Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Association between Child Abuse and Health Risk Behaviors among Chinese College Students

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Child and Family Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Little is known about the link between child abuse and health risk behaviors among Chinese college students. This cross-sectional study examined the prevalence of child abuse and its relations with individual and clusters of health risk behaviors among Chinese college students. A total of 507 students participated in this survey. The prevalence of child abuse from the highest to the lowest was emotional neglect (53.9%), physical neglect (49.0%), emotional abuse (21.8%), physical abuse (18.3%), and sexual abuse (18.1%), respectively. Males were more likely to report child abuse than females (p < 0.01). For males, emotional abuse was associated with internet addiction [OR = 2.28; 95%CI (1.00, 5.20)] and suicidal behavior [OR = 12.47, 95%CI (2.61, 59.54)]; while sexual abuse was associated with internet addiction [OR = 2.30, 95%CI (1.14, 4.66)]. For females, emotional abuse was significantly associated with increased risks for self-harm behavior [OR = 15.03, 95%CI (3.59, 63.07)] and suicidal behavior [OR = 5.16, 95%CI (1.63, 16.40)]. Physical abuse was related to risks for internet addiction [OR = 2.50, 95%CI (1.03, 6.04)] significantly. Two-step cluster analysis showed that participants in clusters with more health risk behaviors reported higher scores of child abuse. These findings suggest that child abuse was associated with both individual and clustering of health risk behaviors among Chinese college students.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., Bremner, J. D., Walker, J. D., Whitfield, C., Perry, B. D., & Giles, W. H. (2006). The enduring effects of abuse and related adverse experiences in childhood. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 256, 174–186.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barth, J., Bermetz, L., Heim, E., Trelle, S., & Tonia, T. (2013). The current prevalence of child sexual abuse worldwide: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Public Health, 58, 469–483.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, D. P., & Fink, L. (1994). Childhood trauma questionnaire: A retrospective self-report manual. New York, NY: The Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, D. P., Stein, J. A., Newcomb, M. D., Walker, E., Pogge, D., Ahluvalia, T., & Zule, W. (2003). Development and validation of a brief screening version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Child Abuse & Neglect, 27, 169–190.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brener, N. D., Kann, L., McManus, T., Kinchen, S. A., Sundberg, E. C., & Ross, J. G. (2002). Reliability of the 1999 Youth Risk Behavior Survey Questionnaire. Journal of Adolescent Health, 31, 336–342.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Busch, V., Van Stel, H. F., Schrijvers, A. J. P., & de Leeuw, J. R. J. (2013). Clustering of health-related behaviors, health outcomes and demographics in Dutch adolescents: A cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health, 13(1118), 1–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Canan, F., Yildirim, O., Ustunel, T. Y., Sinani, G., Kaleli, A. H., Gunes, C., & Ataoglu, A. (2014). The relationship between internet addiction and body mass index in Turkish adolescents. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 17, 40–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cao, J., & Zhang, H. (2010). Research progression on measure scale of internet addiction disorder. China Journal of Health Psychology, 18, 2.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, J., Dunne, M. P., & Han, P. (2004). Child sexual abuse in China: A study of adolescents in four provinces. Child Abuse & Neglect, 28, 1171–1186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, J., Dunne, M. P., & Han, P. (2006). Child sexual abuse in Henan province, China: Associations with sadness, suicidality, and risk behaviors among adolescent girls. Journal of Adolescent Health 38, 544–549.

