Despite growing research into human-nonhuman animal relationships, little is known about childhood cruelty to nonhuman animals. The purpose of this review was to investigate the potential psychological risk factors for childhood cruelty to animals. The aim was to assemble, synthesize, and evaluate the quality and breadth of existing empirical research and highlight areas in need of further study. The review reveals a myriad of potential psychological risk factors associated with childhood animal cruelty, but highlights the decrease in publications on this topic over time and the lack of high-quality publications. Investigating the factors underlying cruel behavior toward animals has great implications for animal welfare and child wellbeing, and is vital for designing and implementing successful universal and targeted interventions to prevent cruelty to animals.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
Achenbach T. , Manual for the child behavior checklist/4-18 and 1991 profile , (University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry , Burlington 1991 ).
American Psychiatric Association , Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders , (Washington, DC 2013 ).
Arluke A., Levin J., Luke C. & Ascione F. , 'The relationship of animal abuse to violence and other forms of antisocial behavior ' (1999 ) 14 (9 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 963 -975 .
Ascione F. R. , 'Children who are cruel to animals: A review of research and implications for developmental psychopathology ' (1993 ) 6 (4 ) Anthrozoös : 226 -247 .
Ascione F. R. , 'Battered women’s reports of their partners’ and their children’s cruelty to animals ' (1997 ) 1 (1 ) Journal of Emotional Abuse : 119 -133 .
Ascione F. R. , 'Animal abuse and youth violence ' (2001 ) us Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention .
Ascione F. R. , Children and animals: Exploring the roots of kindness and cruelty , (Purdue University Press , West Lafayette 2005 ).
Ascione F. R. & Arkow P. , Child abuse, domestic violence, and animal abuse: Linking the circles of compassion for prevention and intervention , (Purdue University Press , 1999 ).
Ascione F. R., Friedrich W. N., Heath J. & Hayashi K. , 'Cruelty to animals in normative, sexually abused, and outpatient psychiatric samples of 6-to 12-year-old children: Relations to maltreatment and exposure to domestic violence ' (2003 ) 16 (3 ) Anthrozoös : 194 -212 .
Ascione F. R., Thompson T. M. & Black T. , 'Childhood cruelty to animals: Assessing cruelty dimensions and motivations ' (1997 ) 10 (4 ) Anthrozoös : 170 -177 .
Ascione F. R. & Weber C. , Battered partner shelter survey (BPSS) , (Utah State University , Logan 1995 ).
Baldry A. C. , 'The development of the pet scale for the measurement of physical and emotional tormenting against animals in adolescents ' (2004 ) 12 (1 ) Society & Animals : 1 -17 .
Baldry A. C. , 'Animal abuse among preadolescents directly and indirectly victimized at school and at home ' (2005 ) 15 (2 ) Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health : 97 -110 .
Becker K. D., Stuewig J., Herrera V. M. & McCloskey L. A. , 'A study of firesetting and animal cruelty in children: Family influences and adolescent outcomes ' (2004 ) 43 (7 ) Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry : 905 -912 .
Boat B. W. , Boat inventory on animal-related experiences , (University of Cincinnati , Cincinnati, OH 1994 ).
Boat B. W., Pearl E., Barnes J. E., Richey L., Crouch D., Barzman D. & Putnam F. W. , 'Childhood cruelty to animals: Psychiatric and demographic correlates ' (2011 ) 20 (7 ) Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma : 812 -819 .
(2008 ) 34 (2 ) Journal of Child Psychotherapy : 278 -290 doi: 10.1080/00754170802208081. Clinical Commentary .
Compas B. E., Hinden B. R. & Gerhardt C. A. , 'Adolescent development: Pathways and processes of risk and resilience ' (1995 ) 46 (1 ) Annual Review of Psychology : 265 -293 .
Currie C. L. , 'Animal cruelty by children exposed to domestic violence ' (2006 ) 30 (4 ) Child Abuse & Neglect : 425 -435 .
Dadds M. R., Whiting C. & Hawes D. J. , 'Associations among cruelty to animals, family conflict, and psychopathic traits in childhood ' (2006 ) 21 (3 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 411 -429 .
Dadds M. R., Whiting C., Bunn P., Fraser J. A., Charlson J. H. & Pirola-Merlo A. , 'Measurement of cruelty in children: The cruelty to animals inventory ' (2004 ) 32 (3 ) Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology : 321 -334 .
DeGue S. & DiLillo D. , 'Is animal cruelty a “red flag” for family violence? Investigating co-occurring violence toward children, partners, and pets ' (2008 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence doi: 10.1177/0886260508319362. .
