SHADOWS OF THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC: A STUDY OF PERCEIVED CHILD RISK FACTORS PREDISPOSING CHILD ABUSE DURING THE COVID-19 IN LUSAKA, ZAMBIA

Marien Matafwali, Joseph Mandyata, Francis Simui

Abstract


The study sought to examine the perceived risk factors contributing to child abuse during the COVID-19 pandemic in Zambia. A mixed-method approach supported by a concurrent triangulation research design was used in the study. The sample was 107; involving 92 service providers and 15 parents/caregivers. The participants were selected using expert and homogeneous purposive sampling approaches. A questionnaire involving closed and open-ended questions was employed in the collection of data. In quantitative analysis, the study used Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to arrive at primary descriptive statistics and inferential test results. Qualitative data was analysed using a thematic approach. Documentary data analysis was used to arrive at secondary data to supplement primary data. The study revealed that despite a decrease in reported child abuse cases during the pandemic, various risk factors persisted such as: age of the child, gender of the child, lack of parent-child attachment, physical or developmental disabilities, gender disparities, and increasing child vulnerability. It was evident from the study that, pandemic-related child protection services needed targeted strategies that addressed individual, familial, and societal factors, with a focus on prevention, intervention, and support measures to safeguard children. The study, therefore, emphasizes the need for comprehensive child protection interventions, including the creation of safe spaces, community awareness programmes, food security, mental health support, and fast-track court services.

 

Article visualizations:

Hit counter


Keywords


child abuse; risk factors; COVID-19 pandemic; child protection; child safety

Full Text:

PDF

References


Alholjailan, M. I. (2012). Thematic Analysis: A critical review of its process and evaluation. West East Journal of Social Sciences, 1(1), 39-47.

Augusti, E. M., Sætren, S. S., & Hafstad, G. S. (2021). Violence and abuse experiences and associated risk factors during the COVID-19 outbreak in a population-based sample of Norwegian adolescents. Child Abuse & Neglect, 118, 105156.

Bakrania, S., Chávez, C., Ipince, A., Rocca, M., Oliver, S., Stansfield, C., & Subrahmanian, R. (2020). Impacts of Pandemics and Epidemics on Child Protection: Lessons learned from a rapid review in the context of COVID-19. Retrieved from https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/WP-2020-05-Working-Paper-Impacts-Pandemics-Child-Protection.pdf

Brown, S. M., Doom, J. R., Lechuga-Peña, S., Watamura, S. E., & Koppels, T. (2020). Tress and parenting during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Child Abuse & Neglect, 110, 104699.

Brudevold-Newman, A., Dias, P., Folotiya, J. J., Mooya, H., Ranjit, V., & Ring, H. (2018). Study on traditional parenting and child care practices in Zambia. Retrieved from Washington, DC: Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/zambia/media/1341/file/Zambia-traditional-parenting-study-2018.pdf.

Bywaters, P., Skinner, G., Cooper, A., Kennedy, E., & Malik, A. (2022). The relationship between y and child abuse and neglect: New evidence. London: Nuffield Foundation.

Calvano, C., Engelke, L., Di Bella, J., Kindermann, J., Renneberg, B., & Winter, S. M. (2021). Families in the COVID-19 pandemic: parental stress, parent mental health and the occurrence of adverse childhood experiences—results of a representative survey in Germany. European child & adolescent psychiatry, 5 (2), 1-13.

Campbell, A. M. (2020). An increasing risk of family violence during the COVID-19 pandemic: Strengthening community collaborations to save lives. Forensic science international: reports, 2, 100089. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2665910720300384

Central Statistical Office (2018). Census of Population and housing. mini-report of 2018. Lusaka, CSO.

Chalwe, H. K., Mandyata, J. & Kasonde-Ngandu, S. (2021). Making a Case on Social Interaction of Parents of Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders: A Study of Selected Compounds of Zambia. European Journal of Education Studies, 8 (9), 78-DOI: 1046827/ejes.v8i9.3867. Retrieved from https://oapub.org/edu/index.php/ejes/article/view/3881

Chaffin, M., Silovsky, J. F., Funderburk, B., Valle, L. A., Brestan, E. V., Balachova, T., ... & Bonner, B. L. (2004). Parent-child interaction therapy with physically abusive parents: efficacy for reducing future abuse reports. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 72(3), 500.

Chitundu, K., Mwape, L., & Kwaleyela, C. (2020). Community attitudes towards child sexual abuse: A case of Chawama Lusaka, Zambia. Open Journal of Psychiatry, 10(01), 25.

Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design, qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th Ed.). New York: Sage Publications.

Demuth, S., & Brown, S. L. (2004). Family structure, family processes, and adolescent delinquency: The significance of parental absence versus parental gender. Journal of research in crime and delinquency, 41(1), 58-81.

Edoh-Torgah, N. A., & Matafwali, M. (2022). Counselling Sexually Abused Children: Lessons from Ghana and Zambia. Sexual Abuse: An Interdisciplinary Approach, 149.

Evans, M. L., Lindauer, M., & Farrell, M. E. (2020). A pandemic within a pandemic—intimate partner violence during Covid-19. New England journal of medicine, 383(24), 2302-2304.

Fogarty, A., Jones, A., Evans, K., O’Brien, J., & Giallo, R. (2022). The experience of the COVID‐19 pandemic for families of infants involved with Child Protection Services for maltreatment concerns. Health & Social Care in the Community, 30(5), 1754-1762.

Fegert, J. M., Vitiello, B., Plener, P. L., & Clemens, V. (2020). Challenges and burden of the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic for child and adolescent mental health: a narrative review to highlight clinical and research needs in the acute phase and the long return to normality. Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health, 14 (2), 1-11.

