Survey Shows Staggering Amount of Children Are Victims of Violence - East Idaho News

Survey Shows Staggering Amount of Children Are Victims of Violence

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Getty 100912 ChildAbuseiStock?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1368646649063iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — A new survey found that a startling number of children and teenagers under the age of 18 have been the victims of physical violence in the last year.

According to a survey published in the journal Pediatrics, over 40 percent of U.S. children and adolescents were victims of violence, including more than 10 percent that suffered serious injuries.

The National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence included data concerning assault with and without weapons, attempted or completed kidnapping, dating violence and bias attacks. Bullying, threats or Internet attacks were considered non-violent problems and were excluded.

The survey found that 13.7 percent of young people experienced repeated violent incidents at the hands of a caregiver.

Additionally, two percent of children under the age of 17 responded saying they have been sexually assaulted or abused in the last year. That number was much higher, almost 11 percent, among girls between the ages of 14 and 17.

The authors of the survey believe that exposure to violence impacts both the individual child as well as having important societal effects. The authors also believe that intense tracking of children’s exposure to violence is an imperative first step.

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