Suffering in Silence: How COVID-19 School Closures Inhibit the Reporting of Child Maltreatment

This study examines how school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the reporting of child maltreatment in Mexico City. We use a rich panel dataset on incident-level crime reports and victim characteristics and exploit the differential effects between school-age children and older individuals. While financial and mental distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic may result in additional cases of child maltreatment, synthetic control and difference-in-differences estimations document an average reduction in child maltreatment reports of 29% and 30%, respectively, with larger reductions among females and in higher-poverty municipalities. These results highlight the important role education professionals in school settings play in the early detection and reporting of domestic violence against school-age children.

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Suffering in silence: How COVID-19 school closures inhibit the reporting of child maltreatment

Journal of Public Economics ◽

10.1016/j.jpubeco.2020.104258 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 190 ◽

pp. 104258 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

E. Jason Baron ◽

Ezra G. Goldstein ◽

Cullen T. Wallace

Keyword(s):

Child Maltreatment ◽

School Closures

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The Effects of Corona Virus Pandemic on Children

SALASIKA: Indonesian Journal of Gender, Women, Child, and Social Inclusion's Studies ◽

10.36625/sj.v4i1.76 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 51-60

Author(s):

Keneth Tumwesigye

Keyword(s):

Child Abuse ◽

Child Welfare ◽

Child Maltreatment ◽

Physical Abuse ◽

Well Being ◽

School Closures ◽

Corona Virus ◽

Cognitive Reframing ◽

As Stress ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background. With the outbreak of the deadly COVID -19 worldwide, children are at the risk of child abuse due to rising unemployment rates and school closures. The corona virus pandemic has caused a lot of stress especially to parents and guardians who have lost their jobs and such stress has heightened and increased family violence especially abuse against children. Methods A sample of 26 Child welfare professionals (64% female and 36% male ) practicing in Uganda completed a web survey regarding the COVID-19 experiences especially in connection to child welfare service delivery and well being during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results This study identified the impact of corona virus pandemic on the life of children associated with child abuse and their coping measures. The fact that COVID-19 will continue to spread rapidly worldwide has caused immense consequences in regard to children’s safety and well-being. The major consequence of the pandemic is the risk of increased child maltreatment perpetuated by parents who lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic. This study identified parental job loss during the COVID-19 pandemic as the main cause for child maltreatment and physical abuse. Nevertheless, the findings support cognitive reframing as a measure to control physical abuse by parents. The financial hardships caused by COVID-19 pandemic will continue to negatively impact children’s safety and well-being. The consequences of COVID-19 pandemic are evident that the risk of child maltreatment increases as stress accumulates. Conclusion In conclusion, as world leaders and scientists make efforts to tackle the public health and economic threat resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic; further research on the impact of COVID-19 on family existence and functioning will be significant in establishing empirically based policies, interventions and different practices to support victims of child maltreatment and physical abuse.

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Reduced child maltreatment prevention service case openings during COVID-19

10.21203/rs.3.rs-30930/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Kelly Whaling ◽

Alissa Der Sarkissian ◽

Natalie A. Larez ◽

Jill D. Sharkey ◽

Michael A. Allen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Child Maltreatment ◽

Local Governments ◽

Future Research ◽

Community Members ◽

School Closures ◽

Research And Innovation ◽

Global Pandemic ◽

Child Maltreatment Prevention ◽

Prevention Service

Abstract Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19), is a novel virus that has swept the world causing illness and death. Youth are at a heightened risk of experiencing increased rates of abuse given necessary measures required to slow the spread of the virus (e.g., indefinite school closures). We analyzed data from New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) to investigate the frequency of child maltreatment prevention service case openings during this time of unprecedented stress. Two descriptive investigations were conducted. An examination of trend lines demonstrated that for 2013-2019, New York City’s new prevention case openings have consistently peaked in the month of March, for all seven years. New prevention case service openings in March 2020 do not peak, as they do in the preceding seven years. An independent samples t-test indicated that the frequency of case openings of March 2020 is significantly different than the frequency of case openings in March 2013-2019. Further, a Poisson regression model estimated that the odds of opening a new child maltreatment prevention case post-COVID-19 are 179% lower than opening a new child maltreatment case pre-COVID-19 (OR = -0.79, p < .001). These findings highlight the necessity of future research and innovation regarding child maltreatment prevention and intervention services during a global pandemic. This study has important implications for identification, prevention, and documentation for current support, and recommendations for local governments, community members, and practitioners are provided.

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Child Maltreatment Prevention Service Cases are Significantly Reduced During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Investigation Into Unintended Consequences of Quarantine

Child Maltreatment ◽

10.1177/10775595211051318 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107755952110513

Author(s):

Kelly M. Whaling ◽

Alissa Der Sarkissian ◽

Natalie Larez ◽

Jill D. Sharkey ◽

Michael A. Allen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Child Maltreatment ◽

Local Governments ◽

Unintended Consequences ◽

Community Members ◽

School Closures ◽

Service Accessibility ◽

Child Maltreatment Prevention ◽

Prevention Service ◽

Youth At Risk

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.

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