RT Article
T1 Child maltreatment prevention service cases are significantly reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal investigation into unintended consequences of quarantine
JF Child maltreatment
VO 28
IS 1
SP 34
OP 41
A1 Whaling, Kelly M.
A2 Der Sarkissian, Alissa
A2 Larez, Natalie
A2 Sharkey, Jill D.
A2 Allen, Michael A.
A2 Nylund-Gibson, Karen
LA English
YR 2023
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1834131650
AB Unprecedented financial and emotional stress, paired with measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 (e.g., school closures), place youth at risk for experiencing increased rates of abuse. We analyzed data from New York City?s Administration for Children?s Services to investigate the frequency of child maltreatment prevention service case openings during this time. Longitudinal counts of case openings were compiled for January through June of the years 2014?2020. An independent samples Kruskal?Wallis H-test suggested that pre-quarantine case openings were significantly larger than case openings during quarantine. To account for the possible influence of other historical events impacting data, a secondary Kruskal?Wallis H-test was conducted comparing only the 4 months of quarantine data available to the 4 months immediately preceding quarantine orders. The second independent samples Kruskal?Wallis H-test again suggested that pre-quarantine case openings were significantly larger than case openings during quarantine. A Poisson regression model further supported these findings, estimating that the odds of opening a new child maltreatment prevention case during quarantine declined by 49.17%. These findings highlight the severity of COVID-19 impacts on child maltreatment services and the gap between demand for services and service accessibility. We conclude with recommendations for local governments, community members, and practitioners.
K1 Covid-19
K1 Kindesmisshandlung
K1 access to services
K1 child maltreatment
K1 children and families
K1 Family Violence
K1 global crises
K1 stress and abuse
DO 10.1177/10775595211051318