The mediating role of housing insecurity in the relationship between neighborhood social cohesion and child maltreatment among low-income urban families

Background: Child abuse has deleterious impacts for children across their lifespan. Understanding the pathways in which child abuse occurs is critical for targeting prevention efforts. The trust and bonds between neighbors may play a preventive role against child abuse, with parents receiving support from those who are geographically close. Such relationships may guard against housing insecurity, which is related to child abuse.

Objective: The current study examines the relationships between social cohesion, housing insecurity, and child abuse.

Participants and setting: The study relies on data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal birth cohort study of 4898 families from 20 large urban cities. The study focuses on data from waves 3, 4, 5 when focal children were ages 3, 5, and 9 years.

Methods: Structural equation modeling is used to test the mediational relationship between neighborhood social cohesion at age 3, housing insecurity at age 5, and physical and psychological child abuse at age 9.

Results: The study found that social cohesion is related to lower levels of physical and psychological abuse, and these pathways are partially mediated through housing insecurity.

Conclusions: The findings underscore the important role of neighborhoods in child maltreatment prevention.