Research

Child maltreatment (CM) has enduring health, psychological, and human capital consequences. This paper examines the sensitivity of CM to environmental conditions, namely, high temperatures. Using Brazil's large dataset on child maltreatment compulsory hospital entries reports and fixed effects negative binomial models, I find that temperature significantly affects the incidence of CM. Precisely, days above 30°C increase expected cases by 2.9%, with effects persisting for up to two days. The increase is concentrated in physical and sexual abuse. As I find no evidence that these effects are mediated by changes in alcohol consumption or perpetrators' time use, heat stress appears to drive the results. The analysis holds for first-time and repeated victims, suggesting that temperature shocks not only intensify the severity of child maltreatment but also expand its incidence. Considering climate change's influence on heatwaves, measures to halt its impact on CM are imperative.