A mediational analysis of adverse experiences in childhood and quality of life in adulthood

Abstract

Objectives: This study examined associations of three prevalent adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) -parents' problematic alcohol use (PPAU), parental separation/ divorce, and lack of support from a trusted adult-with adult quality of life (QoL), and potential mediators of associations.Methods: Data were from a representative survey (N = 28,047) in Norway that assessed ACEs, QoL, and potential mediators: enduring perceptions of childhood hardships (Difficult Childhood Questionnaire; DCQ), current mental distress, and current social isolation. Latent regression analyses examined potential mediators.Results: Each ACE was positively associated with perceptions of childhood as difficult (higher DCQ scores). In turn, ACEs were negatively associated with adult QoL through indirect effects. Lack of support from a trusted adult had the strongest negative association with adult QoL, compared to PPAU and parental separation/ divorce. The association between the ACEs and QoL was explained through the mediators of mental distress and social isolation. Conclusions:Of the examined ACEs, lack of support from a trusted adult had the strongest negative impact on adult QoL. Adult support to vulnerable children could potentially ameliorate adult consequences of ACEs. In addition, adults reporting difficulties due to childhood adversities may benefit from therapeutic interventions that address both psychological distress and isolation. K E Y W O R D Sadverse childhood experiences, mental health, quality of life, social isolation | INTRODUCTIONAdverse experiences in childhood are common. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that in Europe alone, 55 million children are affected by maltreatment (Sethi et al., 2018). In WHOsupported European surveys of young adults aged 18-25 years, half of respondents reported at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE), with 6.3% reporting four or more (Sethi et al., 2018). These ACEs included physical, emotional and sexual abuse; neglect; witnessing intimate partner violence; and growing up with a household member with substance use, mental illness, and/or a history of incarceration. ACEs have received considerable attention because they have consistently been linked with negative physical and mental health outcomes in adulthood (Hughes et al., 2017; This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.

The Long Arm of Childhood Bullying Victimization: Associations with Social Isolation, Gender Differences and Depression in Later Life

“…Moreover, in accordance with several similar studies that have confirmed the associations between adverse childhood experiences and psychological wellbeing among young or older adults (Burns et al, 2022; Vederhus et al, 2022), the current results show that childhood bullying victimization significantly increases the possibility for middle and older adults to be trapped in social isolation, further improving their levels of depression. Specifically, exposure to childhood bullying victimization blocks the initial reserve of individuals’ interpersonal abilities at the early stage (Barile et al, 2015), causing them unable to obtain sufficient and high-quality social relationships to maintain mental health in the future (Uchino et al, 1996), and also damages their stress response regulation systems (Subramaniam et al, 2020), further forming stable negative coping strategies of avoidance and withdrawal (Bjereld, 2018), which is unfavorable for them to get out of the state of social isolation (Nicholson, 2012).…”

“…In the Chinese context, this issue is particularly pronounced due to the widespread phenomenon of “empty-nest elderly” resulting from rapid societal changes (Tang et al, 2021), which refers to the social phenomenon wherein adult children or grandchildren migrate from rural to urban areas or from the Midwest to the East of China for work or education, leaving their elderly parents or grandparents living alone. While previous research has predominantly focused on the association between functional health (e.g., cognitive function and physical function) on middle and older adults’ social isolation (Luo et al, 2021), emerging evidence suggests that childhood bullying victimization may also play a role in predicting social isolation in later life (Burns et al, 2022; Vederhus et al, 2022).…”

Elements of Communication Competence in Encountering Traumatized Adolescents in Substitute Care

“…Especially, adolescents who live in substitute care often experience traumatic events in their early lifespan (Salazar et al, 2013). Many clients of child welfare services and adolescent psychiatry have a history of manifold victimization and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as physical, sexual or emotional abuse, mental illness of a household member, or substance abuse issues within the childhood family that usually accompany them in various ways into adulthood (Anda et al, 2006; Vederhus et al, 2022). Childhood cumulative trauma can cause long-term consequences and act as a predictor of increasing psychosocial symptom complexity in later years (Cloitre et al, 2009).…”

Parents' experiences of their child's participation in divorce groups in Norway: A phenomenological study

“…Parental separation proves to be stressful for most children and can affect their health as adults [1,[3][4][5]. Studies from recent years also include other aspects that can influence health and self-conceptual problems such as parent-child relations [2], custody arrangements [6][7][8][9] and children's experiences [7,10].…”