Child abuse in Quebec 'affects thousands' under 5, says new report
Socio-economic factors, stress, mental health issues all contribute, Early Childhood Observatory finds
Substantiated reports of mistreatment of children aged five years or younger have increased by 27 per cent in the past decade, says a new study produced for the Montreal-based Early Childhood Observatory in collaboration with the Institut de la statistique du Québec.
Of the nearly 28,000 reports of abuse received by Quebec's youth protection authority in 2015-2016, 7,700 were substantiated — an increase of 27 per cent over 2007-2008, the report says.
That works out to around 20 new cases of abuse per day across the province — primarily neglect or physical mistreatment. That is,14.4 substantiated cases per 1,000 children in that age group.
More than 4,000 cases required intervention by youth protection officials, an increase of 20 per cent over the same period.
The study notes that many cases of maltreatment aren't reported to authorities, meaning the number of incidents of violent behaviour toward preschool-aged children is likely higher.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg," Fannie Dagenais, director of the Early Childhood Observatory, told CBC Wednesday.
'Serious concern for Quebec society'
Authored by four experts in the field, the report says maltreatment "includes all forms of neglect and abuse that could endanger a child's security, development, or physical and psychological integrity."
Quebec's Youth Protection Act says abandonment, neglect, psychological ill-treatment, sexual abuse and physical abuse are all considered forms of maltreatment.
"The maltreatment suffered by children aged five and under is a serious concern for Quebec society," reads the report.
"It affects thousands of these very young children, with potentially serious consequences for their present and future lives."
Lucie Charlebois, Quebec's minister responsible for youth protection, said the increase in the numbers suggest Quebecers are becoming more cognizent of what constitutes childhood abuse.
"Quebecers are becoming more sensitive to the vulnerability of children," she said in response to the study's findings.
Gina Gasparini, the head of Quebec's association of publicly funded daycares, said she believes the findings go hand-in-hand with reports that poverty is on the rise in Quebec.
"Poverty is one the situations that creates a home life that may lead to abuse and neglect, so this is not that surprising," she said.
She said one of the key challenges facing daycares in the Montreal area is finding better ways to reach families in vulnerable situations.
"Any family living under a huge stress factor [like poverty] is going to have an impact on the child."
Corporal punishment
To provide a more complete picture, the study also looking into findings from Quebec household surveys between 1999 and 2012 that asked about violent parental behaviour.
While noting a 12 per cent drop over that period in reports of minor physical violence — shaking of children over the age of two, spanking, slapping a hand, arm or leg, pinching — the report says one in two children under the age of five experienced such an act at least once between 2011 and 2012.
The percentage of children under five subjected to repeated acts of minor physical violence, defined as three or more times during a 12-month period, dropped from 29.7 per cent in 1999 to 16.9 per cent in 2012.
Repeated psychological abuse
The 2012 household survey also found nearly 60 per cent of children between the ages of three and five had experienced repeated incidents of psychological abuse, described as "shouting or screaming at a child, swearing, threatening to hit or abandon them or throw them out, or humiliating them."
"Approximately 204,000 children between the ages of six months and five years were victims of [repeated psychological abuse] during the 12 months preceding the 2012 survey," the report says.
The 2012 survey also showed that 26.5 per cent of children under five were exposed to violence against a partner and 26.6 per cent were exposed to multiple forms of violence, including minor violence and psychological abuse.
"In Quebec, one very young child out of four was subjected to repeated psychological abuse and minor physical violence in 2012," the study found.
Poverty, stress contribute to abuse
Numerous factors contribute to the rise in child mistreatment, the experts said: socio-economic conditions, parental stress, excessive use of drugs and alcohol by parents and parental mental health issues.
"Statistics show that many Quebec families are dealing with one or other of these situations," the report reads.
Dagenais said often, families are dealing with a combination of these factors.
"The more these conditions are reunited, the more the risks of maltreatment increase," she said.
Attitudes toward corporal punishment also factor in, the report says.
Quebec's 2012 household survey found two-thirds of fathers and 63 per cent of mothers with children between the age of six months and five years are in favour of corporal punishment.
"This situation is worrying," the report reads.
"Corporal punishment in the form of minor physical violence is associated with an increased risk of severe physical violence."
Recommendations
The report suggests preventive measures that could help curb maltreatment, including:
- Improved access to quality housing.
- Improved access to economic support.
- Media campaigns targeted at parental behaviours.
- More support for health and social service and/or educational professionals who work with parents.
- Access to quality daycare services.
- Improving the physical environment of neighbourhoods.
The Early Childhood Observatory (Observatoire des tout-petits) was launched in 2016, with funding from the Lucie and André Chagnon Foundation.
The following are all considered forms of maltreatment under Quebec's Youth Protection Act:
Abandonment: A situation in which a child's parents are deceased or fail to provide for the child's care, maintenance or education, and those responsibilities are not assumed by another person.
Psychological mistreatment: A situation in which a child is seriously or repeatedly subjected to behaviour on the part of the child's parents or another person that could cause harm to the child's psychological health, and his or her parents fail to take the necessary steps to put an end to the situation. Such behaviour includes indifference, denigration, emotional rejection, excessive control, isolation, threats, exploitation and exposure to conjugal or domestic violence.
Neglect: A situation in which the child's parents or the person who has custody of the child do not meet the child's basic needs, failing to meet his or her basic physical needs, failing to give the child the necessary care required for his or her physical or mental health, failing to provide him or her with the appropriate supervision or support, or failing to take the necessary steps to provide the child with schooling.
Physical abuse: A situation in which the child is the victim of bodily injury or is subjected to unreasonable methods of upbringing by his parents or another person, and the child's parents fail to take the necessary steps to put an end to the situation.
Sexual abuse: A situation in which the child is subjected to gestures of a sexual nature by the child's parents or another person, with or without physical contact, and the child's parents fail to take the necessary steps to put an end to the situation.
Source: Quebec's Youth Protection Act, cited by Early Childhood Observatory
With files from Jaela Bernstien and Salim Valji