While we excluded any individuals in the oldest cohort who had records of adolescent maltreatment but no childhood maltreatment, we did not have maltreatment data on the youngest cohort after age 13. Thus, we were unable to verify if individuals in the youngest cohort, who were included in the non-victim group, actually experienced maltreatment during adolescence. The number of cases in the oldest cohort who initially experienced childhood maltreatment after age 13 was 11.0% among all substantiated cases. Yet, this percentage was probably lower for the youngest cohort because they grew up at a time when the public was more aware of their responsibilities to report maltreatment [9] as demonstrated by the higher rates of childhood maltreatment by age 11 in youngest (23.6%) versus oldest (15.4%) cohort. Note, however, that within the oldest cohort, there were no racial differences in victimization past age 11 (note 2). In addition, previous research [37] found that maltreatment during adolescence, compared to childhood only, had a stronger effect on substance use and violent offending. Thus, we might have underestimated the negative consequences of childhood maltreatment. Finally, unobserved confounding factors, which were not controlled in this study, could have contributed to these outcomes.
