This report presents the major findings of the second cycle of the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS-2003). In this initiative, data are collected every five years on child maltreatment reported to, and investigated by, child welfare agencies in Canada. The CIS is a collaborative effort of many partners: the federal, provincial and territorial governments; university-based researchers; the First Nations Child & Family Caring Society; child advocacy groups; and most important, child welfare service providers across the country.

Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect. 2000.

Associations between domestic violence exposure and violent and prosocial behavior were tested in a sample of Colombian adolescents, with attention to impulsivity and substance use problems as mediators of these associations. A representative sample of 1,152 school youths and a convenience group of 148 juvenile offenders aged 11-19 years participated. Results using structural equation modeling showed indirect effects of impulsivity and substance use problems between family violence (i.e., exposure to interparental violence) and violent behavior. Maltreatment (i.e., harsh parenting) was directly associated with violent behavior, though impulsivity and substance use problems also mediated this relation. Maltreatment directly and inversely contributed to prosocial behavior but there was no evidence of mediation. Results are discussed in terms of cognitive and behavioral factors that explain violent and prosocial behavior among Colombian youths. Limitations and implications for prevention are described. Language: en

Domestic violence exposure in Colombian adolescents: Pathways to violent and prosocial behavior

http://www.redicces.org.sv:80/jspui/bitstream/10972/1671/1/Art%c3%adculo%202_%20Ju%c3%a1rezCristina_2013-1.pdf

Exploring child maltreatment and its relationship to alcohol and cannabis use in selected Latin American and Caribbean countries

Objectives

Although children are typically raised in familial care networks, not all children have access to kin. Here, I investigate the growth measures of children living in two different residential contexts in Jamaica: institutional care settings and familial homes.



Methods

This cross-sectional study sampled individuals ranging from 5–18 years old, residing in children's homes (N = 113 participants) and familial homes (N = 103 participants). Anthropometric measurements and interview data were collected from all participants. Height for age z-scores (ZHFA) and weight for age z-scores (ZWFA) were calculated using the 2007 WHO standards. Body fat was estimated from tricep and suprailiac skinfold thickness. Between group comparisons were completed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), with age included as a covariate. Significance was accepted at P ≤ 0.05.



Results

Context was more predictive of condition among children than adolescents. Both girls and boys ages 5–11 years living with family members had higher mean height and weight for age, and summed skinfold thickness measures, than their peers living in children's homes. Fewer correlations between home setting and growth measurements were found among 12–18 year olds. Notably, although children were randomly assigned to children's homes, boys in a single-sex institution did not differ in growth measurements from boys living with family members.



Conclusions

Younger children who lived with family members had better growth measurements than their peers living in institutional settings. However, improved growth measures for children living in one home were correlated to nonconventional counseling practices, and nutritional policies that mirror some aspects of familial care. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Residential context, institutional alloparental care, and child growth in Jamaica.

Background and Objectives
Young adults might engage in many risk behaviors, including alcohol and drug use, which could lead to mental health problems, such as suicide. The aim of this study was to examine specific psychosocial and clinical factors that could influence the possible relationship between polysubstance use (PSU) and suicide risk in a sample of young Colombian participants.

Methods
A sample of 274 young participants (mean age = 21.3 years) was evaluated with two substance use screening tests (ASSIST and AUDIT) and five scales for clinical and psychosocial factors and suicide risk: The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale, Zung Self-Rating Anxiety scale, Family APGAR, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and the Plutchik Suicide Risk scale. Correlation and multiple regression analyses were conducted.

Results
Use of cannabis and tobacco was significantly correlated with suicide risk in the total sample (p < .05). Depressive and anxiety symptoms, family functioning, and emotional abuse during childhood were significantly associated with suicide risk (p < .001), while alcohol use, anxiety symptoms, and family functioning were variables significantly related to PSU.

Discussion and Conclusions
Our findings are consistent with previous evidence suggesting a relationship between substance use, several psychosocial factors, and suicide risk in young participants.

Scientific Significance
Our study is one of the first reports the relationship between substance use and suicide risk in a Latin American population. (Am J Addict 2017;XX:1–7)

Substance use and suicide risk in a sample of young Colombian adults: An exploration of psychosocial factors.

Child maltreatment and substance abuse are both international public health priorities. Research shows that child maltreatment increases the risk for substance use and problems. Thus, recognition of this relationship may have important implications for substance demand reduction strategies, including efforts to prevent and treat substance use and related problems. Latin America and the Caribbean is a rich and diverse region of the world with a large range of social and cultural influences. To date, relatively little work has addressed the link between child maltreatment and substance use in the region. A working group constituted by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in June, 2010 identified this area as a priority area for a multinational research partnership. This paper summarizes existing information on drug use and child maltreatment in six participating countries, Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama and Uruguay, and considers the implications of child maltreatment prevention for demand reduction strategies to address substance use issues. A CICAD/CAMH-sponsored multinational research partnership has been formed, which will involve research on the link between child maltreatment and substance misuse, expertise exchange and resource sharing.

Marlon O. Meléndez

Papers

Child Maltreatment and Its Relationship to Drug Use in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Overview and Multinational Research Partnership