Frasquilho, D., Matos, M. G., Salonna, F., Guerreiro, D., Storti, C. C., Gaspar, T., & Caldas-de-Almeida, J. M. (2015). Mental health outcomes in times of economic recession: a systematic literature review. BMC Public Health, 16(1), 1-40.

Featherstone, B., Morris, K., Daniel, B., Bywaters, P., Brady, G., Bunting, L. & Mirza, N. (2019). Poverty, inequality, child abuse and neglect: Changing the conversation across the UK in child protection? Children and Youth Services Review, 97(4), 127-133.

Haw, C., Hawton, K., Gunnell, D., & Platt, S. (2015). Economic recession and suicidal behaviour: Possible mechanisms and ameliorating factors. International journal of social psychiatry, 61(1), 73-81.

Holloway, I., & Wheeler, S. (2013). Qualitative research in nursing and healthcare. London UK: John Wiley & Sons.

Huang, N., Yang, F., Liu, X., Bai, Y., Guo, J., & Riem, M. M. (2022). The prevalence, changes, and related factors of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review. Child Abuse & Neglect, 3(2), 105 -132.

Lal, P., Kumar, A., Kumar, S., Kumari, S., Saikia, P., Dayanandan, A., & Khan, M. L. (2020). The dark cloud with a silver lining: Assessing the impact of the SARS COVID-19 pandemic on the global environment. Science of the total environment, 732, 139297.

Larkins, C. (2020). Building on rainbows: Supporting children’s participation in shaping responses to COVID-19. Retrieved from https://clok.uclan.ac.uk/33087/

Lawson, M., Piel, M. H., & Simon, M. (2020). Child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Consequences of parental job loss on psychological and physical abuse towards children. Child Abuse & Neglect, 110, 104709.

Kepple, N. J. (2017). The complex nature of parental substance use: Examining past year and prior use behaviours as correlates of child maltreatment frequency. Substance use & misuse, 52(6), 811-821.

Matafwali, M. (2016). The Nature of Counselling Offered to Sexually Abused Children in Selected Victim Support Units in Lusaka District, Zambia. Masters’ dissertation. University of Zambia).

Musonda, M., Matafwali, M., & Makasa, I. (2020). The Impact of Exposure to Domestic Violence on Mental Health and Well-Being of Children in Lusaka District Zambia. Journal of Law and Social Sciences, 3(1), 24-29.

Mutaka, M., & Imasiku, M. I. (2012). Risk Factors and Child Sexual Abuse among High School Pupils in Lusaka District, Zambia. Journal of Law and Social Sciences, 1(1), 17-31.

Magura, S., & Laudet, A. B. (1996). Parental substance abuse and child maltreatment: Review and implications for intervention. Children and Youth Services Review, 18(3), 193-220.

Mphahlele R, Seeletso M, Muleya G & Simui, F (2021). The influence of Covid-19 on students’ learning: Access and participation in higher education in Southern Africa. Journal of Learning for Development, 8(3): 501–515. https://doi.org/10.56059/jl4d.v8i3.515

Mutaka, M., & Imasiku, M. I. (2012). Risk Factors and Child Sexual Abuse among High School Pupils in Lusaka District, Zambia. Journal of Law and Social Sciences, 1(1), 17-31.

Navne, L., & Jakobsen, M. (2021). Child abandonment and anonymous surrendering of babies: experiences in ten high-income countries. Vulnerable children and youth studies, 16(3), 195-205.

Paul, B. V., Finn, A., Chaudhary, S., Mayer Gukovas, R., & Sundaram, R. (2021). COVID-19, poverty, and social safety net response in Zambia. Retrieved from https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/84a8461d-fbfa-54ff-8cd9-9bde8d4cbd91

Quraish, S., Joseph, K., & Jean H, K. (2020). Increased child Abuse in Uganda amidst COVID-19 pandemic. Rodriguez, C. M., Lee, S. J., Ward, K. P., & Pu, D. F. (2021). The perfect storm: Hidden risk of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Child maltreatment, 26(2), 139-151.

Seddighi, H., Salmani, I., Javadi, M. H., & Seddighi, S. (2021). Child abuse in natural disasters and conflicts: A systematic review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 22(1), 176-185.

Slovin, T., et al. (2018). Probability and Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.statisticshowto.com/probability-and-statistics/how-to-use-slovins-formula/

Stoltenborgh, M., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., Alink, L. R., & Van Ijzendoorn, M. H. (2012). The universality of childhood emotional abuse: a meta-analysis of worldwide prevalence. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 21(8), 870-890.

Victor, B. G., Grogan-Kaylor, A., Ryan, J. P., Perron, B. E., & Gilbert, T. T. (2018). Domestic violence, parental substance misuse, and the decision to substantiate child maltreatment. Child Abuse & Neglect, 79, 31-41.

Witte, S., & Kindler, H. (2022). Strengths and problems of families in contact with child protective services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Family Research, 34(1), 394-428.

Young, N. K., Boles, S. M., & Otero, C. (2007). Parental substance use disorders and child maltreatment: Overlap, gaps, and opportunities. Child maltreatment, 12(2), 137- 149.

UNICEF. (2020). Protecting children from violence in the time of COVID-19: Disruptions in prevention and response services. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/reports/protecting-children-from-violence-covid-19-disruptions-in-prevention-and-response-services-2020

WHO (19 September, 2022) Child Maltreatment: Geneva: WHO




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejes.v10i12.5150

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2023 Marien Matafwali, Joseph Mandyata, Francis Simui

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright © 2015-2023. European Journal of Education Studies (ISSN 2501 - 1111) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms. All authors who send their manuscripts to this journal and whose articles are published on this journal retain full copyright of their articles. All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).