Child maltreatment and adjustment to juvenile correctional institutions

A longitudinal sample of 509 juveniles confined to 48 correctional facilities in 20 states was assessed to examine the relationship between experiencing child maltreatment and anxiety and depression. Child maltreatment was operationalized to include exposure and frequency of physical and sexual abuse, witnessing family violence, and neglect by primary caregivers. The analysis indicated that incarcerated youth who experienced greater levels of child maltreatment had higher levels of both anxiety and depression, holding other individual- and institutional-related factors constant. In addition, greater levels of maltreatment were associated with increased depression over time. The results provide empirical evidence that child maltreatment should be assessed when treating issues related to psychological adjustment within juvenile correctional environments.