This study, conducted by the Children and Family Research Center at the University of Illinois, examines the prevalence, nature, and circumstances of child maltreatment in out-of-home care, with a focus on identifying cases that occurred prior to placement but are recorded as incidents during care. Analyzing a stratified random sample of 292 indicated reports from FY2000, researchers found that 27% were retrospective cases, most often involving sexual abuse by birth parents. The findings suggest that current recurrence rates significantly overestimate maltreatment in foster care and recommend ongoing replication studies or revised reporting methods to more accurately reflect true incident levels.
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