De Vragenlijst Voorbij: Schets van Onderzoek naar Kindermishandeling

The first national prevalence study on child abuse and neglect (Nationale Prevalentiestu ie Mishandeling van kinderen en jeugdigen, NPM-2005) showed that in The Netherlands 107.200 children between 0-17 years of age had been victim of child maltreatment in 2005. That means that 30 of 1000 children were subjected to child abuse and neglect according to standard criteria as included in Dutch law. A prevalence study by Amsterdam researchers based on self-report retrospective questionnaires revealed much higher rates. In this contribution we discuss the causes of this discrepancy. We demonstrate the urgent need for systematic research on child maltreatment, and we outline a research program that takes into account the relevant factors from molecule to mind to social context