Longitudinal Studies on Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) ages 0-18

LONGSCAN is a consortium of research studies operating under common by-laws and procedures. It was initiated in 1991 with grants from the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect to a coordinating center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and five data collection sites. Each site is conducting a separate and unique research project on the etiology and impact of child maltreatment. While each project can stand on its own merits, through the use of common assessment measures, similar data collection methods and schedules, and pooled analyses, LONGSCAN is a collaborative effort that is truly greater than the sum of its parts. The goal of LONGSCAN is to follow the 1300+ children and their families until the children themselves become young adults. Maltreatment data are collected from multiple sources, including review of Child Protective Service records every two years. Yearly telephone interviews allow the sites to track families and assess yearly service utilization and important life events. In addition to the specific focus of the individual studies, the coordinated LONGSCAN design permits a comprehensive exploration of many critical issues in child abuse and neglect on a combined sample of sufficient size for unprecedented statistical power and flexibility. Built into the LONGSCAN design is also the ability to replicate and extend findings across a variety of ethnic, social and economic subgroups. The findings of LONGSCAN will provide a scientific basis for policy-making, program planning, and targeting service delivery by increasing our understanding of the following: the child, family, and community factors which increase the risk for maltreatment in its different forms;the differential consequences of maltreatment, depending upon its timing, duration, severity, and nature, and upon the child's age and cultural environment; the child, family, and community factors (e.g., chronic exposure to violence, parental substance abuse) that increase the harm caused by different forms of maltreatment;the factors that increase the probability of positive child outcomes despite maltreatment and other adverse life circumstances;the strengths and weaknesses of various societal interventions such as child welfare programs, foster care, mental health services, parenting classes, etc. Some of the sites are involved in intervention research and evaluation of services, expediting the integration of research findings into policy and practice.Researchers who order the LONGSCAN data from NDACAN should http://www.ndacan.cornell.edu/user-support/user-support-longscan.cfm">review the LONGSCAN user support information.

LONGSCAN是一个遵循统一章程与操作流程的研究合作联盟。该项目于1991年启动，由美国国家儿童虐待与忽视研究中心（National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect）向北卡罗来纳大学教堂山分校的协调中心与五个数据采集站点提供资助。每个站点均针对儿童虐待的病因学与影响开展独立且独具特色的研究项目。尽管各项目均可独立开展，但通过采用统一的评估工具、相似的数据采集方法与时间安排，并开展合并分析，LONGSCAN成为了一项真正实现「整体大于部分之和」的协同研究工作。

LONGSCAN的核心目标是对1300余名儿童及其家庭进行长期追踪，直至这些儿童成长为年轻成年人。虐待相关数据通过多渠道采集，包括每两年一次的儿童保护服务记录审查。年度电话访谈则用于协助各站点追踪家庭动态，评估年度服务使用情况与重要生活事件。

除各研究项目的特定聚焦方向外，协同化的LONGSCAN研究设计还允许基于足够庞大的合并样本，全面探索儿童虐待与忽视领域的诸多关键议题，从而获得前所未有的统计效力与研究灵活性。该研究设计同时支持在不同种族、社会与经济亚组中对研究发现进行重复验证与拓展。

LONGSCAN的研究成果将为政策制定、项目规划与服务递送靶向化提供科学依据，具体通过加深我们对以下领域的理解实现：不同类型儿童虐待的风险影响因素，包括儿童、家庭与社区层面的相关因素；儿童虐待的差异化后果，这取决于虐待发生的时机、持续时长、严重程度、性质，以及儿童的年龄与文化环境；加剧不同类型虐待所造成伤害的相关因素，例如长期暴露于暴力、父母物质滥用等儿童、家庭与社区层面的因素；即便遭遇虐待与其他不利生活境遇，仍能提升儿童积极发展结局的相关因素；各类社会干预措施的优势与局限，例如儿童福利项目、寄养照料、心理健康服务、家长课程等。部分站点还参与了干预研究与服务评估工作，以加速将研究成果融入政策与实践当中。

如需从国家儿童虐待与忽视数据库（NDACAN）获取LONGSCAN数据的研究者，请查阅LONGSCAN用户支持信息，访问网址：http://www.ndacan.cornell.edu/user-support/user-support-longscan.cfm。