Abstract Children who experience physical abuse often suffer numerous negative short- and long-term difficulties in comparison to non-abused children. Considerable effort has been invested in developing and identifying treatment interventions to attenuate these negative outcomes. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), originally developed for the treatment of externalizing behavior problems in children aged two to seven years, has also been used to treat child physical abuse populations. The results of emerging treatment outcome studies indicate that PCIT is a promising treatment approach for child physical abuse. This article will review the theoretical rationale for applying PCIT to physically abusive parent-child dyads as well as provide details on the clinical modification made to PCIT for this population. Emerging treatment outcome studies will be critiqued and future research directions will be highlighted.
