@article{ref1,
title="Contamination in the prospective study of child maltreatment and female adolescent health",
journal="Journal of pediatric psychology",
year="2015",
author="Shenk, Chad E. and Noll, Jennie G. and Peugh, James L. and Griffin, Amanda M. and Bensman, Heather E.",
volume="41",
number="1",
pages="37-45",
abstract="OBJECTIVE:  To evaluate the impact of contamination, or the presence of child maltreatment in a comparison condition, when estimating the broad, longitudinal effects of child maltreatment on female health at the transition to adulthood.  METHODS:  The Female Adolescent Development Study (N = 514; age range: 14-19 years) used a prospective cohort design to examine the effects of substantiated child maltreatment on teenage births, obesity, major depression, and past-month cigarette use. Contamination was controlled via a multimethod strategy that used both adolescent self-report and Child Protective Services records to remove cases of child maltreatment from the comparison condition.  RESULTS:  Substantiated child maltreatment significantly predicted each outcome, relative risks = 1.47-2.95, 95% confidence intervals: 1.03-7.06, with increases in corresponding effect size magnitudes, only when contamination was controlled using the multimethod strategy.  CONCLUSIONS:  Contamination truncates risk estimates of child maltreatment and controlling it can strengthen overall conclusions about the effects of child maltreatment on female health.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0146-8693",
doi="10.1093/jpepsy/jsv017",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsv017"
}