Evaluating the impacts of paid family leave on family violence morbidity and mortality

The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development awarded The Regents Of The University Of Colorado, doing business as University Of Colorado-Denver, $114,040 on June 23, 2026, under the Child Health and Human Development Extramural Research program (CFDA 93.865) to evaluate the impacts of paid family leave on family violence morbidity and mortality through a Career Development Award (K01).

The recipient will conduct three research aims: evaluate the completeness of a novel multi-year data linkage and estimate the association between state paid family leave policy and family violence indicators including child maltreatment and intimate partner violence; estimate factors predicting state paid family leave use leveraging linked person-level data; and estimate the causal effect of state paid family leave implementation on morbidity and mortality indicators attributed to family violence using a county-level difference-in-differences design. The study is informed by the family stress model and expects that state paid family leave implementation will reduce family violence. The principal investigator will obtain formal training in causal identification, study designs that uncover causal effects, and application of causal effects models to public policy analysis, with expansion of expertise in violence prevention topics.

Performance occurs in Aurora, Colorado, with an ultimate completion date of May 31, 2031. This is a Project Grant assistance type.

Abstract

Family violence, including child maltreatment and intimate partner violence, is a common and costly public health problem with long-lasting impacts on victims. Infants experience the highest rates of morbidity and mortality attributed to child abuse and neglect, and the risks of intimate partner violence and intimate partner homicide have been shown to increase in the postnatal period. Yet, few universal family violence prevention policies target this critical period. In line with the nichd scientific priority to assess prevention strategies that address child maltreatment and violence, the research goal of the proposed career development award (K01) is to evaluate the relationship between the implementation of a state paid family leave (PFL) policy and family violence (child maltreatment and IPV). Specifically, the proposed study will pursue the following aims: 1) evaluate the completeness of a novel multi-year data linkage developed for the purposes of this study and estimate the association between PFL and family violence indicators; 2) estimate factors that predict the use of state PFL, leveraging linked person-level data; and 3) estimate the causal effect of the implementation of state PFL on indicators of morbidity and mortality attributed to family violence using a county-level difference-in- differences design. Informed by the family stress model, state PFL implementation is expected to reduce family violence. Taken together, results will inform state and federal conversations about PFL and assist agencies in the upstream prevention of violence. The PI aims to obtain formal training in causal identification, how to execute study designs that uncover causal effects, and the application of causal effects models to public policy analysis. The PI will also expand upon her expertise in current topics related to violence prevention so that future work can draw on shared risk factors to identify cross-cutting prevention approaches. The PI will work with an interdisciplinary team of mentors who are internationally recognized experts in child abuse and neglect, causal inference for health policy evaluation, and the linkage and analysis of population- based, administrative records. The research and training proposed will form the basis for r-level proposals and enable the PI to become an independent investigator in injury and violence prevention, specifically with a focus on public policies and systems that prevent child maltreatment and other forms of family violence.