Abuse and neglect correlates of poor mental health among 15-year-old schoolchildren in a southeast European country.

BACKGROUND

Child abuse and neglect (CAN) constitutes a global public health problem and has serious adverse effects on mental health across the lifespan.

OBJECTIVE

We assessed the independent CAN correlates of poorer mental health among adolescents in a Southeastern European country.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

A cross-sectional study was conducted in Albania in 2022 including a nationwide representative sample of 1877 schoolchildren aged 15 years (55 % girls; response: 96 %), in the context of the HBSC survey.

METHODS

Data on mental health indices (World Health Organization [WHO]-5 wellbeing index; Generalized Anxiety Disorder [GAD]-7; self-efficacy) and lifetime CAN (physical, emotional, sexual abuse; emotional neglect; witnessing of family violence) were collected, along with information on schoolchildren's behavioral factors and their sociodemographic characteristics. General linear model and binary logistic regression were used to assess the independent CAN correlates of children's mental health indices.

RESULTS

Irrespective of behavioral factors and sociodemographic characteristics, schoolchildren who reported any type of lifetime CAN exhibited significantly poorer mental health scores than those who were never abused or neglected. The strongest associations concerned emotional abuse and/or neglect, which were also highly statistically significant (all P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

We obtained evidence on independent, strong, and consistent associations between poorer mental health and an array of lifetime CAN indices among 15-year-old children in post-communist Albania. Our findings emphasize the critical need for targeted interventions and support systems to address the possible consequences of CAN on mental wellbeing of adolescents worldwide. In particular, there is need for enhancing primary prevention of CAN.