Duncan A., Thomas J. C. & Miller C. , 'Significance of family risk factors in development of childhood animal cruelty in adolescent boys with conduct problems ' (2005 ) 20 (4 ) Journal of Family Violence : 235 -239 .
Felthous A. R. , 'Aggression against cats, dogs and people ' (1980 ) 10 (3 ) Child Psychiatry and Human Development : 169 -177 .
Felthous A. R. & Kellert S. R. , 'Violence against animals and people: Is aggression against living creatures generalized? ' (1986 ) 14 (1 ) Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online : 55 -69 .
Flynn C. P. , 'Animal abuse in childhood and later support for interpersonal violence in families ' (1999 ) 7 (2 ) Society & Animals : 161 -172 .
Frick P. J., Cornell A. H., Barry C. T., Bodin S. D. & Dane H. E. , 'Callous-unemotional traits and conduct problems in the prediction of conduct problem severity, aggression, and self-report of delinquency ' (2003 ) 31 Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology : 457 -470 .
Friedrich W. N. , Child Sexual Behavior Inventory: Professional Manual , (Psychological Assessment Resources , Odessa, FL 1997 ).
Furnham A., McManus C. & Scott D. , 'Personality, empathy and attitudes to animal welfare ' (2003 ) 16 (2 ) Anthrozoös : 135 -146 .
Gleyzer R., Felthous A. R. & Holzer C. E. , 'Animal cruelty and psychiatric disorders ' (2002 ) 30 (2 ) Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online : 257 -265 .
Gullone E. & Robertson N. , 'The relationship between bullying and animal abuse behaviors in adolescents: The importance of witnessing animal abuse ' (2008 ) 29 (5 ) Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology : 371 -379 .
Gupta M. , 'Functional links between intimate partner violence and animal abuse: Personality features and representations of aggression ' (2008 ) 16 (3 ) Society & Animals : 223 -242 .
Guymer E. C., Mellor D., Luk E. S. & Pearse V. , 'The development of a screening questionnaire for childhood cruelty to animals ' (2001 ) 42 (8 ) Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry : 1057 -1063 .
Hardt J. & Rutter M. , 'Validity of adult retrospective reports of adverse childhood experiences: Review of the evidence ' (2004 ) 45 (2 ) Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry : 260 -273 .
Hawkins R. D. & Williams J. M. , 'Children’s attitudes towards animal cruelty ', in 11th International Conference on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology , (London 2016a ) 18 -20 .
Hawkins R. & Williams J. M. , 'Children’s beliefs about animal minds (Child-bam): Associations with positive and negative child-animal interactions ' (2016b ) 29 Anthrozoös : 503 -519 .
Hawkins R. & Williams J. M. , 'Assessing effectiveness of nonhuman animal welfare education program for primary school children ' () Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science Scottish spca. (in press) .
Henry B. C. , 'The relationship between animal cruelty, delinquency, and attitudes toward the treatment of animals ' (2004 ) 12 (3 ) Society & Animals : 185 -207 .
Henry B. C. , 'Empathy, home environment, and attitudes toward animals in relation to animal abuse ' (2006 ) 19 (1 ) Anthrozoös : 17 -34 .
Henry B. C. & Sanders C. E. , 'Bullying and animal abuse: Is there a connection? ' (2007 ) 15 (2 ) Society & Animals : 107 -126 .
Hensley C. & Tallichet S. E. , 'Animal cruelty motivations assessing demographic and situational influences ' (2005a ) 20 (11 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 1429 -1443 .
Hensley C. & Tallichet S. E. , 'Learning to be cruel? Exploring the onset and frequency of animal cruelty ' (2005b ) 49 (1 ) International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology : 37 -47 .
Hensley C., Tallichet S. E. & Dutkiewicz E. L. , 'Examining demographic and situational factors on animal cruelty motivations ' (2011 ) 55 (3 ) International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology : 492 -502 .
Hills A. M. , 'Empathy and belief in the mental experience of animals ' (1995 ) 8 (3 ) Anthrozoös : 132 -142 .
Hodges K., McKnew D., Cytryn L., Stern L. & Kline J. , 'The Child Assessment Schedule (cas) diagnostic interview: A report on reliability and validity ' (1982 ) 21 (5 ) Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry : 468 -473 .
Kavanagh P. S., Signal T. D. & Taylor N. , 'The Dark Triad and animal cruelty: Dark personalities, dark attitudes, and dark behaviors ' (2013 ) 55 (6 ) Personality and Individual Differences : 666 -670 .
Kellert S. R. & Felthous A. R. , 'Childhood cruelty toward animals among criminals and noncriminals ' (1985 ) 38 (12 ) Human Relations : 1113 -1129 .
