Compliance with Mandated Child Abuse Reporting

Despite being mandated to report child abuse, there is often a decision by physicians and teachers not to report suspected abuse. Fifty-six recently trained physicians and teachers were compared on rates and knowledge of child abuse reporting and responses to case vignettes of sexual abuse. T-tests demonstrated differences between the groups with physicians making significantly more reports and assisting in child abuse reporting more often than teachers. The training of both professionals was compared, and in general, the physicians reported receiving more adequate preservice and professional training in child abuse. These findings have implications for the development of future educational experiences for these professionals.