This study used data from the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Risk and Adaptation (N = 267) to investigate whether abuse and neglect experiences during the first 5 years of life have fading or enduring consequences for social and academic competence over the next 3 decades of life. Experiencing early abuse and neglect was consistently associated…

Associations between experiencing child maltreatment and adverse developmental outcomes are widely studied, yet conclusions regarding the extent to which effects are bidirectional, and whether they are likely causal, remain elusive. This study uses the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a birth cohort of 4,898 children followed from birth…

A total of two hundred ninety-nine 4- to 9-year-old maltreated and nonmaltreated children of comparable socioeconomic status and ethnicity judged whether children should or would disclose unspecified transgressions of adults (instigators) to other adults (recipients) in scenarios varying the identity of the instigator (stranger or parent), the…

This study examined the effects of coaching (encouragement and rehearsal of false reports) and truth induction (a child-friendly version of the oath or general reassurance about the consequences of disclosure) on 4- to 7-year-old maltreated children's reports (N = 198). Children were questioned using free recall, repeated yes-no questions, and…

Three- and five-year olds were tested for recall with anatomically detailed dolls and regular dolls. Subjects were tested with and without visual cues. Anatomically detailed dolls did not foster false reports of abuse. Findings have implications for children's testimony in child abuse cases. (BC)

The effect of child maltreatment on children's social-cognitive development was examined by investigating abused, neglected, and nonmaltreated children's judgments regarding the permissibility of social-conventional and moral transgressions pertaining to physical harm, psychological distress, and the unfair distribution of resources. (Author/RH)

The present study examines the effects of early emotional experiences on children's regulation or strategic control of attention in the presence of interpersonal hostility. Abused children's reactions to the unfolding of a realistic interpersonal emotional situation were measured through multiple methods including autonomic nervous system changes…

Peer interactions of abused and nonabused children in a day care setting were evaluated. Abused children initiated fewer positive interactions with peers and exhibited a higher proportion of negative behaviors than did nonabused children. Peers viewed abused children as less well liked than nonabused children. (BC)

Examined the effects of child maltreatment and interadult violence on children's developing strategies of emotion regulation and socioemotional development, and the role of emotion dysregulation in mediating the link between children's pathogenic relational experiences and behavioral outcomes for 3- to 6-year-olds. Found that maltreatment history…

Distributions of child attachment classifications in mother-child dyads in which the mother evidenced physical or mental problems were highly divergent from distributions for normal samples. Distributions of child attachment classifications in mother-child dyads in which the child evidenced physical problems were similar to distributions in normal…