Most school-based prevention curricula for young children fail to address multiple types of abuse and limit instruction to a single day, despite evidence that polyvictimization is common and children learn better when allowed to practice material repeatedly. This study utilized a cluster randomized control trial design to evaluate a multi-abuse prevention program, the Monique Burr Foundation for Children (MBF) Child Safety Matters®, based on varying lesson structure. Participants included nine Florida schools consisting of 843 children in grades K-2. Schools were randomized within cluster to implement in two lessons, four lessons, or after study data collection (i.e., control group). Lessons averaged 34 minutes (SD = 8.8 minutes) in length for 2-lesson group and 23.6 minutes (SD = 6.9 minutes) for the 4-lesson condition. Knowledge was assessed before implementation and on average 11 weeks after implementation. There were no statistical differences between clusters. Controlling for pre-test scores, schools in the four-lesson group scored highest on a measure of knowledge of potentially risky and unsafe situations (M = 69.68, SE = .80) on post-test, followed by schools in the two-lesson group (M = 67.31, SE = .77), followed by schools in the control group (M = 62.92, SE = .76). Results support use of more frequent, shorter lessons for prevention programs and the promise of addressing multiple forms of child victimization.
AllnockD.MillerP. (2013). No one noticed, no one heard: A study of disclosures of childhood abuse.
3.
BakerC. K.GleasonK.NaaiR.MitchellJ.TreckerC. (2013). Increasing knowledge of sexual abuse: A study with elementary school children in hawai ‘i. Research on Social Work Practice, 23(2), 167–178. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731512468796
4.
BlumbergE. J.ChadwickM. W.FogartyL. A.SpethT. W.ChadwickD. L. (1991). The touch discrimination component of sexual abuse prevention training: Unanticipated positive consequences. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 6(1), 12–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/088626091006001002
5.
BorrelliB.SepinwallD.ErnstD.BellgA. J.CzajkowskiS.BregerR.DeFrancescoC.LevesqueC.SharpD. L.OgedegbeG.ResnickB.OrwigD. (2005). A new tool to assess treatment fidelity and evaluation of treatment fidelity across 10 years of health behavior research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 73(5), 852–860. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006x.73.5.852
6.
BrightMASayedul HuqMPatelSMillerMDFinkelhorD (2022). Child safety matters: Randomized control trial of a school-based, child victimization prevention curriculum. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(1–2), 538–556.
7.
BrightM. A.ThompsonL. A. (2018). Association of adverse childhood experiences with co-occurring health conditions in early childhood. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 39(1), 37–45. https://doi.org/10.1097/dbp.0000000000000514
8.
CacioppoJ. T.PettyR. E. (1979). Effects of message repetition and position on cognitive response, recall, and persuasion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(1), 97–109. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.37.1.97
9.
CooheyC.RennerL. M.HuaL.ZhangY. J.WhitneyS. D. (2011). Academic achievement despite child maltreatment: A longitudinal study. Child Abuse and Neglect, 35(9), 688–699. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2011.05.009
10.
DarwishD.EsquivelG. B.HoutzJ. C.AlfonsoV. C. (2001). Play and social skills in maltreated and non-maltreated preschoolers during peer interactions☆. Child Abuse and Neglect, 25(1), 13–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0145-2134(00)00228-3
11.
DurlakJ. A.WeissbergR. P.DymnickiA. B.TaylorR. D.SchellingerK. B. (2011). The impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 82(1), 405–432. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x
12.
EvansC. B.FraserM. W.CotterK. L. (2014). The effectiveness of school-based bullying prevention programs: A systematic review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 19(5), 532–544. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2014.07.004
13.
FaggianoF.Vigna-TagliantiF. D.VersinoE.ZambonA.BorraccinoA.LemmaP. (2008). School-based prevention for illicit drugs use: A systematic review. Preventive Medicine, 46(5), 385–396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2007.11.012
14.
FinkelhorD.OrmrodR. K.TurnerH. A. (2007). Poly-victimization: A neglected component in child victimization. Child Abuse and Neglect, 31(1), 7–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2006.06.008
15.
FinkelhorD.TurnerH.OrmrodR.HambyS. L. (2010). Trends in childhood violence and abuse exposure: Evidence from 2 national surveys. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 164(3), 238–242. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.283
16.
