The impact of child abuse and neglect training on knowledge and awareness in university students

Objective: Child abuse and neglect are considered public health issues by authorities such as the World Health Organization (WHO). This study evaluated the effectiveness of the trainings given to university students. Materials and Methods: In this study, we trained university students at Gazi University who are likely to deal with child abuse cases after graduation. By developing two scales, Child Abuse and Neglect Awareness Scale (CANA-S) and Child Abuse and Neglect Knowledge Test (CANK-T), to assess students’ knowledge and awareness levels regarding child abuse and neglect, we evaluated the training’s impact. Results: We assessed the knowledge and awareness levels of 43 students before and after training by using our scales, The knowledge level has improved significantly in all groups regardless of age, sex, and department. Similarly, the awareness level has also risen significantly, except regarding the physical abuse subscale. Conclusion: Overall awareness after education was significant among students from the health and social sciences departments. Total awareness scores did not increase significantly among law students. Measuring and disseminating the effectiveness of these trainings through proper prevention programs will be effective in reducing child abuse in the future.