Abstract
Childhood abuse (CA) has been linked to low self-esteem (SE). Belief in a just world (BJW), or the idea that people get what they deserve in life, may explain the relationship between CA and SE, though no study testing this explanation of the link between CA and low SE exists. The purpose of this study was to test whether BJW explained or mediated the association between CA and low SE. Survey data from 445 undergraduate college students were collected using an on-line survey at a diverse public university. First, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to identify measurement models for the constructs of CA, BJW and SE. Then, structural equation modeling was used to test whether BJW mediated the relationship between CA and SE. BJW was found to partially mediate the relationship between CA and SE. These findings extend prior research on social, cognitive and personality processes that explain the relationship between CA and SE and suggest targeting BJW to prevent low SE among students with a history of CA.
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