Specific, accurate understanding of the extent of maltreatment in Amer
ican society the nature of the maltreatment that occurs, and the conse
quences it has for children are crucial to inform policies regarding c
hild protection and to guide the design of prevention and treatment pr
ograms. This article examines how child abuse and neglect are defined
and discusses the controversies that surround that definition, which a
ttracts attention because it justifies government intervention to stop
actions by parents or caregivers that seriously harm children. The ar
ticle also presents statistics indicating how widespread maltreatment
is, reviews research on the characteristics of families that are more
prone to abuse or neglect, and summarizes knowledge about the impact o
f maltreatment on children. Finally, it mentions the efforts of public
child protective services agencies to responsibly ration calls on the
ir limited resources by using risk-assessment approaches to target sca
rce services to the children who need them the most.