No abstract

Aim Being subjected to childhood maltreatment has devastating long-term adverse effects and is a major risk factor for mental health problems in adult life. There is empirical support that socio-political factors can be risk factors for childhood maltreatment. Here we examine whether socio-political context predicts self-rated childhood maltreatment in a sample of the German population. Methods Data were drawn from surveys of representative samples of the East and West German population, including participants born 1980 or earlier (5836 participants; 3146 women). Childhood maltreatment was assessed using the Childhood Trauma Screener, the German short screening version of the childhood trauma questionnaire. To examine whether socio-political context is a predictor of childhood maltreatment in women and men, we conducted logistic regression analyses. Results We found that in women, socio-political context (West Germany) significantly predicted childhood maltreatment (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] 1.7 [1.2–2.5], 1.6 [1.1–2.3], 2.5 [1.6–4.1] and 1.8 [1.3–2.5] for emotional neglect, and emotional, physical and sexual violence, respectively). In men, the socio-political context (West Germany) was a predictor of physical and sexual violence (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] 1.8 [1.2–2.7] and 2.5 [1.4–4.5]), respectively. Concerning emotional neglect and violence, socio-political context was not a significant predictor in men. The examination of differential item functioning revealed that our results could not be attributed to differential response behaviour between East and West Germans caused by item bias. Conclusions The results suggest that socio-political context is an important determinant to consider when examining childhood maltreatment. Future research should continue to focus on risk and protective factors at the societal level, such as legal frameworks addressing gender equality and child protection laws, to create further evidence for population-wide prevention strategies ensuring safe, nurturing and thriving environments for children and families.

No abstract

Stigma has been shown to interfere with self-identification as having a mental illness, perceived need, and help-seeking, but it is unclear whether it also impairs awareness of symptoms of mental illness. Objective and subjective cognitive deficits are common in mental illness, but the concordance of these assessments is generally weak. The present study aimed at investigating the role of stigma in explaining this discrepancy. A sample of 187 currently untreated persons with mental health problems was studied. Concentration performance was measured via the d2-R (i.e., the revision of the Concentration Endurance Test [d2 Test of Attention]) and subjectively (self-report). Measure discrepancy was quantified using a sensitivity score. Stigma was measured as personal stigmatizing attitudes, stigma awareness, and stigma stress. The association of stigma and sensitivity was examined via multiple regression analysis. In unadjusted regression models, stronger negative attitudes were significantly associated with overestimating, and higher stigma-stress was associated with underestimating one’s cognitive performance. These associations were reduced to a near-significant trend or disappeared when controlling for demographic variables. Subgroup analyses revealed that specific stigmatizing attitudes (i.e., differentness, untreatability) were associated with lower sensitivity in persons without prior contact to a person with mental illness, whereas in individuals without personal treatment experience, higher stigma stress was associated with greater symptom sensitivity. Interventions reducing stigmatizing attitudes may help facilitate the accurate recognition of cognitive deficits as possible first signs of a mental illness. Strengthening resources for coping with public stigma may prevent worsening of both symptoms and psychosocial functioning.