Longitudinal Effects of Parental Maltreatment on Peer Trust in Early Adolescence: Mediating Effects of Ego-Identity, Self-Esteem, and Depression

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the longitudinal effects of parental maltreatment(age 9) on peer trust in early adolescence(age 12) mediated by ego-identity, self-esteem, and depression(age 11).Methods: This study used data from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey 2010 (KCYPS 2010). Three waves of data (4·6·7th waves of the 1st grade cohort panel data set) collected from 1,926 children were analyzed. Finally, bootstrapping was conducted with SPSS 26.0 and Process macro program version 4.1 to examine the mediating effects of the hypothesized model.Results: First, parental maltreatment perceived at age 9 was found to have a significant effect on peer trust at age 12(β = -.15, <i>p</i> < .001). In addition, parental maltreatment positively correlated with depression and negatively correlated with ego-identity and self-esteem. Moreover, ego-identity and self-esteem were found to have indirect negative effects on peer trust mediated by depression. Finally, because of verifying the significance of the mediating effect using bootstrapping, the effect size was -.031(95% CI [-.040, -.024]). Thus, ego-identity, self-esteem, and depression partially mediated the relationship between parental maltreatment during late childhood and peer trust in early adolescence.Conclusion: This study verified the longitudinal effects of parental maltreatment on peer trust mediated by ego-identity, self-esteem, and depression. These findings highlight the importance of parent education on child abuse and the necessity of timely follow-up interventions. This study attempted to provide a more solid framework to understand the severe consequences of parental maltreatment, thus contributing to eradicating the vicious cycle of violence.