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Abstract
BackgroundThe hypothesis that traumatic experiences in early childhood impact personality formation and psychopathology is well known in psychology and psychiatry, but this is difficult to verify statistically in methodological terms. The aim of this study, conducted with politically persecuted Poles, was to establish the influence of the time when trauma is experienced on the development of psychopathological symptoms.MethodsThe subjects were divided into two groups: those who had experienced trauma before age five (group 1) and those who experienced trauma at an older age (group 2). Subjects in both groups suffered from chronic untreated post-traumatic stress disorder. In order to test the research hypothesis, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 profiles of both groups were compared using Student’s t-test, and the Mann–Whitney U-test.ResultsStatistically significant between-group differences were found for the F validity scale and the following clinical scales: Hypochondriasis, Depression, Psychopathic deviate, Psychasthenia, Schizophrenia, and Social introversion. All the significantly different scores were higher in the group traumatized in early childhood. People exposed to trauma under age five had profiles similar to those traumatized after age five, but they experienced their symptoms more intensely.ConclusionsOf clinical significance, higher scores on the psychasthenia, schizophrenia, and social introversion scales, especially on the psychopathic deviate scale, indicated pathology only in the early childhood trauma group. Taken together, these symptoms lead to withdrawal and hindrance of social functioning. This outcome confirms the hypothesis of the influence of various early childhood factors (such as trauma) on personality formation and personality traits in adulthood.
Highlights
The hypothesis that traumatic experiences in early childhood impact personality formation and psychopathology is well known in psychology and psychiatry, but this is difficult to verify statistically in methodological terms
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2) scales – comparison of the groups Statistically significant between-group differences were found for the F validity scale (p = 0.0201) and these clinical scales: Depression (D) (p = 0.0235), Psychopathic Deviate (Pd) (p = 0.0035), Psychasthenia (Pt) (p = 0.0079), Schizophrenia (Sc) (p = 0.0027), and Social Introversion (Si) (p = 0.0022)
Validity scales F, L, and K The higher score on the F scale in group 1 confirms again that the level of the score on the F scale reflects the intensity of psychopathological symptoms; it was higher in the group of subjects in which the scores on the clinical scales were higher
Summary
The hypothesis that traumatic experiences in early childhood impact personality formation and psychopathology is well known in psychology and psychiatry, but this is difficult to verify statistically in methodological terms. Difficulties arise in evaluating the homogeneous stressors that operated in a patient’s childhood, youth, and adult life without therapeutic input, as well as the clinical symptoms These difficulties are well known, but are a major obstacle to identifying with any certitude the causes of childhood psychopathology. Journal of Personality Disorders and the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry have published articles broadly discussing the difficulties in assessing the impact of childhood on personality formation [1,2,3] These problems notwithstanding, scholars have begun to focus in recent years on the long-term consequences of childhood trauma. From the personality psychology perspective, early traumatization could be a cornerstone in the disintegration of self, and the earlier in life the onset of trauma, the more disintegrated the self becomes
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