The ACE Questionnaire and Lifetime Physical Aggression

Abstract

ABSTRACT Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have been associated disproportionately with sexual rather than physical forms of aggression. Questions remain regarding the value of ACE survey research in advancing current understanding of the nexuses between various forms of adversity and physical aggression. This sample (N = 2,013) was comprised of men and women from the general public surveyed through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. The original ACE questionnaire was expanded in its adversity domain, and dimensional indices for childhood neglect, exposure to domestic violence, and emotional, sexual, and physical abuse added for comparison purposes. All 18 of the ACEs examined in this study were linked to self-reported acts of lifetime aggression. Self-reported counts of injury inflicted on others during prior violent acts were significantly higher for respondents endorsing every adversity sampled with the ACE questionnaire. These results contribute to a growing evidentiary base suggesting that the developmental trajectory of physical aggression is steepened by adverse childhood experiences and maltreatment polyvictimization. These results also provided some assurance regarding the advantages of comprehensive versus dichotomized adversity indicators in the assessment of childhood maltreatment.