The causes and consequences of child maltreatment remain highly controversial. Social-psychological and health factors such as parenting stress and child behaviour disorders are often identified as major risk factors for child maltreatment; however, there is limited evidence from existing studies to establish a temporal sequence that confirms a causal relationship. Taking parenting stress as an example, according to the Stress and Coping Model of Child Maltreatment Theory (Hillson & Kuiper, 1994), most research has focused on a unidirectional relationship in which parenting stress leads to child maltreatment. However, emerging evidence suggests a potential vicious cycle in which child maltreatment increases parenting stress through parental guilt and children’s behavioural issues. Verification of these dynamics relies on longitudinal data for bidirectional temporal analysis. This project aims to employ techniques such as cross-lagged panel model to investigate the bidirectional temporal effects between social-psychological or health factors and child maltreatment. By addressing these gaps, this study seeks to enhance understanding of the interplay between parental and child-specific features and child maltreatment, contributing valuable insights to inform prevention and intervention strategies.