Knight K. E., Ellis C. & Simmons S. B. , 'Parental predictors of children’s animal abuse findings from a national and intergenerational sample ' (2014 ) 29 (16 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 3014 -3034 .
Knight S., Vrij A., Cherryman J. & Nunkoosing K. , 'Attitudes towards animal use and belief in animal mind ' (2004 ) 17 (1 ) Anthrozoös : 43 -62 .
Kruesi M. J. , 'Cruelty to animals and csf 5HIAA ' (1989 ) 28 (1 ) Psychiatry Research : 115 -116 .
Landis J. R. & Koch G. G. , 'The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data ' (1977 ) 33 (1 ) Biometrics : 159 -174 .
Lewchanin S. & Randour M. L. , 'Assessing children’s experiences with animal cruelty: Assessment, treatment, community needs, and policy considerations ', in F. Ascione (ed), The International Handbook of Animal Abuse and Cruelty: Theory, Research, and Application , (Purdue University Press , West Lafayette, IN 2008 ).
Lockwood R. , F. R. Ascione (ed), Cruelty to Animals and Interpersonal Violence: Reading in Research and Application , (Purdue University Press , West Lafayette, IN 1998 ).
Lucia S. & Killias M. , 'Is animal cruelty a marker of interpersonal violence and delinquency? Results of a Swiss national self-report study ' (2011 ) 1 (2 ) Psychology of Violence : 93 -105 .
Luk E. S., Staiger P. K., Wong L. & Mathai J. , 'Children who are cruel to animals: A revisit ' (1999 ) 33 (1 ) Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry : 29 -36 .
McCardle P., Mccune S., Griffin J. A. & Maholmes V. , (2011 ) How Animals Affect Us: Examining the Influence of Human–Animal Interaction on Child Development and Human Health American Psychological Association. .
McEwen F. S., Moffitt T. E. & Arseneault L. , 'Is childhood cruelty to animals a marker for physical maltreatment in a prospective cohort study of children? ' (2014 ) 38 (3 ) Child Abuse & Neglect : 533 -543 .
McPhedran S. , 'A review of the evidence for associations between empathy, violence, and animal cruelty ' (2009 ) 14 (1 ) Aggression and Violent Behavior : 1 -4 .
Mellor D. & Yeow J. , 'The relationship between childhood cruelty to animals and psychological adjustment: A Malaysian study ' (2008 ) 21 (4 ) Anthrozoös : 363 -374 .
Merz-Perez L. & Heide K. M. , Animal cruelty: Pathway to violence against people , (Rowman Altamira , 2003 ).
Miller C. , 'Childhood animal cruelty and interpersonal violence ' (2001 ) 21 (5 ) Clinical Psychology Review : 735 -749 .
Miller K. S. & Knutson J. F. , 'Reports of severe physical punishment and exposure to animal cruelty by inmates convicted of felonies and by university students ' (1997 ) 21 (1 ) Child Abuse & Neglect : 59 -82 .
Moher D., Liberati A., Tetzlaff J. & Altman D. G. , 'Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement ' (2009 ) 151 (4 ) Annals of Internal Medicine : 264 -269 doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-151-4-200908180-00135. .
M. E. O’Connell, T. Boat & K. E. Warner (eds), Preventing Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Disorders Among Young People: Progress and Possibilities , (National Academies Press , 2009 ).
Oleson J. C. & Henry B. C. , 'Relations among need for power, affect and attitudes toward animal cruelty ' (2009 ) 22 (3 ) Anthrozoös : 255 -265 .
Overton J. C., Hensley C. & Tallichet S. E. , 'Examining the relationship between childhood animal cruelty motives and recurrent adult violent crimes toward humans ' (2011 ) 27 (5 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 899 -915 .
Patrick M., Hobson R. P., Castle D., Howard R. & Maughan B. , 'Personality disorder and the mental representation of early social experience ' (1994 ) 6 Development and Psychopathology : 375 -388 .
Ressler R. K., Burgess A. W., Hartman C. R., Douglas J. E. & McCormack A. , 'Murderers who rape and mutilate ' (1986 ) 1 (3 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 273 -287 .
Rogeness G. A., Hernandez J. M., Macedo C. A., Mitchell E. I., Amrung S. A. & Harris W. R. , 'Clinical characteristics of emotionally disturbed boys with very low activities of dopamine-β-hydroxylase ' (1984 ) 23 (2 ) Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry : 203 -208 .
Rosell D. R. & Siever L. J. , 'The neurobiology of aggression and violence ' (2015 ) 20 (3 ) CNS Spectrums : 254 -279 .
