Number Of Childhood Adversities Research Articles

Psychosocial profile of male perpetrators of domestic violence: A population-based study.

Background:Domestic violence can result from societal, community, and relationship factors pertaining to both the perpetrator and the victims. The male perpetrators of domestic violence have rarely been the subjects of a study.Aim:To understand the factors influencing a man's risk in perpetrating domestic violence in a community setting.Materials and Methods:This observational, exploratory study was conducted on 50 male perpetrators of domestic violence in an urban slum. A semi-structured questionnaire which incorporated Adverse Childhood Experience International Questionnaire, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety, and Becks Inventory for Depression was used for assessment.Results:All the respondents reported both verbal and physical violence with 26% reporting complicated physical violence. Alcohol dependence was diagnosed in 77% of respondents. Twenty-four percent had depression and 34% had anxiety. The mean number of ACEs suffered by the respondents was 4 and the range was 0–8. Substance abuse in the family (86%) and witnessing verbal/psychological abuse (82%) were the most common ACE found. Complicated domestic violence was statistically significantly associated with the presence of alcohol dependence, witnessing complicated physical abuse between the parents and parents separated due to death or divorce. Certain adversities, namely verbal punishment, physical punishment, bullying, community violence, caretaker of sibling, and household work, were strongly associated with abusers who suffered from psychiatric comorbidities.Conclusion:The presence and severity of alcohol dependence and the number of childhood adversities are strongly associated with complicated type of domestic violence. Those who were victims of a large number of ACEs also suffered from anxiety, depression, and alcohol dependence.

Childhood Adversity Impairs Theory of Mind Abilities in Adult Patients With Major Depressive Disorder.

Background: Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) have various theory of mind (ToM) impairments which often predict a poor outcome. However, findings on ToM deficits in MDD are inconsistent and suggest the role of moderating factors. Child abuse and neglect are strong predictors of adult MDD and are often associated with a poorer clinical course trajectory. Objective: Because early-life adversities result in various forms of ToM deficits in clinical and nonclinical samples, our aim was to investigate if they are significant confounding factors of ToM impairments in MDD. Methods: We investigated 60 mildly or moderately depressed, nonpsychotic adult patients with MDD during an acute episode, and 32 matched healthy controls. The mental state decoding subdomain of ToM was examined with the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). Childhood adversities were assessed with the childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ) and the early trauma inventory. Results: There was no difference between the control and MDD groups in RMET performance. However, when we divided the MDD group into two subgroups, one (N = 30) with high and the other (N = 30) with low levels of childhood adversities, a significant difference emerged between the controls and the highly maltreated MDD subgroup in RMET performance. A series of 3 (group) × 3 (valence) mixed-model analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) revealed that childhood emotional and physical neglect had a significant negative impact on the response accuracy in RMET in general, whereas emotional abuse specifically interfered with the accuracy in the positive and negative valences if it co-occurred with early-life neglect. To test the dose-response relationship between the number of childhood adversities and RMET capacities, we subjected RMET data of the MDD group to multiple hierarchical regressions: the number of childhood adversities was a significant predictor of RMET total scores and RMET scores in the negative valence after controlling for age, sex, years of education, and the severity of current depression. Conclusion: Childhood adversities impair ToM capacities in MDD. Exposure to early-life emotional abuse and neglect have a negative impact on the performance in the emotional valences of RMET. Multiple early-life adversities have a dose-dependent association with mental state decoding deficits.

Childhood Adversities and Physical and Mental Health Outcomes in Adults Living with HIV: Findings from the Ontario HIV Treatment Network Cohort Study.

We sought to estimate the prevalence of childhood adversity and examine its relationship with health outcomes among people living with HIV. Study participants included 1409 adults living with HIV and receiving care in Toronto, Canada. Data on childhood adversity, health behaviors, HIV outcome measures, depression, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) were collected through face-to-face interviews and medical records. Statistical analyses included multivariable linear and logistic regression modeling. The prevalence of any childhood adversity was 71% (individual types ranged from 11% to 44%) and higher prevalence was associated with younger age, Indigenous or African/Caribbean/Black ethnicity, lower socioeconomic status, and higher rates of cigarette smoking and nonmedicinal drug use. Greater number of childhood adversities was associated with greater odds of depression and decreasing mental HRQOL. HIV care providers need to screen for childhood adversities and address childhood trauma within the context of HIV care.

Childhood adversities: Social support, premorbid functioning and social outcome in first-episode psychosis and a matched case-control group.

The establishment of childhood adversities as risk factors for non-affective psychosis has derived a need to consider alternative interpretations of several psychosis-related factors. This paper sought to examine premorbid adjustment trajectories and social outcome factors in relation to childhood adversities. Perceived support has been found to decrease the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, and we wished to compare perceived support in people with first-episode psychosis to non-clinical control persons and explore its relation to childhood adversities. Every individual presenting with a non-affective first-episode psychosis (F20-29, except F21) in Region Zealand over a 2-year period was approached for participation and the 101 consenting participants were matched to 101 people with no psychiatric disorders. Comprehensive demographic data were collected. Assessment instruments included the Premorbid Assessment Scale, the Global Assessment of Functioning scale and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. The latter represented the childhood adversities in addition to parental separation and institutionalization. There were no associations between number of childhood adversities and different social or academic premorbid trajectories. Those with more adversities had lower global functioning the year prior to treatment start and reported lower rates of perceived support during childhood along with less current face-to-face contact with family members. Lack of peer support remained a significant predictor of psychosis when adversities were adjusted for; peer support diminished the risk of psychosis caused by childhood adversities by 10%. Childhood adversities may not predict specific premorbid trajectories, but have an effect on global functioning when the psychosis has begun. Perceived support, especially from peers, may be important in the development of psychosis, and those with more adversities may represent a vulnerable subgroup who need more assistance to increase and maintain supportive networks.

Childhood adversities, adulthood life events and depression

Background The role of childhood adversities in predicting adulthood depression has been suggested to be complex and in need of additional comprehensive studies. Aims This investigation set out to examine whether increased exposure to life events (LEs) in adulthood mediates the association between childhood adversities and adulthood depression. Methods This study is based on a random health survey sample from the Finnish working-aged population ( n = 16,877) with a follow-up of up to 7 years. Depression was identified by Beck Depression Inventory, records of antidepressant prescriptions and hospitalization due to depression obtained from national health registers. Results Childhood adversities were associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing a high number of LEs in adulthood and their perceived burdensomeness. The mean number of new LEs correlated significantly ( P < 0.001) in a dose–response relationship with the number of childhood adversities. Reporting childhood adversities was associated with a 1.28–2.70-fold increase in the odds of depression as indicated by BDI score, a 1.29–1.94-fold increase in the rate of antidepressant prescriptions and a 1.17–4.04-fold increase in the risk of hospitalization due to depression. Adjustment for new LE attenuated these associations by 21–24%, but did not render them insignificant. Conclusions Increased exposure to adult negative life events proximal to adult depression may partially explain the association between childhood adversities and adult depression.

Childhood adversities as predictors of incident coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease

BackgroundStudies suggest that childhood adversities are important determinants of various types of later illnesses as well as poor health behaviour. However, few large-scale prospective studies have examined the associations between...