TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2018//
TI  - Munchausen by proxy: a qualitative investigation into online perceptions of medical child abuse
JO  - Journal of forensic sciences
A1  - Anderson, Anoushka P. A.
A1  - Feldman, Marc D.
A1  - Bryce, Joanne
SP  - 771
EP  - 775
VL  - 63
IS  - 3
N2  - In Munchausen by proxy (MBP) maltreatment, increasingly termed "medical child abuse" (MCA), a caregiver fabricates or induces illness in another. The perpetrator's goal for the behavior is to meet personal emotional needs by forcing unnecessary or misguided medical or psychological treatment. Generally, a mother is the perpetrator and her child is the victim. There is a serious lack of research into most aspects of MCA, and this study is the first to utilize the anonymity of an Internet forum to investigate victims' first-hand experiences of, and the public's opinions about, suspected and confirmed MCA. Three-hundred and fifty-six posts by 348 members were explored and coded using formal qualitative content analysis. By accessing an open-thought online forum, this paper acquired information regarding social perceptions about the nonperpetrating partners who are unaware of the maltreatment; the disturbing and counterintuitive phenomenon of MCA itself; and the resistance often faced by those who attempt to report it.<br><br>© 2017 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0022-1198
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.13610
ID  - ref1
ER  -