Negative Child Research Articles

Characterization of the unique oral microbiome of children harboring Helicobacter pylori in the oral cavity

ABSTRACT Objective Helicobacter pylori infection is acquired in childhood via the oral cavity, although its relationship with the characteristics of the oral microbiome has not been elucidated. In this study, we performed comprehensive analysis of the oral microbiome in children and adults with or without H. pylori in the oral cavity. Methods Bacterial DNA was extracted from 41 adult and 21 child saliva specimens, and H. pylori was detected using PCR. 16S rRNA gene amplification was performed for next-generation sequencing. Bioinformatic analyses were conducted using Quantitative Insights into Microbial Ecology 2 (QIIME 2). Results Faith’s phylogenetic diversity analysis showed a significant difference between H. pylori-negative adult and child specimens in terms of α-diversity (p < 0.05), while no significant difference was observed between H. pylori-positive adult and child specimens. There was also a significant difference in β-diversity between H. pylori-positive and negative child specimens (p < 0.05). Taxonomic analysis at the genus level revealed that Porphyromonas was the only bacterium that was significantly more abundant in both H. pylori-positive adults and children than in corresponding negative specimens (p < 0.01 and p < 0.05, respectively). Conclusion These results suggest unique oral microbiome characteristics in children with H. pylori infection in the oral cavity.

Receipt of RhD-positive whole blood for life-threatening bleeding in female children: A survey in alloimmunized mothers regarding minimum acceptable survival benefit relative to risk of maternal alloimmunization to anti-D.

Low-titer group O whole blood (LTOWB) for treatment of hemorrhagic shock sometimes necessitates transfusion of RhD-positive units due to short supply of RhD-negative LTOWB. Practitioners must choose between using RhD-positive LTOWB when RhD-negative is unavailable against the risk to a female of childbearing potential of becoming RhD-alloimmunized, risking hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn (HDFN) in future children, or using component therapy with RhD-negative red cells. This survey asked females with a history of red blood cell (RBC) alloimmunization about their risk tolerance of RhD alloimmunization compared to the potential for improved survival following transfusion of RhD-positive blood for an injured RhD negative female child. A survey was administered to RBC alloimmunized mothers. Respondents were eligible if they were living in the United States with at least one red cell antibody known to cause HDFN and if they had at least one RBC alloimmunized pregnancy. Responses from 107 RBC alloimmmunized females were analyzed. There were 32/107 (30%) with a history of severe HDFN; 12/107 (11%) had a history of fetal or neonatal loss due to HDFN. The median (interquartile range) absolute improvement in survival at which the respondents would accept RhD-positive transfusions for a female child was 4% (1%-14%). This was not different between females with and without a history of severe or fatal HDFN (p = .08 and 0.38, respectively). Alloimmunized mothers would accept the risk of D-alloimmunization in a RhD-negative female child for improved survival in cases of life-threatening bleeding.

The Relationship between Cyber Violence Victimization and Adverse Childhood Experiences

IntroductionNowadays, following the increasing digital technologies, the cyber aspect of violence is becoming more common (Willard, Journal of Adolescent Health 2007; 41) At this point, we can think that cyber violence victimization, environmental factors such as childhood traumas, exposure to violence, and moreover psychological and biological factors play a role (Fan et al., Front. Psychol 2921;12)ObjectivesOur aim was to conduct a study to determine the prevalence of cyber violence victimization among university students and to examine whether this prevalence would be related to negative childhood traumas.MethodsWe reached university students in many cities of Turkey through an online survey between 01 January 2023 and 31 March 2023. A total of 600 students participated. In our survey, we used the Turkish forms of the Childhood Adverse Experiences Scale and the Cyber Victimization Scale, for which sociodemographic data, validity and reliability studies have been completed in Turkish.ResultsUniversity students from 8 different provinces participated in our study. According to the results of our study, it was evaluated that university students who had negative childhood experiences were more likely to become cyber victims. We are exposed to many traumas from the moment we are born, and this exposure is the relationship with the mother, then relatives, friends, teachers, colleagues, etc. It continues throughout life through relationships. There is a moderate relationship between victimization of blocking and damaging behaviors in cyberspace and negative childhood relationships (r = 0.304), a low level relationship between victimization of sexual bullying in cyberspace and negative childhood relationships (r = 0.289), and victimization of spreading rumors in cyberspace. A low degree of correlation (r = 0.277) was found between and negative childhood relationships. (p &lt;0.05)ConclusionsThe widespread use of technology today facilitates the digitalization of violence, as in every field. As a result, cyber violence, like other types of violence, may be associated with childhood traumas, and this can be prevented by being exposed to the least trauma during childhood, and moreover, if we look from Bronfenbrenner’s perspective, if the next generation grows up in a suitable ecological environment, cyber violence victimization can be prevented to that extent.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Effects of Subjective Social Status and Self-Esteem in the Association Between Childhood Abuse and Adulthood Anxiety.

