From data to definition

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Abstract
Researchers and practitioners working in the area of child maltreatment have been frustrated by the lack of a concise definition of maltreatment, especially psychological maltreatment. The study of child abuse, neglect, sexual abuse, and other forms of maltreatment has been impeded by the failure to establish a commonly accepted definition. Numerous definitions have been developed at different times, for very different purposes and by professionals from many different disciplines, but as Giovannoni (1989) noted, their only common feature is that they are vague and ambiguous. Not surprisingly, the research findings from the field are as varied as the heterogeneous samples of maltreating individuals being investigated. The lack of an operational definition of maltreatment greatly limits the generalizability of the research findings.