Child Maltreatment and Adolescents' Exposure to Physical and Social Disorder in Daily Activity Spaces

Background:

A deeper understanding of how child maltreatment shapes adolescents' exposure to adversity in the places they regularly visit during their daily routines (i.e., activity spaces) is crucial for promoting positive youth development. Investigating youths’ exposure to adversity, such as physical and social disorder, at the locations they visit during their daily activities is particularly important, given the increased mobility and spatial exposure in adolescence. Importantly, how youth with maltreatment histories engage in their daily activity spaces may be further shaped by the level of residential neighborhood disadvantage they face. To date, limited research has examined how child maltreatment influences adolescents’ daily experiences beyond their residential neighborhoods. This study examined how child maltreatment and neighborhood disorder, individually and collectively, are associated with adolescents’ exposure to physical and social disorder in their activity spaces.

Methods:

We used data from the Adolescent Health and Development in Context (AHDC) study and the Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System (SACWIS). The AHDC study, conducted in a Midwest state, collected data on 1,404 youths (46% boys, M_age = 14.07) between the ages of 11 and 17. Using probabilistic matching, data from the AHDC study were linked to SACWIS, a state child welfare case management information system. Child maltreatment was assessed by aggregating the number of maltreatment allegation referrals from birth to age 17. Resident neighborhood disorder was measured using caregiver reports about social climate perceptions in their residential neighborhood (13 items). Activity space disorder was measured by combining the average level of disorder within census block groups and intersecting this information with the amount of time the youth spent in each block group. Covariates included youths' gender, age, race/ethnicity, caregiver education, and household income. Multilevel modeling was employed to analyze the data, which mirrors the multilevel structure in which youth were nested within their neighborhoods.

Results:

Both child maltreatment and neighborhood disorder were positively linked to exposure to physical and social disorder in youth activity spaces. Youth who had more maltreatment reports were more likely to visit places with higher levels of disorder during their daily routine. Similarly, youth who lived in neighborhoods with higher levels of disorder were more likely to visit places with high disorder compared to those living in neighborhoods with lower neighborhood disorder. Cross-level interaction between residential neighborhood-level disorder and child maltreatment was not significant. That is, adolescents with a history of child maltreatment remained at greater risk for exposure to disordered activity spaces, regardless of the level of disorder in their home neighborhoods.

Conclusion:

Findings point to the need for enhanced maltreatment prevention efforts and tailored interventions to mitigate environmental risks for adolescents with maltreatment histories. Specific strategies could be targeted to adolescents who have experienced maltreatment to provide positive activities and places for youth to engage that do not put them at additional risk for violence. Additionally, our findings call for increased investment and expansion of public programs and policies that address community-level disorder and disadvantage that can negatively influence adolescents’ daily exposure to spatial and environmental adversity.