- Pooled prevalence: neglect 33.3%, psychological abuse 21.9%, physical abuse 15.9%, sexual abuse 8.6% among Chinese children and adolescents.
- Prevalence varied significantly by publication factors, sample characteristics such as age and region, and study design including measurement tools and time frame.
- Child abuse remains a pressing public health issue in China, necessitating strengthened child protection, standardised research designs and validated measurement adoption.
Trauma Violence Abuse. 2026 Sep 11:15248380261476612. doi: 10.1177/15248380261476612. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
Child abuse constitutes a significant public health issue that adversely affects individuals’ physical and mental health, with consequences that can persist throughout the lifespan. Accordingly, child abuse has received considerable scholarly attention and has been extensively studied. However, existing studies have reported substantial variations in prevalence rates among Chinese children and adolescents, thereby hindering a comprehensive understanding of its prevalence in this population. To address this issue, the present study systematically analyzed 117 studies, comprising 373 effect sizes and 681,699 Chinese children and adolescents. Results indicated that the pooled prevalence rates were, in descending order: neglect (33.3%), psychological abuse (21.9%), physical abuse (15.9%), and sexual abuse (8.6%). Significant moderating effects were found for publication-related factors (i.e., publication status and year), sample characteristics (i.e., age and geographic region), and study design characteristics (i.e., measurement and time frame). These findings suggest that child abuse remains a pressing issue among Chinese children and adolescents, highlighting the need for continued efforts to improve the child protection system in China. Concurrently, greater emphasis should be placed on standardizing research designs and promoting the adoption of more standardized and validated measures.
PMID:42728810 | DOI:10.1177/15248380261476612
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