Abuse Common in Men Raised By One Parent

Men who grew up in one-parent households are more likely to have been abused as children, according to a University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine study.

The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, found sexual abuse was common.

Single parents often spend more time away from the home, and children tend to look for an adult to bond with, according to Dr. William C. Holmes of the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia VA Medical Center.

Predators are pretty good at finding and grooming these sorts of kids, said Holmes. They set children up over time, earn their trust, act as parent-substitutes by giving them attention and sometimes gifts.

Children from lower-income one-parent households are at a higher risk, but better socioeconomic status doesn’t make the risk go away completely, according to Holmes.