Poster Session #2: South UC Ballroom
Care-Giver CAPI and Personality: Predicting Child Abuse
Presentation Type
Poster
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Paul Silverman
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Psychology
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Previous research has identified several risk factors for child abuse perpetration. These risk factors include both demographic and certain personality characteristics. Another measure used for identifying child abuse perpetrators is the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI). The CAPI is a widely used screening tool for detecting risk of physical abuse by parents or primary caregivers (Begle, Dumas, Hanson, 2010). Previous research shows that this measure has an accuracy of between 45 and 90 percent. Can prediction accuracy of CAPI be increased by the additional analysis of perpetrator’s personality characteristics? Archival evaluation records of at-risk parents have been collected, coded, and examined for abuse potential. Using a sample of approximately 100 parental evaluations; composed of both abusers and non abusers. Personality characteristics that predict abuse were identified using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) and Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). In addition, demographic and CAPI information was collected. Personality dimensions were added to the demographic and CAPI predictors using regression analyses. We predicted a significant increase in accuracy in identifying child abusers using these personality measures. The results of this study might be applied in identifying perpetrators to prevent or reduce child abuse.
Category
Social Sciences
Care-Giver CAPI and Personality: Predicting Child Abuse
South UC Ballroom
Previous research has identified several risk factors for child abuse perpetration. These risk factors include both demographic and certain personality characteristics. Another measure used for identifying child abuse perpetrators is the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI). The CAPI is a widely used screening tool for detecting risk of physical abuse by parents or primary caregivers (Begle, Dumas, Hanson, 2010). Previous research shows that this measure has an accuracy of between 45 and 90 percent. Can prediction accuracy of CAPI be increased by the additional analysis of perpetrator’s personality characteristics? Archival evaluation records of at-risk parents have been collected, coded, and examined for abuse potential. Using a sample of approximately 100 parental evaluations; composed of both abusers and non abusers. Personality characteristics that predict abuse were identified using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) and Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). In addition, demographic and CAPI information was collected. Personality dimensions were added to the demographic and CAPI predictors using regression analyses. We predicted a significant increase in accuracy in identifying child abusers using these personality measures. The results of this study might be applied in identifying perpetrators to prevent or reduce child abuse.