10.1177/1524838003259323 ARTICLE TRAUMA, VIOLENCE, & ABUSE / January 2004 Runyon et al. / TREATMENT OF CHILD PHYSICALABUSE AN OVERVIEW OF CHILD PHYSICAL ABUSE Developing an Integrated Parent-Child Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment Approach MELISSA K. RUNYON ESTHER DEBLINGER ERIKA E. RYAN REENA THAKKAR-KOLAR University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey—School of Osteopathic Medicine This article reviews and summarizes the extant literature regarding child physical abuse (CPA). Literature is summarized that describes the wide range of short- and long-term effects of CPA on children as well as the documented characteristics of parents/caregivers who engage in physically abusive parenting practices. Al- though the reviewed research documents that interventions geared only toward the parent have been found to produce significant improvements with respect to parenting abilities, parent-child interactions, and children’s behavior problems, there is a paucity of research examining the efficacy of interventions developed spe- cifically to target the child’s emotional and behavioral difficulties. Based on the few studies that have shown emotional and behavioral gains for children who have par- ticipated in treatment, an integrated parent-child cognitive- behavioral therapy (CBT) approach is proposed here to address the complex issues presented by both parent and child in CPA cases. The direct participation of the child in treatment also may improve our ability to target posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), de- pressive symptoms as well as anger control and dysfunctional abuse attributions in the children themselves. Implications for practice, public policy, and research are also addressed. Key words: child physical abuse, cognitive-behavioral treatment, parent-child relationships IN 2000 ALONE, 879,000 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect were reported across 50 states; according to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, approximately 84% of these cases involved abuse and neglect by a parent (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2002). Of these cases, 19% (approximately 167,000 children) were related to physical abuse. These alarming statistics sup- port the urgent need to develop and evaluate the efficacy of cost-effective treatment strategies that target this population in an effort to reduce children’s difficulties as well as the recurrence of child physical abuse (CPA) within families. Empirical and clinical literature demon- strates that child victims of physical abuse may suffer a wide array of psychological, behavioral, and interpersonal difficulties as a result of their 65 TRAUMA, VIOLENCE, & ABUSE, Vol. 5, No. 1, January 2004 65-85 DOI: 10.1177/1524838003259323 © 2004 Sage Publications