This volume was prepared under the impetus of desperate need in academic institutions and clinical and social services for a comprehensive introduction to the diverse theories about child abuse and neglect etiologies. Although history documents maltreatment of children since the beginning of human civilization, formal recognition of the problem has been relatively recent. During the past three decades, professionals in various fields, especially medicine, psychiatry, social work, law, sociology, and psychology, have been involved in the identification, treatment, and prevention of child victimization and its detrimental consequences. In studying the etiology of child maltreatment, many theoretical viewpoints have been proposed in the literature and used for clinical practice as well as academic research.

The current work represents a comprehensive evaluation and integration of diverse theorizations concerning the abuse and neglect of children. The authors have compiled more than 40 theories, models, and perspectives from the literature. As the subtitle suggests, they describe individual theories, summarize across different theoretical views, and evaluate the current status of those theorizations. This volume is intended for three distinct audiences: practitioners, researchers, and the general public. Clinical practitioners will find it a source of strategies that can be applied in clinical settings. By documenting the absence of comprehensive, multidiscipinary-oriented theory development, it will encourage researchers toward refining existing theories through integration with other theoretical perspectives. For the general public, it provides insight into a troubling social problem.