Changing spectrum of serious child abuse

To the Editor.— Child abuse and neglect is receiving considerable attention in both the scholarly and popular press. The acknowledgment of this problem, however, represents an admission of social failure, and explanations frequently serve as displacement mechanisms, value justifications, or support for agendas unrelated to child abuse and neglect. In an area currently receiving widespread media attention, it is crucial that research used to justify policy recommendations be clearly conceptualized, well supported by the data, and rigorously critiqued, both inhouse and in the public arena.