Effects of childhood neglect on early adolescent violence: Exploring the mediating role of social bonds

Child maltreatment is a key risk factor for violent behavior in youth. Although neglect is the most prevalent form of childhood maltreatment, its contribution to development of violence is unclear, as is the potential mediating role of social bonds. This study assesses the relationship between childhood neglect before age 8 and the development of early adolescent violence (EAV) by age 14, and examines whether social bonds, defined according to Social Control Theory (SCT), mediate this relationship. Data came from interviews of children (n=352) from two LONGSCAN (Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect) Consortium sites. The outcome was self-reported perpetration of serious violence in the previous 12 months. Negative binomial regression models assessed the neglect-EAV relationship by examining incidence rate ratios (IRR). Specific indirect effects were examined to determine whether the SCT constructs (attachment, commitment, belief, involvement) mediated the neglect-EAV relationship. Only 11% (n=38) reported engagement in any EAV but nearly twice as many females (n=24) than males (n=14) reported EAV. The direct relationship between neglect and EAV was positive but not significant. Although social bonds did not significantly mediate the neglect-EAV relationship, weaker commitment (IRR=0.386; p=0.050) and attachment (IRR=0.412; p=0.040) predicted higher EAV rates and there was also a significant positive effect of peer criminality on the rate of EAV. Certain social bonds are influential on perpetration of violence in early teens. Efforts to facilitate strong attachments to caregivers, prosocial peers, and institutions should be considered as preventive strategies.