    Google Scholar 

  • de Bruijn, G. J., & van den Putte, B. (2009). Adolescent soft drink consumption, television viewing and habit strength. Investigating clustering effects in the Theory of Planned Behaviour. Appetite, 53, 66–75.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Felitti, V. J., Facp, Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., & Williamson, D. F. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14, 245–258.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fettes, D. L., & Aarons, G. A. (2011). Smoking behavior of US youths: A comparison between child welfare system and community populations. American Journal of Public Health, 101, 2342–2348.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kristman-Valente, A. N., Brown, E. C., & Herrenkohl, T. I. (2013). Child physical and sexual abuse and cigarette smoking in adolescence and adulthood. Journal of Adolescent Health, 53, 533–538.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Li, X., Wang, Z., Hou, Y., Wang, Y., Liu, J., & Wang, C. (2014). Effects of childhood trauma on personality in a sample of Chinese adolescents. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38, 788–796.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lin, D., Li, X., Fan, X., & Fang, X. (2011). Child sexual abuse and its relationship with health risk behaviors among rural children and adolescents in Hunan, China. Child Abuse & Neglect, 35, 680–687.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Littleton, H., Breitkopf, C. R., & Berenson, A. (2007). Sexual and physical abuse history and adult sexual risk behaviors: Relationships among women and potential mediators. Child Abuse & Neglect, 31, 757–768.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lp, P., Wong, R. S., Li, S. L., Chan, K. L., Ho, F. K., & Chow, C. (2016). Mental health consequences of childhood physical abuse in chinese populations: A meta-analysis. Trauma Violence Abuse, 17, 571–584.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Luo, Y., Parish, W. L., & Laumann, E. O. (2008). A population-based study of childhood sexual contact in China: Prevalence and long-term consequences. Child Abuse & Neglect, 32, 721–731.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niu, Y., Xue, Y., & Li, W. (2014). The childhood abuse experience of college students and its relationship with family factors. China Journal of Health Psychology, 22, 1900–1903.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patrick, M. E., Schulenberg, J. E., Martz, M. E., Maggs, J. L., O’Malley, P. M., & Johnston, L. D. (2013). Extreme binge drinking among 12th-grade students in the United States: Prevalence and predictors. JAMA Pediatr, 167, 1019–1025.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pelletier, J. E., Lytle, L. A., & Laska, M. N. (2016). Stress, health risk behaviors, and weight status among community college students. Health Education & Behavior, 43, 139–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roemmele, M., & Messman-Moore, T. L. (2011). Child abuse, early maladaptive schemas, and risky sexual behavior in college women. The Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 20, 264–283.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stallard, P., Spears, M., Montgomery, A. A., Phillips, R., & Sayal, K. (2013). Self-harm in young adolescents (12-16 years): onset and short-term continuation in a community sample. BMC Psychiatry, 13(328), 1–14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steptoe, A., Wardle, J., Cui, W., Bellisle, F., Zotti, A.-M., Baranyai, R., & Sanderman, R. (2002). Trends in smoking, diet, physical exercise, and attitudes toward health in European university students from 13 countries, 1990–2000. Preventive Medicine, 35, 97–104.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stoltenborgh, M., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., & van Ijzendoorn, M. H. (2013a). The neglect of child neglect: A meta-analytic review of the prevalence of neglect. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 48, 345–355.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stoltenborgh, M., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., van Ijzendoorn, M. H., & Alink, L. R. (2013b). Cultural-geographical differences in the occurrence of child physical abuse? A meta-analysis of global prevalence. International Journal of Psychology, 48, 81–94.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tang, C. S. (2002). Childhood exprience of sexual abuse among Hong Kong Chinese college students. Child Abuse & Neglect, 26, 23–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thayanukulvat, C., & Harding, T. (2015). Binge drinking and cognitive impairment in young people. British Journal of Nursing, 24, 401–407.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tran, Q. A., Dunne, M. P., Vo, T. V., & Luu, N. H. (2015). Adverse childhood experiences and the health of university students in eight provinces of Vietnam. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health, 27, 26S–32S.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wan, Y., Gao, R., Tao, X., Tao, F., & Hu, C. (2012). Relationship between deliberate self-harm and suicidal behaviors in college students. Chinese Journal Epidemiology, 33, 4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Xu, Y., & Chen, X. (2016). Protection motivation theory and cigarette smoking among vocational high school students in China: A cusp catastrophe modeling analysis. Global Health Research And Policy, 1, 3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Y., Huang, J., Li, C., Zhao, W., & Zhuang, X. (2016). Analysis on health risk behaviors and their influencing factors of 404 undergraduates. Journal of Medical Postgraduates, 29, 5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ye, Y. L., Wang, P. G., Qu, G. C., Yuan, S., Phongsavan, P., & He, Q. Q. (2015). Associations between multiple health risk behaviors and mental health among Chinese college students. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 21(3), 1–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, K. S. (2009). Internet addiction: The emergence of a new clinical disorder. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 1(3), 1–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, X., Zhang, Y., Li, L., & Zhou, Y. (2005). Evaluation on reliability and validity of Chinese version of childhood trauma questionnaire. Chinese Journal of Clinical Rehabilitation, 9, 105–107.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu, Q., Gao, E., Cheng, Y., Chuang, Y. L., Zabin, L. S., Emerson, M. R., & Lou, C. (2015). Child sexual abuse and its relationship with health risk behaviors among adolescents and young adults in Taipei. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health, 27, 643–651.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author's Contributions

H.Q.Q.: designed and executed the study, assisted with the data analyses, and wrote the paper. C.Y.L.: collaborated with the design, analyzed the data and writing of the study. L.X.: collaborated with the design, analyzed the data and writing of the study. H.Y.: analyzed the data and wrote part of the results. Y.H.J.: analyzed the data and wrote part of the results. Y.S.: collaborated with the design and writing of the study. Y.Y.L.: collaborated with the design and writing of the study. L.Q.X.: collaborated in the writing and editing of the final manuscript.

Author information

Author notes

    Authors and Affiliations

    1. School of Public Health, Wuhan University, Wuhan, P. R. China

      Yi-lin Chen, Xing Liu, Yao Huang, Hong-jie Yu, Shuai Yuan, Yong-ling Ye & Qi-qiang He

    2. Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA

      Qing-xiao Li

    3. Global Health Institute, Wuhan University, Wuhan, P. R. China

      Qi-qiang He

    Authors
    1. Yi-lin Chen
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    2. Xing Liu
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    3. Yao Huang
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    4. Hong-jie Yu
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    5. Shuai Yuan
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    6. Yong-ling Ye
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    7. Qing-xiao Li
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    8. Qi-qiang He
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    Corresponding author

    Correspondence to Qi-qiang He.

    Ethics declarations

    Conflict of Interest

    The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

    Ethical Approval

    All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

    Informed Consent

    Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

    Additional information

    Yi-lin Chen and Xing Liu contributed equally to this work.

    Rights and permissions

    Reprints and permissions

    About this article

    Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

    Cite this article

    Chen, Yl., Liu, X., Huang, Y. et al. Association between Child Abuse and Health Risk Behaviors among Chinese College Students. J Child Fam Stud 26, 1380–1387 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0659-y

    Download citation

    • Published:

    • Issue Date:

    • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0659-y

    Keywords

    Search

    Navigation