FinkelhorD.TurnerH. A.ShattuckA.HambyS. L. (2013). Violence, crime, and abuse exposure in a national sample of children and youth: An update. JAMA Pediatrics, 167(7), 614–621. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2013.42
17.
FinkelhorD.VandermindenJ.TurnerH.ShattuckA.HambyS. (2014). Youth exposure to violence prevention programs in a national sample. Child Abuse and Neglect, 38(4), 677–686. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2014.01.010
18.
FonnerV. A.ArmstrongK. S.KennedyC. E.O’ReillyK. R.SweatM. D. (2014). School based sex education and HIV prevention in low-and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Plos One, 9(3), Article e89692. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0089692
19.
GaffneyH.TtofiM. M.FarringtonD. P. (2019). Evaluating the effectiveness of school-bullying prevention programs: An updated meta-analytical review. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 45, 111–133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2018.07.001
20.
GordonP. C.HolyoakK. J. (1983). Implicit learning and generalization of the“ mere exposure” effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(3), 492–500. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.45.3.492
JohnsonA. D.MartinA.Brooks-GunnJ.PetrillS. A. (2008). Order in the house! Associations among household chaos, the home literacy environment, maternal reading ability, and children’s early reading. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly (Wayne State University. Press), 54(4), 445. https://doi.org/10.1353/mpq.0.0009
23.
OldfieldD.HaysB. J.MegelM. E. (1996). Evaluation of the effectiveness of project trust: An elementary school-based victimization prevention strategy. Child Abuse and Neglect, 20(9), 821–832. https://doi.org/10.1016/0145-2134(96)00070-1
24.
PolaninJ. R.EspelageD. L.PigottT. D. (2012). A meta-analysis of school-based bullying prevention programs’ effects on bystander intervention behavior. School Psychology Review, 41(1), 47–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/02796015.2012.12087375
25.
PulidoM. L.DauberS.TullyB. A.HamiltonP.SmithM. J.FreemanK. (2015). Knowledge gains following a child sexual abuse prevention program among urban students: A cluster-randomized evaluation. American Journal of Public Health, 105(7), 1344–1350. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2015.302594
26.
RichardsM.WadsworthM. (2004). Long term effects of early adversity on cognitive function. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 89(10), 922–927. https://doi.org/10.1136/adc.2003.032490
27.
ScarboroughA. A.LloydE. C.BarthR. P. (2009). Maltreated infants and toddlers: Predictors of developmental delay. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 30(6), 489–498. https://doi.org/10.1097/dbp.0b013e3181c35df6
28.
SchmidtS.EisendM. (2015). Advertising repetition: A meta-analysis on effective frequency in advertising. Journal of Advertising, 44(4), 415–428. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2015.1018460
29.
SmetanaJ. G.SchlagmanN.AdamsP. W. (1993). Preschool children’s judgments about hypothetical and actual transgressions. Child Development, 64(1), 202–214. https://doi.org/10.2307/1131446
30.
SullivanP. M.KnutsonJ. F. (2000). Maltreatment and disabilities: A population-based epidemiological study. Child Abuse and Neglect, 24(10), 1257–1273. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0145-2134(00)00190-3
31.
TaberK. S. (2018). The use of Cronbach’s alpha when developing and reporting research instruments in science education. Research in Science Education, 48(6), 1273–1296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-016-9602-2
32.
TuckerC. J.FinkelhorD.TurnerH. (2019). Patterns of sibling victimization as predictors of peer victimization in childhood and adolescence. Journal of Family Violence, 34(8), 745–755. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-018-0021-1
33.
TurnerH. A.FinkelhorD.OrmrodR. (2010). Poly-victimization in a national sample of children and youth. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 38(3), 323–330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2009.11.012
UngarM.TuttyL. M.McConnellS.BarterK.FairholmJ. (2009). What Canadian youth tell us about disclosing abuse. Child Abuse and Neglect, 33(10), 699–708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2009.05.002
36.
WalshK.ZwiK.WoolfendenS.ShlonskyA. (2018). School-based education programs for the prevention of child sexual abuse: A cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis. Research on Social Work Practice, 28(1), 33–55. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731515619705
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