Subjective social status influences anxiety, but at present, the mechanism is not fully understood. It has been reported that negative childhood experiences, such as abuse, can influence depressive symptoms through subjective social status and personality traits, such as self-esteem. A similar mechanism is presumed to underlie anxiety symptoms in adulthood. Therefore, we hypothesized that subjective social status and self-esteem are intermediate factors in the indirect effects of childhood abuse on state anxiety in adulthood, and analyzed the indirect effects via these factors using a path analysis. Child Abuse and Trauma Scale, Subjective Social Status, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory Form Y questionnaires were administered in a self-report format to 404 adult volunteers from January 2014 to August 2014. In addition, a path analysis was conducted to determine whether subjective social status and self-esteem are associated with the indirect effects of childhood abuse on anxiety symptoms in adulthood. Childhood abuse did not directly affect state anxiety in adulthood, but affected state anxiety via subjective social status and self-esteem. Subjective social status affected state anxiety via self-esteem. This model explained 25.2% of the variation in state anxiety in adult volunteers. The present study demonstrated that childhood abuse affects anxiety in adulthood through subjective social status and self-esteem. Therefore, interventions that enhance subjective social status and self-esteem for adults who experienced childhood abuse may help reduce their anxiety.

The role of negative childhood experiences and internal stigma in the formation of motivation for the treatment of patients with mental disorders

Background: Motivation for treatment is an important component of patients' compliance to treatment of mental disorders, and its formation can be affected by different factors. The aim of the study: To analyze relationship between adverse childhood experiences, internal stigma and the intensity and structure of motivation to pharmaco-psychotherapy in patients with mental disorders. Materials and methods: The study involved 102 patients treated at the V.M. Bekhterev National Medical Research Center for Psychiatry and Neurology, the Kashchenko Hospital, and the City Psychiatric Hospital No. 6. The study used the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) questionnaire, the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) questionnaire, and the Treatment Motivation Assessment Questionnaire (TIMQ). Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS 26.0 software package. Results: According to the results of multiple regression analysis, patients with higher education determined the improvement of patients' motivation for treatment, increasing the probability of its high intensity by 5.92 times. The presence of each additional type of adverse experience in childhood also 1.4-fold increase the odds of intensive motivation of patients. Among individual variants of negative experience, emotional abuse was associated with a tenfold decrease in odds, while observing violence against a mother or stepmother in childhood was conversely associated with a fifteenfold increase in the odds of forming an intense motivation for treatment. Conclusion: Integrative role of adverse childhood experiences is important, but, unlike the internal stigma of mental disorder, it can be equally associated with both less adaptive motivational patterns during treatment. to both more and less adaptive motivational patterns in patients in the process of their treatment.

Longitudinal pathways of maltreated young children: Family stress processes and adverse childhood experiences.

An important issue associated with at-risk families in the child welfare system is the impact of familial stress processes on child developmental outcomes. The present study used the family stress model (FSM) to examine the impact of economic hardship, economic pressure, caregiver emotional distress, caregiver/partner conflict, caregiver harsh parenting, and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on child's cognitive, behavioral, and social outcomes. Data from the National Survey on Child and Adolescent Well-Being II were utilized, and 1,363 children (709 male, 654 female) ages 2-18 months (at Wave 1) were included in the present study. Three waves of data were analyzed in the longitudinal structural equation model, with economic hardship and economic pressure at Wave 1, caregiver emotional distress, caregiver/partner conflict, and caregiver harsh parenting at Wave 2 predicting ACEs and child outcomes at Wave 3. Results were overall consistent with the FSM in that economic hardship led to economic pressure, and caregiver emotional distress and caregiver/partner conflict led to harsh parenting, which subsequently led to ACEs. ACEs led to negative child cognitive outcomes, and for female children only, ACEs led to internalizing/externalizing behaviors. The results demonstrate that over time, familial stress processes led to negative child developmental outcomes in this sample. Study results also highlight the inextricable connection between mild harsh parenting behaviors and more severe forms of maltreatment on child outcomes. The prevention of child maltreatment is emphasized, with a specific focus on increasing positive parenting behaviors and decreasing caregiver emotional distress and caregiver/partner conflict. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Beyond form: The value of systems conceptualizations of function in increasing precision and novelty in the study of developmental psychopathology.

