Child Maltreatment, Peer Victimization, and Mental Health: Neurocognitive Perspectives on the Cycle of Victimization

Course overview

This course is based upon material published on the SAGE publishing website and is available as an open-access article. Children who experience maltreatment are at increased risk of revictimization across the life span. In childhood, this risk often manifests as peer victimization. Understanding the nature of this risk, and its impact on mental health, is critical if we are to provide effective support for those children who are most vulnerable. A systematic review was conducted using Google Scholar and PsycINFO. Studies on adults, psychiatric, and/or inpatient populations were excluded. Included studies concerned all forms of child maltreatment and peer victimization. We found 28 studies about the association between maltreatment experience and peer victimization as well as peer rejection. We review the evidence documenting the relationship between these adverse childhood experiences and mental health. The evidence suggests that maltreatment and peer victimization have additive effects on mental health outcomes. A number of theoretical developmental frameworks that delineate putative mechanisms that might account for an association are considered. Building on prior research, we then discuss the role of recent neurocognitive findings in providing a multilevel framework for conceptualizing mental health vulnerability following maltreatment. In addition, we consider how altered neurocognitive functioning following maltreatment may shed light on why affected children are more likely to be victimized by their peers. Specifically, we consider the threat, reward, and autobiographical memory systems and their role in relation to stress generation, stress susceptibility, and social thinning. Such a mechanistic understanding is necessary if we are to reduce the likelihood of peer victimization in children exposed to maltreatment and move to a preventative model of mental health care. This course on child maltreatment is designed for social workers, professional counselors, psychologists, nurses, and substance abuse counselors, who do clinical work. In addition, this course is appropriate for beginning, intermediate, and advanced level practitioners who wish to develop their knowledge of child maltreatment. The course material includes a literature review of neurocognitive research. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require continuing clinical education courses for license renewal. The course is based on a journal article that includes research. It contains statistical analysis and data that some clinicians enjoy reading and others do not. A significant benefit of reading research-based articles for continuing education is they provide practitioners with the latest findings in their field. Authors: Goemans, Viding, McCrory Learning Objectives: This course will provide the practitioner with detailed information regarding child maltreatment, peer victimization, and mental health. Specifically, a professional will: Describe the relationship between child maltreatment, peer victimization, and mental health. Describe how altered neurocognitive functioning relates to the risk of repeated victimization by peers. Summarize the role of autobiographical memory systems in stress generation. Citation: Goemans, A., Viding, E., McCrory, E. (2021). Child maltreatment, peer victimization, and mental health: neurocognitive perspectives on the cycle of victimization. Trauma, Violence, Abuse, 15248380211036393.