Abstract
Building on the seminal work of Xu et al. (2021), our study explored the factors associated with laypeople’s decision-making in recognizing and reporting physical and psychological child abuse in Japan. We collected data from 1,485 Japanese participants. Regression analysis showed that as the seriousness of the case increased, the participants were more likely to recognize and report both mild and severe physical and psychological abuse. In contrast, participants who held stronger beliefs in strict discipline were less likely to recognize mild forms of physical and psychological abuse. Furthermore, participants with stronger subjective norms, believing that others around them would report the abuse, were more likely to report both mild and severe psychological abuse. In contrast, those with a bystander attitude, thinking that others should handle the situation and that it was not their responsibility, were less likely to report both mild and severe physical and psychological abuse. Finally, participants who had stronger fears of retaliation were less likely to report both mild and severe physical abuse and severe psychological abuse.
