Perpetrators of Child Abuse

62.3% of all child abuse is perpetrated by women

When it comes to adults who are involved in a caretaking role with regard to children, women are more often the perpetrators of child abuse than men. The data below were compiled by the US Department of Health and Human Services. The data below identify the perpetrators of child abuse. And it is worth noting that 62.3% of all child abuse is perpetrated by women, almost twice as much as perpetrated by men. In the area of sexual abuse, women account for 25.9%, and they account for 62.8% of child deaths.

Section 7 Perpetrators

SDC data describe perpetrators’ relationships to victims. DCDC case-level data describe the age and sex of perpetrators. In general, States follow Federal guidelines for defining a child abuse or neglect perpetrator. Under those guidelines, a perpetrator must be in a caretaking relationship to the abused or neglected child.

7.1 Relationship of Perpetrators to Victims (SDC)
Based on data from 39 States, 401,598 perpetrators (75.4 percent) were victims’ parents, and 54,573 (10.2 percent) were other relatives; 9,646 perpetrators (1.8 percent) were people in other caretaking relationships (e.g., foster parents, facility staff, and child care providers); and 66,915 perpetrators (12.6 percent) were noncaretakers or had an "unknown" relationship with the victim.

N=532,732 victims in 39 States.

7.2 Age and Sex of Perpetrators (DCDC)

DCDC data reveal that 184,152 perpetrators (62.3 percent) were female, and 111,473 (37.7 percent) were male (table 7–1). Perpetrators tended to be young, with 237,865 (80.5 percent) younger than 40 years old. Of the perpetrators, 122,569 (41.5 percent) were between 30 and 39 years old, the most frequent age category. Only 16,441 perpetrators (5.6 percent) were 50 years old or older, the least frequent age category.

Table 7–1 Perpetrators by Sex and Age (DCDC)


Age	Sex
		Male	Female	Total
19 years or younger	Count	9,177	9,882	19,059
	% within Age	48.2%	51.8%	100.0%
	% within Sex	8.2%	5.4%	6.4%
20 to 29 years old	Count	26,646	69,591	96,237
	% within Age	27.7%	72.3%	100.0%
	% within Sex	23.9%	37.8%	32.6%
30 to 39 years old	Count	45,958	76,611	122,569
	% within Age	37.5%	62.5%	100.0%
	% within Sex	41.2%	41.6%	41.5%
40 to 49 years old	Count	21,258	20,061	41,319
	% within Age	51.4%	48.6%	100.0%
	% within Sex	19.1%	10.9%	14.0%
50 years old or older	Count	8,434	8,007	16,441
	% within Age	51.3%	48.7%	100.0%
	% within Sex	7.6%	4.3%	5.6%
Total	Count	111,473	184,152	295,625
	% within Age	37.7%	62.3%	100.0%
	% within Sex	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

7.3 Type of Maltreatment and Sex of Perpetrators (DCDC)
DCDC data show that male perpetrators were associated with 74.1 percent (15,606) of sexual abuse victims. Female perpetrators were associated with 82.0 percent (4,716) of medical neglect victims and 73.9 percent (83,769) of neglect victims. Males and females were each associated with approximately half of physical abuse and psychological abuse victims (table 7–2).

7.4 Sex and Age of Fatality Perpetrators (DCDC)
Fatality perpetrators were younger than all perpetrators (table 7–3). Two hundred thirty-five (67.7 percent) were 29 years old or younger, compared to 115,296 (39.0 percent) of all perpetrators. Of the perpetrators age 29 or younger, 157 (66.8 percent) were female.

Table 7–2 Type of Maltreatment by Sex of Perpetrator (DCDC)


Type of Maltreatment		Perpetrator Sex
		Male	Female	Total
Physical Abuse	Count	18,960	20,115	39,075
	% within Type of Maltreatment	48.5%	51.5%	100.0%
	% within Sex	17.5%	12.0%	14.1%
Neglect	Count	29,587	83,769	113,356
	% within Type of Maltreatment	26.1%	73.9%	100.0%
	% within Sex	27.4%	49.8%	41.0%
Medical Neglect	Count	1,035	4,716	5,751
	% within Type of Maltreatment	18.0%	82.0%	100.0%
	% within Sex	1.0%	2.8%	2.1%
Sexual Abuse	Count	15,606	5,453	21,059
	% within Type of Maltreatment	74.1%	25.9%	100.0%
	% within Sex	14.4%	3.2%	7.6%
Psychological Abuse	Count	6,540	7,005	13,545
	% within Type of Maltreatment	48.3%	51.7%	100.0%
	% within Sex	6.0%	4.2%	4.9%
Other Abuse	Count	14,511	18,355	32,866
	% within Type of Maltreatment	44.2%	55.8%	100.0%
	% within Sex	13.4%	10.9%	11.9%
Multiple Maltreatments	Count	21,881	28,888	50,769
	% within Type of Maltreatment	43.1%	56.9%	100.0%
	% within Sex	20.2%	17.2%	18.4%
Total	Count	108,120	168,301	276,421
	% within Type of Maltreatment	39.1%	60.9%	100.0%
	% within Sex	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

Table 7–3 Perpetrators of Child Fatalities by Sex and Age (DCDC)

Fatality Perpetrator Age
		Perpetrator Sex
		Male	Female	Total
19 years or younger	Count	15	30	45
	% within Age	33.3%	66.7%	100.0%
	% within Sex	11.6%	13.8%	13.0%
20 to 29 years old	Count	63	127	190
	% within Age	33.2%	66.8%	100.0%
	% within Sex	48.8%	58.3%	54.8%
30 to 39 years old	Count	26	30	56
	% within Age	46.4%	53.6%	100.0%
	% within Sex	20.2%	13.8%	16.1%
40 to 49 years old	Count	20	16	36
	% within Age	55.6%	44.4%	100.0%
	% within Sex	15.5%	7.3%	10.4%
50 years old or older	Count	5	15	20
	% within Age	25.0%	75.0%	100.0%
	% within Sex	3.9%	6.9%	5.8%
Total	Count	129	218	347
	% within Age	37.2%	62.8%	100.0%
	% within Sex	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%