| Abstract: | Selected characteristics of twenty‐seven confirmed cases of physical child abuse requiring hospitalization were compared with 105 confirmed cases of physical abuse not requiring hospitalization. Results indicate that there is a significant relationship between the age of the abused child and whether or not that child was hospitalized. Children under the age of three were most likely to be hospitalized as a result of abuse. Sex of child, total number of children in the family, age of the alleged perpetrator, sex of alleged perpetrator, and relationship of child to the alleged perpetrator were not found to be significantly related to hospitalization of the child. Implications are discussed for identifying children most in need of services in human service settings. |