Sakheim G. A., Osborn E. & Abrams D. , 'Toward a clearer differentiation of high-risk from low-risk fire-setters ' (1991 ) 70 (4 ) Child Welfare: Journal of Policy, Practice, and Program : 489 -503 .
Saks M. & Allsop J. , Researching Health: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods , (SAGE Publications Ltd , 2007 ).
Sanders C. E., Henry B. C., Giuliani C. N. & Dimmer L. N. , 'Bullies, victims, and animal abusers: Do they exhibit similar behavioral difficulties? ' (2013 ) 21 (3 ) Society & Animals : 225 -239 .
Schiffman L. G. & Kanuk L. L. , Consumer Behavior , (Prentice Hall , Englewood Cliffs, NJ 2004 ).
Serpell J. , In the Company of Animals: A Study of Human-Animal Relationships , (Cambridge University Press , 1996 ).
Shapiro H. L., Prince J. B., Ireland R. & Stein M. T. , 'A dominating imaginary friend, cruelty to animals, social withdrawal, and growth deficiency in a 7-year-old girl with parents with schizophrenia ' (2006 ) 27 (3 ) Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Paediatrics : 231 -236 .
Signal T., Ghea V., Taylor N. & Acutt D. , 'When do psychologists pay attention to children harming animals? ' (2013 ) 1 (2 ) Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin : 82 -97 .
Sirriyeh R., Lawton R., Gardner P. & Armitage G. , 'Reviewing studies with diverse designs: The development and evaluation of a new tool ' (2012 ) 18 (4 ) Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice : 746 -752 .
Sverd J., Sheth R., Fuss J. & Levine J. , 'Prevalence of pervasive developmental disorder in a sample of psychiatrically hospitalized children and adolescents ' (1994 ) 25 (4 ) Child Psychiatry and Human Development : 221 -240 .
Tapia F. , 'Children who are cruel to animals ' (1971 ) 2 (2 ) Child Psychiatry and Human Development : 70 -77 .
Thompson K. L. & Gullone E. , 'Promotion of empathy and prosocial behaviour in children through humane education ' (2003 ) 38 (3 ) Australian Psychologist : 175 -182 .
Thompson K. L. & Gullone E. , 'An investigation into the association between the witnessing of animal abuse and adolescents’ behavior toward animals ' (2006 ) 14 (3 ) Society & Animals : 221 -243 .
Thompson K. L. & Gullone E. , 'Prosocial and antisocial behaviors in adolescents: An investigation into associations with attachment and empathy ' (2008 ) 21 (2 ) Anthrozoös : 123 -137 .
Vaughn M. G., Fu Q., Beaver K. M., DeLisi M., Perron B. E. & Howard M. O. , 'Effects of childhood adversity on bullying and cruelty to animals in the United States: Findings from a national sample ' (2011 ) 26 (17 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 3509 -3525 .
Vaughn M. G., Fu Q., DeLisi M., Beaver K. M., Perron B. E., Terrell K. & Howard M. O. , 'Correlates of cruelty to animals in the United States: Results from the national epidemiologic survey on alcohol and related conditions ' (2009 ) 43 (15 ) Journal of Psychiatric Research : 1213 -1218 .
Volant A. M., Johnson J. A., Gullone E. & Coleman G. J. , 'The relationship between domestic violence and animal abuse an Australian study ' (2008 ) 23 (9 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 1277 -1295 .
Walters G. D. & Noon A. , 'Family context and externalizing correlates of childhood animal cruelty in adjudicated delinquents ' (2015 ) 30 (8 ) Journal of Interpersonal Violence : 1369 -1386 .
Wong J., Mellor D., Richardson B. & Xu X. , 'Childhood cruelty to animals in China: The relationship with psychological adjustment and family functioning ' (2013 ) 39 (5 ) Child: Care, Health and Development : 668 -675 .
World Health Organization , (2004 ) Vol. 1 International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems Author. .
All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 3107 | 561 | 39 |
Full Text Views | 496 | 39 | 1 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 325 | 64 | 0 |
Despite growing research into human-nonhuman animal relationships, little is known about childhood cruelty to nonhuman animals. The purpose of this review was to investigate the potential psychological risk factors for childhood cruelty to animals. The aim was to assemble, synthesize, and evaluate the quality and breadth of existing empirical research and highlight areas in need of further study. The review reveals a myriad of potential psychological risk factors associated with childhood animal cruelty, but highlights the decrease in publications on this topic over time and the lack of high-quality publications. Investigating the factors underlying cruel behavior toward animals has great implications for animal welfare and child wellbeing, and is vital for designing and implementing successful universal and targeted interventions to prevent cruelty to animals.
All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 3107 | 561 | 39 |
Full Text Views | 496 | 39 | 1 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 325 | 64 | 0 |