Abused rural children more likely than urban kids to be in families with high stress or money trouble

The types of child mistreatment in rural families tend to mirror those in urban families, but a new study from the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire suggests that high family stress and financial difficulties are more likely causes of child abuse and neglect in rural areas than they are in cities.

More than 60 percent of caregivers in rural America with a report of child maltreatment experience high family stress, compared with 50 percent in urban areas, Carsey reports. Almost one in three rural families reported to Child Protective Services are experiencing financial difficulties, compared to one in five families in urban areas. Drug use in homes of rural children reported to CPS is at eight percent compared to 13 percent in urban kids' homes.

Half of child-maltreatment reports in rural America are for neglect while about a quarter are for physical abuse, Carsey reports. Thirty-nine percent of rural children who are reportedly abused or neglected are in single-parent homes; among urban kids, the figure is 31 percent. For the study, "rural" was defined as all locations outside metropolitan areas. (Read more)