Parents with alcohol-related diagnoses are twice as likely to maltreat children

A new systematic review has found that parents and other child caregivers who have alcohol-related diagnoses are twice as likely to maltreat children in their care than parents and caregivers with no alcohol-related diagnoses.  ‘Alcohol-related diagnoses’ included alcohol-related hospitalisation, alcohol-related service use, or a history of clinically determined alcohol dependence. ‘Child maltreatment’ included physical, psychological, emotional and sexual abuse; neglect; and other types of maltreatment such as harsh parenting.

The study pooled the results from twelve studies of child maltreatment.  All were cohort studies in high-income countries: three in Australia, one in Denmark, one in New Zealand, two in South Korea, one in the United Kingdom, and four in the United States.  The sample size ranged from 501 to 84,245 (median 4782). Caregiver alcohol-related diagnoses were associated with higher child maltreatment incidence (odds ratio, 2.32; 95% confidence interval, 1.10-4.89) and recurrence (1.92; 1.13-3.28) compared with caregivers without alcohol-related diagnoses.

Lead author Dr June Leung, of the SHORE & Whariki Research Centre, Massey University, says “To our knowledge, this is the first systematic review of the relationship between caregiver alcohol use and all types of child maltreatment.  We found consistent associations between caregiver alcohol-related diagnoses and child maltreatment. We also could not rule out a link between any caregiver drinking and child maltreatment. Our findings call for stronger actions to limit alcohol harm, including child maltreatment.”

This review was published in the scientific journal Addiction.

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For editors:

This Open Access paper is available on the Wiley Online Library after the embargo has lifted (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.70055) or you may request an early copy from Jean O’Reilly, Editorial Manager, Addiction, jean@addictionjournal.org.

To speak with lead author Dr June Leung, please contact her at the SHORE & Whariki Research Centre, Massey University, New Zealand by email (Y.Leung@massey.ac.nz) or telephone (+64 92127331).

Full citation for article: Leung JYY, Parker K, Lin E-Y and Huckle T. The association of parental or caregiver alcohol use with child maltreatment: a systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Addiction. 2025. DOI: 10.1111/add.70055.

Primary funding:  Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC 19/107).

Declaration of interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Addiction (www.addictionjournal.org) is a monthly international scientific journal publishing peer-reviewed research reports on alcohol, substances, tobacco, gambling, editorials, and other debate pieces. Owned by the Society for the Study of Addiction, it has been in continuous publication since 1884.