate and Consistent? What is the Impact on Research, Practice, and Policy?

The authors review the literature on resilience following childhood maltreatment and describe how variation in the measurement of outcomes at various developmental stages affects research findings, practice implications, and policy recommendations. Although the 21 studies reviewed considered compete...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Trauma, violence & abuse violence & abuse, 2010-01, Vol.11 (1), p.27-41
Main Authors: Walsh, Wendy A., Dawson, Jean, Mattingly, Marybeth J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abused children
Adolescent
Adolescent Behavior - psychology
Adolescents
Child
Child abuse & neglect
Child Abuse - psychology
Child Behavior - psychology
Child Welfare - psychology
Childhood
Children
Competence
Developmental Disabilities - psychology
Developmental stages
Emotional behavior
Emotions
Evidence-Based Medicine
Family
Health Status
Humans
Indicators
Life Change Events
Literature reviews
Mathematical analysis
Mental Health
Operational Definitions
Psychology, Adolescent
Psychology, Child
Resilience
Resilience, Psychological
Reviews
Social Support
Well Being
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The authors review the literature on resilience following childhood maltreatment and describe how variation in the measurement of outcomes at various developmental stages affects research findings, practice implications, and policy recommendations. Although the 21 studies reviewed considered competent functioning in similar domains as evidence of resilience following maltreatment, few provided prevalence estimates for specific indicators or across domains of functioning. Using the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW), the authors explored different ways of operationalizing resilience. The number of children demonstrating competence following maltreatment varied greatly by the indicators used; furthermore, competence in one domain (behavioral, emotional, or educational) did not guarantee competence in another. About one in five children were functioning poorly in all three domains. Because findings vary according to the operational definition of resilience, researchers must use caution in conceptualizing their analytic variables and interpreting findings. Furthermore, given the lack of cross-domain competence, services to maltreated children and their families should be comprehensive.
ISSN:1524-8380
1552-8324
DOI:10.1177/1524838009358892