Income Inequality and Child Maltreatment in the United States

This study examines county-level data on income inequality and rates of child maltreatment. Researchers assessed data on substantiated reports of child abuse and neglect from 2005 to 2009 and poverty data from the American Community Survey. Researchers found that child poverty rates were positively and significantly correlated with child maltreatment rates at the county level. Higher income inequality across counties was significantly associated with higher county-level rates of child maltreatment. The researchers concluded that their findings support the growing literature base linking income inequality to a range of poor health and well-being outcomes for children.