Carrying the misery to adulthood: the impact of childhood sexual abuse on adulthood impulse control through depression and suicidal thoughts

Abstract

ABSTRACTChildhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been linked to a wide range of negative outcomes, including the development of low impulse control in adulthood. Because previous studies have identified impulsivity as a robust predictor of antisocial and criminal behaviors, CSA may be an important early-in-life risk factor to consider. But the pathway between CSA and impulsivity is not well understood. Research suggests CSA is an important predictor of various forms of psychopathology, such as depression and suicidal thoughts. Pulling this all together, we investigated the possibility that CSA impacts depression and suicidal thoughts and that those experiences go on to affect the development and manifestation of impulse control in adulthood. We drew on a nationally representative sample of adolescents and adults (Add Health) to test the pathways by which CSA might affect impulse control. We found that CSA negatively influences impulse control, and that depression and suicidal thoughts may mediate this relationship. Our findings highlight the importance of trauma-oriented interventions for survivors of CSA – on top of their other benefits, such interventions may have an influence on the development of impulse control later in life.