Prevalence and Risk Factors Associated with the Psychological Maltreatment and Neglect of Child Laborers in Rural Bangladesh

Globally, child labor and maltreatment are considered serious public health concerns. Many child laborers in the informal sector are subjected to psychological abuse and neglect that is often akin to slavery. Our study examined the prevalence of these two forms of maltreatment among child laborers in rural Bangladesh, as well as the associated risk factors. Based on the snowball sampling technique, this study surveyed 100 child laborers employed in agricultural and domestic work in rural areas of the Sunamganj district, Bangladesh. The structured questionnaire utilizes the ICAST-CH instrument. To analyze the data, both simple and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted using two statistical software packages, SPSS and STATA. The study concluded that more than half of the child laborers have experienced psychological maltreatment "sometimes" in the form of being screamed at and insulted over the past year. In the past year, over 40% of respondents indicated they were "sometimes" deprived of food and drink and were not well cared for when they became ill. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that parents of psychologically maltreated child laborers had low educational backgrounds. A higher risk of neglect was observed among child laborers who worked for extended hours for their employers and whose families possessed limited land. In spite of the high prevalence of psychological maltreatment and neglect of child laborers in Bangladesh, the issue appears to be ignored. More comprehensive and rigorous scientific studies are required to bring about policy change.