Developmental psychopathology has successfully advanced an understanding of risk and protective factors in multivariate models. However, many areas have relied on top-down approaches that define psychological constructs based largely or solely on their physical form. In this paper, we first describe how top-down approaches have significantly hindered progress by generating generic risk and protective models that yield little more than the conclusion that axiomatically positive and negative factors respectively beget an interchangeable array of positive and negative child sequelae. To advance precision and novelty as central priorities, we describe behavioral systems frameworks rooted in evolutionary theory that infuse both form (i.e., what it looks like) and function (what it is designed to do) into psychological constructs. We further address how this paradigm has generated new growing points for developmental models of interparental relationships and parenting. In the final section, we provide recommendations for expanding this approach to other areas of developmental psychopathology. Throughout the paper, we document how the focus on functional patterns of behavior in well-defined developmental contexts advance precision and novelty in understanding children's response processes to threats, opportunities, and challenges in associations between their developmental histories and their psychological sequelae.

Maternal autistic traits and anxiety in children with typical development in Chinese families: a moderated mediation model of mothers' negative emotional expressions and child gender.

Prior studies have focused on the effects of maternal autistic traits on children with autism, but little attention has been paid to the effects of maternal autistic traits on typically developing children, while the mechanisms of the effects are not clear. Given that, a moderated mediation model was conducted to examine the association between maternal autistic traits and typically developing children's anxiety and the underlying mechanisms. Participants were 648 mother-child dyads in which these children had no autistic siblings. Mothers reported their autistic traits and negative emotional expressions in the family and children's anxiety. The results indicated that children's anxiety was predicted by maternal autistic traits. Mediating analysis revealed that mothers' negative emotional expressions partially mediated the association between their autistic traits and children's anxiety. The findings also indicated that child gender moderated the relationship between maternal emotional expressions and children's anxiety. Specifically, anxiety in girls was more strongly predicted by negative emotional expressions from their mothers than in boys. These results have important theoretical and practical implications for reducing the adverse effect of maternal autistic traits on children's anxiety, especially for girls. The present study also reveals that maternal negative emotional expression is an important mechanism. Causal conclusions cannot be drawn based on cross-sectional research design, so it is necessary to conduct longitudinal studies in the future.

Recovered memories in psychotherapy: a survey of practicing psychotherapists in Germany

ABSTRACT We report on a survey of 258 psychotherapists from Germany, focusing on their experiences with memory recovery in general, suggestive therapy procedures, evaluations of recovered memories, and memory recovery in training and guidelines. Most therapists (78%) reported instances of memory recovery encompassing negative and positive childhood experiences, but usually in a minority of patients. Also, most therapists (82%) reported to have held assumptions about unremembered trauma. Patients who held these beliefs were reported by 83% of the therapists. Both therapist and patient assumptions reportedly occurred in a minority of cases. Furthermore, 35% of participants had used therapeutic techniques at least once to recover presumed trauma memories. Only 10% reported assuming trauma in most patients and recovering purported memories in a majority of the attempts. A fifth believed memory recovery was a task of psychotherapy. This belief correlated with trauma assumptions, memory recovery attempts, and recovery frequency. Psychodynamic therapists more often reported to assume trauma behind symptoms and agreed more with problematic views on trauma and memory. No differences showed regarding suggestive behaviour in therapy. Most participants expressed interest in receiving support on dealing with memory recoveries. This interest should be taken up, ideally during therapist training.

Impaired emotional awareness is associated with childhood maltreatment exposure and positive symptoms in schizophrenia.

