Child abuse is the intentional harm or mistreatment of a child, encompassing physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional or psychological abuse, neglect, and exploitation. It is a major public health concern because maltreatment in childhood can disrupt healthy physical, emotional, and cognitive development and is linke…
Child abuse is the intentional harm or mistreatment of a child, encompassing physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional or psychological abuse, neglect, and exploitation. It is a major public health concern because maltreatment in childhood can disrupt healthy physical, emotional, and cognitive development and is linked to lasting consequences for mental health, behaviour, educational attainment, and physical well-being into adulthood. Prevention, early identification, and protective responses depend on understanding the family, social, and environmental circumstances that place children at risk, as well as the biological pathways through which adversity affects development. Within this journal's public health scope, related research includes a study of how maternal behaviour shapes a child's attachment-related cortisol stress response, which speaks to the role of caregiving in early stress regulation; an evaluation of serum vitamin D levels among children in foster care, reflecting the health status of children removed from their families; and an examination of drug abuse among street children, addressing a vulnerable population exposed to neglect and exploitation. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access research relevant to child abuse, child welfare, and the public health dimensions of protecting children from harm.
8 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.
The 8 articles above have been cited 83 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.
A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Child Abuse, linking to each citing work.