The Role of Community Participation and Neighborhood Processes in Reducing Child Maltreatment: Pathways through Parenting Stress and Personal Control

Background: Participation in community activities creates opportunities and space for parents to enhance connections with other members, and foster a positive and supportive community environment, which may prevent child maltreatment. Though literature regarding the role of neighborhood perceptions and community interaction in the etiology of child maltreatment is expanding, it is unclear how and through which paths community participation influences child maltreatment. To fill this gap in literature, this study examines the unique contribution of community participation in the occurrence of child maltreatment, compounded by perceived neighborhood processes. Specifically, we examined 1) whether parents’ individual perception of community participation directly predicts their physical, psychological aggression and neglect, and indirectly predicts child maltreatment risks via pathways through parenting stress and sense of personal control in the parenting role; 2) whether the above-mentioned pathways also hold true for the influence of parents’ individual perception of negative neighborhood processes.

 Methods: Data were drawn from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Survey 3-year core and in-home interviews. Of the 4,140 respondents who were eligible to participate in the in-home survey, 3,288 provided completed data on all study variables. Predictor variables are 1) community participation measured by a six-item scale; and 2) perceived neighborhood processes as a latent variable comprised of Informal Social Control, Social Disorder, and Social Cohesion; 3) Parenting stress (six-item); and 4) personal control (5-item). Other variables include child maltreatment (physical, psychological and neglect) measured using Conflict Tactics Scale: Parent-Child Version. Control variables are race/ethnicity, age, income and marital status. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the relationships among variables.

 Results: Analyses support the direct pathway that perceived negative neighborhood processes positively predicts physical abuse (Β=1.8, p<.05), psychological aggression  (Β=.4, p<.05)and neglect  (Β=.3, p<.05). However, parents’ community participation negatively predicts self-reported child maltreatment behaviors (p<.05). The effect of community participation is especially salient in directly impacting psychological aggression. Two indirect pathways were identified: 1) a significant indirect effect of community participation via parenting stress on physical abuse  (Β=.3, p<.05) and psychological aggression  (Β=.1, p<.05); 2) a significant indirect effect of perceived negative neighborhood processes via personal control in the parenting role on neglect  (Β=-.31, p<.05). Results show that community participation and perceived neighborhood process is negatively associated, suggesting increased parental involvement leads to more positive perception of neighborhood processes.  Overall, model is good fit.

 Conclusion: Although findings do not support that more community participation results in reduced child maltreatment, parents’ involvement in community exerts its impact on ameliorating child abuse and neglect via the pathway of parenting stress. Consistent with extant literature, perceived neighborhood processes play a role in both directly and indirectly influencing parents’ child maltreatment behaviors via personal control. Future research could further explore potential pathways between community participation and perceived neighborhood processes. Results also imply that integrating interventions targeting personal control and parenting stress into community programs development and planning have great potential to alleviate child maltreatment. Neighborhood-level preventive interventions emphasizing community involvement may reduce parental stress, thus reducing the risk for child abuse and neglect.