CHILD MALTREATMENT - THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DEVELOPMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC-POLICY

Developmentalists-clinicians and researchers-have identified numerous problems that could be remedied by social policies that consider the best interests of the child. Policymakers at all levels of government can play an important role in devising legislation affecting the welfare of children. Child maltreatment and its relation to social policy issues cannot be fully understood without considering the attitudes, values, and philosophies that are prevalent in the society in which it occurs. The following historical overview of child abuse briefly traces the changes in societal definitions of child maltreatment, the evolution of our current child protection movement, and the complex relationship between policy formation and empirical research. Given the astronomical economic and human costs associated with the problem, there is an urgent need to compile a database that can guide effective social policy, prevention, and treatment interventions.