A new study suggests children's exposure to violence and crime is on the decline.
Violent crime has been tapering off since the 1990s, a JAMA Network Journals news release reported.
The team analyzed data from three national telephone surveys that looked at children's exposure to violence in the years 2003, 2008, and 2011.
The team found a number of significant declines in violence exposure over the years. Many of these 27 declines were in exposure to weapons and in violence between "siblings or peers," the news release reported; bullying and sexual victimization also proved to be on the decline.
The team is unsure of what is causing the decline in violence exposure, but they suggest an increase in the use of psychiatric medication could have something to do with it. The increase in electronic technology could cut down on face-to-face contact, reducing the chance of violence.
"The overarching epidemiologic picture seems to show substantial drops in violence and abuse exposure during the 1990s, with continuing declines during the 2000s that have not been reversed by the economic adversities of the 2008 recession. These declines have occurred for many kinds of exposure, including assault, bullying, sexual assault, property crime, and witnessing violence."
The researchers believe more still needs to be done to help protect children from violence.
"Finkelhor and colleagues continue their leadership in providing trend data on maltreatment of children. ... The data shared by Finkelhor et al refute the notion that crime and victimization data necessarily rise in economic hard times," John R. Lutzker, Ph.D., and colleagues at Georgia State University wrote in a related editorial.
"Nonetheless, it is important that the media be aware of the findings reported by Finkelhor et al. All too often, incidents of mass violence - such as shootings at schools, theaters or malls - dominate the news (which is understandable) and raise fears among the public. These incidents can also lead the public to believe that violence is on the rise owing to the availability heuristic: the ease with which one can recall a violent incident leads to an overestimation of prevalence. Thus, to inform policy and for the collective national psyche, the public should be informed of the good news about these trends," they said.
