Assessing the Influence of Drug and Substance use on Child Abuse and Maltreatment (Research Proposal Sample)

Assessing the Influence of Drug and Substance use on Child Abuse and Maltreatment Student Name Introduction Family violence is a serious social and public health problem globally with approximately one out of three women and one billion children aged between two and seventeen years being affected (Coomber et al., 2019). However, the most prevalent form is child abuse which involves six different types of interpersonal violations occurring at different developmental stages of a child’s life. Consequently, the issue has drawn some significant attention in research with scholars seeking to establish the root causes of the vise. Literature has strongly linked drug and substance abuse and family violence, majorly violence against women and children (Garner et al., 2015; Cicchetti & Handley, 2019; Cui et al., 2020; Bosk et al., 2022). Although the interest in family violence and substance abuse has developed independently, the perception that substance abuse negatively impacted families has strengthened over time. However, there is limited research developed to establish the relationship between drug and substance use and child Maltreatment. This study seeks to quantitatively establish and test the relationship between drug and substance use and family child maltreatment as a form of family violence. Literature Review Child abuse and molestation is a complex issue that involves acting or failing to act in a way that harms a child or increases the risk of harm. There is no single factor that leads to child abuse and often occurs as a result of multiple forces working together. However, according to the psychopathological approach, the leading causes of child abuse result from the perpetrator’s mental health as an etiological factor (Williams et al, 2016). Although several disorders fall under this model as predictors of a child’s physical abuse and neglect, the most consistently evidenced factors are substance abuse and depression. This study investigates drug and substance abuse as a predictor of child maltreatment and abuse with prior history of abuse and depression as control factors. Drug and substance use Extensive literature has indicated a complex association of drug and substance use with the prevalence of family and domestic violence. Child Abuse and Drugs (2022) in a more focused study argue that parents and caregivers who are under active substance abuse are 2.7 times more likely to abuse their children and 4.2 times more likely to neglect them. Arguably, the combination of stress from substance abuse and demands for routine care for children creates a volatile and vulnerable environment for the perpetration of physical abuse or neglect (Becker, McClellan and Reed, 2016). The response to cues given by children for both optimal social and physical interactive nurturing by an acutely intoxicated parent or caregiver is normally inappropriate and flawed. Significant also is the association of drug and substance use with aggression and violent tendencies. Apparently, a significant number of violent crimes, child abuse included, are committed by people under the influence of psychoactive substances (Burraway et al, 2020). This argument is sufficiently reinforced by the fact that criminals mostly in prison are substance-abusing individuals. On comprehensive examination of the relationship, Carliner et al. (2016) concluded that the causal relationship between the two factors was neither invariant nor linear. Drugs affect an individual's central nervous system resulting in active modification of their judgment and self-control who may express aggression and in some specific incidents, become violent. Conversely, some researchers have argued against this assertion and hold that the pharmacologic effect of drugs is insufficient to explain aggression and violent behaviors in people. Clairmont et al (2018) considers individual behavior prior to substance abuse and argues that a good number of people exhibit some aggression as well as antisocial and violent tendencies before the use of psychoactive drugs. Depression Arguably, it cannot be presumed that drug and substance use can lead to child abuse and maltreatment as the only factor. Instead, other factors increase the chances of occurrence and the strength of the relationship. Major depression is a significant predictor of child abuse, as a control variable for substance use and demographic factor. According to Fehrman et al. (2019), depression is normally associated with negative parenting, hostility, and disengagement that result in poor physical health and well-being of children. It also increases the cases of emotional instability, heightened emotionality, dysregulated aggression, and poor cognitive functioning that increase the vulnerability of children to maltreatment and child abuse. Recent years have seen an increased association of depressive behaviors in parents with abusive tendencies. Fuller-Thomson, Roane and Brennenstuhl (2016) established a significant and moderate causal relationship between parental depression and hostile negative parenting. These tendencies range from disengagement or withdrawal to coercive or hostile behavior, and sexual assault. The conclusion was that generally, a depressed and preoccupied parent runs a higher chance of reacting negatively to misbehavior or normal demands from their children. Childhood experiences While there is consensus about the role substance abuse play in child maltreatment, it is also vital to acknowledge that the most effective etiological model of child maltreatment involves a mix of varied factors that operate at different levels of influence. Important also has been the question about what informs human behavior, whether nature or nurture. The latter seems to have extensive precedence in the debate about child abuse and maltreatment. According to Hasin et al (2015) and Sahu & Sahu (2012), abusive parenting behavior stems from a caregiver’s upbringing and the perceived childhood environment. Rooted in the social learning theory, past experiences influence child abuse and maltreatment in varied ways. Lil and Margot (2017) argue that just like any other behavioral trait, aggression could be learned through observation and past experience. A prior history of abuse and trauma experience have a long-lasting impact on individuals and often resurface in pregnancy and parenthood due to the direct touch on one’s painful and distressing past (Miner et al, 2016). However, there is scanty empirical evidence to unveil the moderating role of past experience in the relationship between drug and substance use and child abuse. This study seeks to examine the role of family environment and caregivers' past experiences in determining child abuse. Methodology Research Method The aim of this study as has been stated, is to determine the effect of Drug and Substance use on Child Abuse and Maltreatment. For that reason, this is causal-effect research, this study uses quantitative research method with numerical data to test and validate the hypotheses before providing answers to the research questions. The research must also use an empirical model for testing the hypotheses. The Research Variables This research has multiple independent variables as presented representing consumption or abuse of drug substances are 5 or more drinks on the same occasion (Respondent), alcohol consumption (Respondent), How often (cocaine, speed, etc.) – Respondent and how often (marijuana, etc.) - Spouse/partner. On the other hand, the dependent variable representing child abuse was CEXPHYS. The fundamental aim of this study is to test the effect of drug related habits among the respondents, whether drug abuse or consumption, on the child molestation or child victimization (Child Abuse and Maltreatment). It is vital to determine the effect of every independent variable on each of the dependent variables according to the set of hypotheses below. Hypotheses This research covers the test of various hypotheses (null and alternative hypotheses) concerning each of the abuse of drug substances on Child Abuse and Maltreatment. The hypotheses are presented below. Alcohol Consumption – Respondent Alternative Hypothesis: Drug and Substance use has positive effect on Child Abuse and Maltreatment. Null Hypothesis: Drug and Substance use does not have positive effect on Child Abuse and Maltreatment. Analysis Methods Since this research involves multiple independent variables and multiple dependent variables, the suitable analysis method in this study is multivariate regression, using SPSS software as the data analysis tool. The aim of the multiple variable regression is to find out the nature of the effect of the drug use or abuse (whether negative or positive) on the Child Abuse and Maltreatment variables. The nature of relationship or the effect of Drug and Substance use on Child Abuse and Maltreatment, is dependent on the coefficient of determination generated against each of the independent variables representing drug and substance use. At the same time, the approach is aimed at determining if the effects detected are significant or not, in order to decide on whether to reject the null hypothesis or fail to reject it. The regression analysis is executed using the 95% level of significance. Therefore, the test for statistical significance is determined by the p-value generated against each of the independent variables. If the P – value is lower than the 0.05 alpha value, then the implication is that the effect is statistically significant and that there is justification for rejection of the null hypothesis. On the other hand, if the p – value exceeds the alpha value, then it implies that the effect or the correlation is not statistically significant and cannot be used to reject the null hypothesis. Results and Discussion Descriptive Statistics N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation...