The Integrated Modelled Theory of Child Abuse: Using Bayesian Networks System to Better Understand, Prevent, Reduce and Manage Child Abuse in South Africa

The Integrated Modelled Theory of Child Abuse: Using Bayesian Networks system to better understand, prevent, reduce and manage child abuse in South Africa. This book presents the Integrated Modelled Theory of Child Abuse (IMT) as a new paradigm in child abuse research, understanding, prevention, reduction and management. The IMT shows that there is no single factor or theory that causes child abuse. Instead, many factors and theories contribute equally to child abuse and their combination explains child abuse better. The IMT also proves that prevention, reduction and management actions against child abuse are ineffective and unsuccesful because of the underestimation and/or overestimation of some factors and theories over others. As a solution, through the Bayesian Networks system, the IMT defines, links and quantifies (probabilities) links between different factors and theories contributing to child abuse to facilitate a clear understanding of child abuse and consequently promote a theory and evidence-based support for policies, laws, practices and programmes for effective and succesful prevention, reduction and management of child abuse in South Africa