RESEARCH ARTICLE Effect of Childhood Victimization on Occupational Prestige and Income Trajectories

Background Violence toward children (childhood victimization) is a major public health problem, with long-term consequences on economic well-being. The purpose of this study was to deter-mine whether childhood victimization affects occupational prestige and income in young adulthood. We hypothesized that young adults who experienced more childhood victimiza-tions would have less prestigious jobs and lower incomes relative to those with no victimiza-tion history. We also explored the pathways in which childhood victimization mediates the relationships between background variables, such as parent’s educational impact on the socioeconomic transition into adulthood. Methods A nationally representative sample of 8,901 young adults aged 18–28 surveyed between 1999–2009 from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY) were analyzed. Covariate-adjusted multivariate linear regression and path models were used to estimate the effects of victimization and covariates on income and prestige levels and on income an