Effect of gender on childhood maltreatment in the state of Qatar: Retrospective study

Background: International maltreatment studies show a range of results for overall rates of child maltreatment and gender differences. The ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tools (ICAST) were designed to reduce variability in data collection.

Objective: To investigate the influence of gender on the experiences of discipline and maltreatment in childhood among young people in Qatar, informingpractice and policy development.

Participants and setting: A representative sample of Qatari youth aged between 18 and 24 years were identified using a cross sectional random household survey. The total number of subjects was 697 of whom 46.8% were male.

Methods: Participants self-administered the ICAST-R (retrospective), which includes questions about exposure below the age of 18 to potentially abusive physical, psychological and sexual behaviors. Verbal consent was obtained following an introductory explanation and assurance ofconfidentiality.

Results: At least one form of physical abuse was reported by 22.1% of participants and was significantly higher among males (28.2%) than females (16.7%) p<0.001). A trend for greater abuse was identified among boys aged over five which become statistically significant between 10 -13 years (p=0.001). For psychological abuse the overall rates were very similar, 16.2% for girls and 15.0% for boys. Only 17 (2.5%) of participants reported sexual abuse, with no statistically significant gender difference.

Conclusions: Physical, psychological and sexual abuse all occur in Qatar. This study demonstrates the importance of identifying the role of gender and age when exploring the extent and nature of maltreatment in a population. It allows for better targeting of preventative action.