This descriptive longitudinal field study looks at risk factors in the etiology of child abuse and neglect among adolescent parents. The investigators examined sexual victimization prior to pregnancy as a major antecedent factor for child maltreatment. Pregnant and/or parenting adolescents were recruited from ongoing educational and social programs in the state of Washington between October 1988 and 1989. The sample consisted of 535 adolescent females who were 17 years old or younger at the time of their first pregnancy, and 21 years old or younger at the time they completed the survey. Follow-up data for this study were collected on 315 of these females between 1990 and 1991. The survey data describe respondents demographic characteristics, family background, pregnancies, parenting history, sexual histories, behavioral indicators of sexual victimization, physical maltreatment, and neglect. In addition, data were collected on parenting skills, attitudes, social support, sex roles and attitudes toward sexual activity. The data allow for examination of the inter-relationship between: 1) childhood sexual abuse, 2) adolescent pregnancy, and 3) child maltreatment by adolescent parents. The Archive distributes two data files for this study. One file contains the baseline data collected between 1988 and 1989 for all 540 participants in wave one. The second data file includes baseline and follow-up data for the 318 women who participated in both waves of the study.

Investigators: Boyer, D., & Fine, D.