Evidence suggests that emotional awareness-the ability to identify and label emotions-may be impaired in schizophrenia and related to positive symptom severity. Exposure to childhood maltreatment is a risk factor for both low emotional awareness and positive symptoms. The current investigation examines associations between a performance-based measure of emotional awareness, positive symptom severity, and childhood maltreatment exposure in 44 individuals with a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder and 48 healthy comparison participants using the electronic Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (eLEAS), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Patients demonstrated significant deficits in emotional awareness overall, which was true for both self and others. In patients, lower emotional awareness was significantly associated with more severe positive symptoms. Emotional awareness was significantly impaired in patients with schizophrenia with self-reported maltreatment exposure, relative to other groups. Severity of maltreatment was not significantly associated with emotional awareness or positive symptoms when looking continuously, and there was no significant indirect effect. These data suggest that emotional awareness impairments observed in schizophrenia may be exacerbated by exposure to childhood maltreatment, possibly putting individuals at greater risk for experiencing positive symptoms of psychosis.

Daily Functional Characteristics and Health Among Older Adults During COVID-19: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach.

Within a few years, 1 in 6 people will be aged 60 years or older. Extreme situations, such as the COVID-19 crisis, constitute a challenge to older adults. However, the literature on the daily functional characteristics of older adults in the past and during the COVID-19 crisis and their relationships to their physical and mental health is scarce. This study aimed to examine the past and present daily functional factors associated with physical and mental health in older adults. Using an online platform, 204 Israelis aged 60 years and older reported their physical health symptoms and anxiety levels. They completed questionnaires about past (negative life events and childhood daily functional self-actualization) and present (adulthood daily functional self-actualization, functional cognition and sleep quality) factors. Structural equation modeling revealed correlations between functional cognition and childhood daily functional self-actualization (β = -.18) and anxiety (β = .15); adulthood daily functional self-actualization and past negative life events (β = -.18), anxiety (β = -.50), and physical symptoms (β = -16); and sleep quality and past childhood daily functional self-actualization (β = -.19), negative life events (β = .22), anxiety (β = .18), and physical symptoms (β = .40). These findings shed light on potential functional factors for older adults' health, indicating that these functional factors play a vital role in reducing health problems in later life.

Extreme Heat and Pregnancy: A Content Analysis of Heat Health Risk Communication by US Public Health Agencies.

Exposure to extreme heat events increases the risk for negative birth outcomes, including preterm birth. This study sought to determine the presence and content of web-based heat health information for pregnant people provided by federal, state, and local government public health websites. This website content analysis consisted of 17 federal, 50 state, and 21 city websites, and noted which of 25 recognized pregnancy heat health data elements were included. Data for the analysis were collected from March 12, 2022, through March 16, 2022. The search identified 17 federal websites, 38 state websites, and 19 city websites with heat health information. Within these, only seven websites listed pregnant people as a vulnerable or at-risk population, and only six websites provided information related to heat health specifically for pregnancy. Of the 25 themes recognized as important for pregnancy risk during extreme heat exposure, only 11 were represented within these 6 websites. The presence of web-based pregnancy heat health information is infrequent and limited in content. Boosting web-based publication of extreme heat and pregnancy risks could mitigate negative maternal and child health outcomes.

Investigation of Adults' Negative Childhood Experiences in Terms of Some Variables

Araştırmada yetişkin bireylerin çocukluk çağı deneyimlerinin bazı değişkenler açısından incelenmesi amaçlanmıştır. Araştırmanın çalışma grubunu 309 yetişkin birey oluşturmuş olup araştırma verileri google forma dönüştürülen Genel Bilgi Formu ve Çocukluk Deneyimleri Ölçeği aracılığıyla elektronik olarak toplanmıştır. Araştırmada ölçeğin iç tutarlılık güvenirlik katsayısı değersizlik içeren anılar alt boyutu için .66, boyun eğdirici anılar alt boyutu için .82 ve tehdit edici anılar alt boyutu için .87, ölçeğin bütünü için ise .92 olarak bulunmuştur. Araştırmada yetişkinlerin olumsuz çocukluk yaşantılarının bireyin yaşına, cinsiyetine, medeni durumuna, çalışma durumuna göre anlamlı farklılık göstermediği; ruhsal tanı durumuna göre anlamlı farklılık gösterdiği; evli bireylerin çocukluk deneyimleri ile eş ilişkilerini değerlendirme düzeyi arasında anlamlı ilişki olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Araştırma bulguları literatür ışığında tartışılmış ve önerilerde bulunulmuştur.

