Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36628513›Full record

SynthesisThe American journal of psychiatry2023

Childhood Maltreatment and Mental Health Problems: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Quasi-Experimental Studies.

Jessie R Baldwin, Biyao Wang, Lucy Karwatowska, Tabea Schoeler, Anna Tsaligopoulou, Marcus R Munafò, Jean-Baptiste Pingault

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The American journal of psychiatry, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 135 papers, 14 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
135citing papers in PubMed, 14 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

135 citing papers in PubMed, 14 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  12. Childhood maltreatment and the risk of eating disorders: a meta-analysis of observational studies.Neuropsychiatrie : Klinik, Diagnostik, Therapie und Rehabilitation : Organ der Gesellschaft Osterreichischer Nervenarzte und Psychiater · 2025
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  20. Predicting psychopathology symptom trajectories using machine learning: a 33-year prospective study.Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines · 2026
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75 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Jessie R BaldwinDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Biyao WangDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Lucy KarwatowskaDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Tabea SchoelerDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Anna TsaligopoulouDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Marcus R MunafòDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).
Jean-Baptiste PingaultDepartment of Clinical, Educational, and Health Psychology, Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London (Baldwin, Wang, Schoeler, Tsaligopoulou, Pingault); Social, Genetic, and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, King's College London (Baldwin, Pingault); Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London (Karwatowska); Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland (Schoeler); Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn. (Tsaligopoulou); MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and University of Bristol, Bristol, U.K. (Munafò).

Funding

Medical Research Council MC_UU_00011/7MRF_ MRF-160-0002-ELP-PINGAWellcome Trust 215917Wellcome Trust 218641
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveChildhood maltreatment is associated with mental health problems, but the extent to which this relationship is causal remains unclear. To strengthen causal inference, the authors conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of quasi-experimental studies examining the relationship between childhood maltreatment and mental health problems.

methodsA search of PubMed, PsycINFO, and Embase was conducted for peer-reviewed, English-language articles from database inception until January 1, 2022. Studies were included if they examined the association between childhood maltreatment and mental health problems using a quasi-experimental method (e.g., twin/sibling differences design, children of twins design, adoption design, fixed-effects design, random-intercept cross-lagged panel model, natural experiment, propensity score matching, or inverse probability weighting).

resultsThirty-four quasi-experimental studies were identified, comprising 54,646 independent participants. Before quasi-experimental adjustment for confounding, childhood maltreatment was moderately associated with mental health problems (Cohen's d=0.56, 95% CI=0.41, 0.71). After quasi-experimental adjustment, a small association between childhood maltreatment and mental health problems remained (Cohen's d=0.31, 95% CI=0.24, 0.37). This adjusted association between childhood maltreatment and mental health was consistent across different quasi-experimental methods, and generalized across different psychiatric disorders.

conclusionsThese findings are consistent with a small, causal contribution of childhood maltreatment to mental health problems. Furthermore, the findings suggest that part of the overall risk of mental health problems in individuals exposed to maltreatment is due to wider genetic and environmental risk factors. Therefore, preventing childhood maltreatment and addressing wider psychiatric risk factors in individuals exposed to maltreatment could help to prevent psychopathology.

Indexed as

Child AbuseMental DisordersChildHumansMental HealthPsychopathologyTwinsChild/Adolescent PsychiatryEnvironmental Risk FactorsGenetics/GenomicsViolence/Aggression

Identifiers

PMID36628513
PMCPMC7614155

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.