Table 1 Inclusion criteria using the PEO model where applicable
Criteria | Inclusion |
|---|---|
Design | Studies included must be prospective panel or cohort studies and have at least 2 time points |
Publication Status | Studies can be peer-reviewed or non-peer-reviewed |
Location | The study can be conducted in any geographical location |
Source of Evidence | Findings can be from books, research articles, government documents, conference abstracts, annual reports, dissertations, and theses |
Date | The studies were published from 1990- 2021, but the data may have been collected before 1990. This specific period has been chosen as it aligns with the drafting of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child by the United Nations [65] |
Language | The studies are readily available in English due to limited research resources prohibiting translation |
Population | The sample should be from the general human population but need not be nationally representative |
Population | The sample does not need to be selected based on mental ill-health or exposure to ACEs. However, the sample can be “clinical” or “special” in the sense that they may be recruited through an outpatient clinic or attend an outpatient clinic (for example, an outpatient clinic for depression or an outpatient HIV clinic). They may also have a diagnosed mental illness or be at a higher risk of experiencing ACEs or poor mental health through, for example, coming from a disadvantaged background |
Exposure | There must be at least one prospective ACE measured during childhood (< 18 years old) and one mental health outcome measured in adulthood (when subjects are 18 years old or over). The cohort study can include prospective measures of ACEs obtained through official reports of child maltreatment (such as police, court, or child welfare records) that were recorded when the adult participant was a child and are then incorporated into the study through data linkage |
Exposure | The ACE(s) was/were reported by anyone who knew the child (I.e., teacher, parent, caregiver, child themselves) or child welfare records or court records |
Outcomes | Adult mental health is measured using a continuous or cut-off score approach. Clinical records of adult mental health such as patient records will also be included |
Outcomes | The studies do not need to use clinical diagnostic tools for ascertaining mental health conditions but included measurement(s) of mental health outcomes will be validated measures of PTSD, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, self-harm, or psychotic-like-experiences. The validation of the tool need not be in the context the study is set in |