Trajectories of Maltreatment Re-Reports From Ages 4 to 12: Evidence for Persistent Risk After Early Exposure

• NCJ Number: 240533
• Journal: Child Maltreatment Volume: 17 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2012 Pages: 207-217
• Author(s): Laura J. Proctor; Gregory A. Aarons; Howard Dubowitz; Diana J. English; Terri Lewis; Richard Thompson; Jon M. Hussey; Alan J. Litrownik; Scott C. Roesch
• Date Published: August 2012
• Length: 11 pages
• Grant Number(s): K01DA21674; R01MH072961
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Health and Human Services; National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study identified trajectories of maltreatment re-reports between ages 4 and 12 for children first referred to Child Protective Services (CPS).

Abstract

This study identified trajectories of maltreatment re-reports between ages 4 and 12 for children first referred to Child Protective Services (CPS) for maltreatment prior to age 4 and either removed from the home or assessed by a CPS intake worker as moderately or highly likely to be abused/neglected in the future, absent intervention. Participants (n = 501) were children from the Southwest and Northwest sites of the Consortium for Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN). During the 8-year follow-up period, 67 percent of children were re-reported. Growth mixture modeling identified four trajectory classes: No re-report (33 percent), Continuous re-reports (10 percent), Intermittent re-reports (37 percent), and Early re-reports (20 percent). Membership in classes with relatively more re-reports was predicted by several factors assessed at age 4, including physical abuse; living with a biological/stepparent; caregiver alcohol abuse, depression, and lack of social support; receipt of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC); and number of children in the home. For a subpopulation of high-risk children first reported in early childhood, risk for maltreatment re-reporting may persist longer than previously documented, continuing 8 to 12 years after the first report. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.