Super Parents: Preliminary Findings of a Group-Based Parenting Intervention

Super Parents is a group-based, Extension-led parenting program developed to enhance the parent-child relationship. Implemented by trained Head Start staff using the train-the-trainer model, this effort is achieved by teaching positive parenting practices, increasing parents’ knowledge of child development, instructing parents in activities and exercises for enhancing their child’s executive function skills, and encouraging the use of mindfulness techniques in parenting. The specific aims of our study were to evaluate the program's effectiveness among parents of young children ages 0 to 5 by examining changes in parenting attitudes, mindfulness, executive function, parenting efficacy, stress, and child behavior. Through the use of pre-program and post-program measures, increases were observed in a number of positive parenting behaviors and child outcomes, along with decreases in multiple negative parenting and child behaviors. Findings from this study can inform implementation decisions of other parenting programs or trainings administered by Extension educators.

Exposure to childhood maltreatment predicts adult physiological dysregulation, particularly inflammation.

Although a growing literature describes the effects of negative childhood experiences on biological outcomes, it is difficult to compare results across studies because of differences in measures of childhood experiences, biological markers, sample characteristics, and included covariates. To ensure comparability across its analyses, this study used a single national survey of adults in the United States-the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study-to examine comprehensively the association between adverse childhood experiences, operationalized as childhood maltreatment (CM), and biological markers of risk for poor health and to assess whether these associations differ by type of maltreatment, sex, or race. The sample included 1254, mostly White (78%), adults aged 34-86 years (mean age 57 years), 57% of whom were female. We present incidence rate ratios (IRR) from negative binomial and Poisson regressions to examine the relationships between exposure to CM (emotional, physical, and sexual abuse; emotional and physical neglect; and a CM-index reflecting frequency across all five types of maltreatment) and four biological risk summary scores (overall physiological dysregulation, cardiometabolic risk, inflammation, and hypothalamic pituitary axis/sympathetic nervous system (HPA/SNS) function). We also tested whether the effect of each type of CM varied by sex and by race. The CM-index was associated with higher overall physiological dysregulation and inflammation, but the associations were weaker and not statistically significant for cardiometabolic risk and HPA/SNS function. With the exception of a possible sex difference in the association between sexual abuse and overall physiological dysregulation, there was little evidence that the associations varied systematically by type of CM or by sex or race. We conclude that exposure to CM predicts adult biological risk, particularly inflammation. Inconsistency with previous research suggests that additional research is needed to confirm findings regarding sex and race differences.

Identification of depression and anxiety during pregnancy: Asystematic review and meta-analysis of test accuracy.

Depression and anxiety are significant contributors to maternal perinatal morbidity and a range of negative child outcomes. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to review and assess the diagnostic test accuracy of selected screening tools (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS], EPDS-3A, Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9]-, PHQ-2, Matthey Generic Mood Question [MGMQ], Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale [GAD-7], GAD-2, and the Whooley questions) used to identify women with antenatal depression or anxiety in Western countries. On January 16, 2023, we searched 10 databases (CINAHL, Cochrane Library, CRD Database, Embase, Epistemonikos, International HTA Database, KSR Evidence, Ovid MEDLINE, PROSPERO and PsycINFO); the references of included studies were also screened. We included studies of any design that compared case-identification with a relevant screening tool to the outcome of a diagnostic interview based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth or fifth edition (DSM-IV or DSM-5), or the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision (ICD-10). Diagnoses of interest were major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders. Two authors independently screened abstracts and full-texts for relevance and evaluated the risk of bias using QUADAS-2. Data extraction was performed by one person and checked by another team member for accuracy. For synthesis, a bivariate model was used. The certainty of evidence was assessed using Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE). PROSPERO CRD42021236333. We screened 8276 records for eligibility and included 16 original articles reporting on diagnostic test accuracy: 12 for the EPDS, one article each for the GAD-2, MGMQ, PHQ-9, PHQ-2, and Whooley questions, and no articles for the EPDS-3A or GAD-7. Most of the studies had moderate to high risk of bias. Ten of the EPDS articles provided data for synthesis at cutoffs ≥10 to ≥14 for diagnosing major depressive disorder. Cutoff ≥10 gave the optimal combined sensitivity (0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.75-0.90) and specificity (0.87, 95% CI: 0.79-0.92). Findings from the meta-analysis suggest that the EPDS alone is not perfectly suitable for detection of major depressive disorder during pregnancy. Few studies have evaluated the other instruments, therefore, their usefulness for identification of women with depression and anxiety during pregnancy remains very uncertain. At present, case-identification with any tool may best serve as a complement to a broader dialogue between healthcare professionals and their patients.

