Adverse childhood experiences among early care and education teachers: Prevalence and associations with observed quality of classroom social and emotional climate

Abstract

This study examines the prevalence of self-reported adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) among a sample of 349 early care and education teachers. Seventy-three percent of the sample reported experiencing at least one ACE and 22% reported experiencing 4 or more ACEs. Live observational assessments of the quality of the social and emotional climate in teacher’s classrooms were conducted for a subsample of 58 teachers. Within this subsample, reporting a higher number of ACEs was associated with facilitating a lower quality social and emotional classroom climate. Individual ACEs were also examined. Teachers who reported experiencing incarceration of a family member, physical abuse, or emotional abuse were observed to facilitate a lower quality social and emotional classroom climate. This study provides preliminary insight into the prevalence of ACEs among members of the early care and education workforce. Further, it extends previous work examining the multi-generational impacts of ACEs within families by showing that ACEs may influence the care that is provided to children in childcare settings.