Real violence-exposure costs are nearly five times official figures

Evidence

The estimate was also conservative. The 2012 study counted only substantiated maltreatment — the cases that came to official attention and were confirmed by the child welfare system. The research literature across the same period consistently showed that substantiated cases represent a fraction of actual maltreatment; prevalence surveys using self-report methodologies documented rates three to five times higher than official statistics. An estimate based on true prevalence rather than official report rates would be dramatically larger. … A 2019 update by Cora Peterson and colleagues at the CDC, using improved methodology and more complete data on the adult-outcome consequences of childhood violence exposure, extended the analysis beyond formally substantiated maltreatment to encompass all childhood exposure to violence — including witness to family violence and community violence. The result: approximately $592 billion per year in 2018 dollars. — , The Rod and the Child, 7511

Categorization

• QUESTION: Worth chasing: the jump from 124B to 592B hinges on methodology changes — how much is scope expansion vs. improved cost data?