Associations Between Maternal Negative Affectivity and Young Children’s Disruptive Behavior Problems: The Mediating Effect of Callous-Unemotional Traits

The current study examined associations between maternal negative affectivity (NA) and child disruptive behavior problems. The mediating role of child callous-unemotional (CU) traits in these relationships was also investigated. A multilevel mediation modeling approach was adopted using a sample of 100 families with children between 2.5 and 5.5 years of age (N = 201; mean age = 3.8, standard deviation = 1.0). The mediation models showed significant mediating effects of maternal NA through CU traits for ADHD (β = 0.12, p<.01), ODD (β =0.13, p<.01), and aggression (β =0.16, p<.001), and a significant direct effect for aggression (β = 0.12, p<.05). A structural equation modeling analysis was also performed, and overall, the results were consistent with that from mediation models, which suggested that child CU traits were significantly correlated with maternal NA (β = 0.252, p<.001), ADHD (β = 0.504, p<.001), ODD (β = 0.545, p<.001), and aggression (β = 0.686, p<.001). Our results indicated that maternal NA could serve as a potential risk factor for child CU, which, in turn, may contribute to disruptive behavior during early childhood.

Women's Sexual Autonomy and Short Birth Interval in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Multilevel Analysis of Demographic and Health Survey Data.

Sexual autonomy is an inalienable human right to protect and maintain an informed decision over one's body, sexuality, and sexual experience. With the increased attention to women's empowerment and gender equality all over the world, it is surprising that previous research has overlooked the relationship between women's sexual autonomy and short birth intervals. This study examined the association between women's sexual autonomy and short birth intervals in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Data were sourced from the Demographic and Health Surveys of 29 sub-Saharan African countries conducted from 2010 to 2019. A total of 222,940 women were included in this study. Multilevel logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the association between sexual autonomy and short birth interval. The results were presented as adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and significance level was set at p < .05. The overall proportions of sexual autonomy and short birth interval among women in SSA were 75.1% and 13.3%, respectively. Women who reported having sexual autonomy had lower odds of short birth interval [aOR = 0.94; CI = 0.91, 0.96]. The likelihood of short birth interval among women increased with increasing maternal and partner's age but reduced with increasing level of education and wealth index. Given that short birth intervals could have negative maternal and child health outcomes, public health authorities in sub-Saharan African countries should endeavor to promote health interventions and social programs to empower women with low sexual autonomy.

Complex Post-Traumatic Stress in People with Different Types of Child-Mother Attachment

Violence affects mental development and health. Childhood traumas trigger a range of different symptoms, which may manifest as a complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). This empirical study focused on the correlation between CPTSD and the type of child-mother attachment. The experiment involved 82 people aged 32–60 y.o., 30 of which were diagnosed with CPTSD while 52 people served as control. Psychological profiling showed that the CPTSD group demonstrated ambivalent and disorganized types of child-mother attachment. However, the Fisher’s ratio test revealed no significant differences for the ambivalent type. Probably, in this case, the negative childhood experience was not traumatic enough to lead to CPTSD. The predominant disorganized type of child-mother attachment formed target points for providing psychological assistance to people with CPTS.

Emotion regulation weakens the associations between parental antipathy and neglect and self-harm

Using a representative sample of 7918 Portuguese adolescents (Mage = 15.5, SD = 1.7, 53.3% female gender) and three self-report measures of parental antipathy and neglect, self-harm and its functions, and emotion regulation, this cross-sectional study examined the moderating role of emotion regulation in the links between these negative childhood experiences and self-harm in adolescence. Maternal and paternal antipathy and neglect had the largest effects on self-harm for youth with low levels of emotion regulation. These results emphasize the relevance of promoting emotion regulation across multiple contexts (e.g., school, family, legal system) for the prevention of adolescent self-harm, even in situations with a history of childhood emotional abuse and/or neglect.