Exposure to violence and deviant behavior at age 18 in a longitudinal cohort

LONGSCAN is the largest continuing child maltreatment study funded by the US Administration on Children and Families. Of five local sites, only the Southeast site (n = 243) has completed 18 years of follow-up. This study assessed the effects of lifetime exposure to violence and trauma on young adult engagement in deviant behaviors. Exposure to violence and trauma was measured using a combination of official reports and self-reports that identified the occurrence, timing, and severity of physical, sexual, and psychological abuse and neglect. Self reports also identified subjects who witnessed violence in their homes or neighborhoods during childhood. Deviant behavior was measured using self-reported delinquency, aggression, and substance abuse at age 18. Of the 162 subjects who completed the age 18 interview, only 18 (11%) reported no maltreatment. When witnessing violence is added, the proportion of subjects reporting no exposure dropped to 6%. Using logistic regression, subjects who were neglected were 4.2 times (95% CI: [1.7, 10.2]) more likely to exhibit deviant behaviors than subjects who were not neglected. In similar models, physical abuse was associated with a 1.9 fold (95% CI: [1.0, 3.6]) increase, sexual abuse a 2.2 fold (95% CI: [1.1, 4.5]) increase, psychological abuse a 2.3 fold (95% CI: [1.1, 4.5]) increase, and witnessing violence a 1.7 fold (95% CI: [0.8, 3.4]) increase in the odds of demonstrating deviant behavior. The moderating role of protective factors such as a supportive adult, peer relations and normative behaviors in protecting exposed subjects from dysfunctional outcomes will be discussed.