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Despite the established link between abuse and physical and mental disability, most abused individuals do not experience disability. While some survivors are severely harmed by their experiences of abuse, other survivors of similar exposure would appear to have no long-term problems. Can the presence of social capital account for these differences? Social capital stands for the ability of actors to secure benefits by virtue of membership in social networks and other social structures. Cross-sectional data from the Ontario Health Supplement were used to assess the association between child abuse, age, social, cultural and financial capital and disability in a female community sample (n=4,238). The results suggest that physical and sexual abuse as well as low financial capital are associated with disability, but not social capital. The findings are discussed within the context of previous social capital research especially in the health field. Further information was drawn from the Population Health Perspective (PHP) literature and the child abuse literature. Implications for social capital theory and further research are addressed.

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Dr. Tonmyr, MSW, PhD is a Research Scientist with the Public Health Agency of Canada and Adjunct Research Professor in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Carleton University, Ottawa. She is involved in child maltreatment surveillance and research projects such as substance abuse, deliberate self harm and other health issues.

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