The Effects of Childhood Trauma on College Completion

Abstract

This study uses the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health to examine the effect of childhood trauma experiences on college graduation rates. A longitudinal mediation path analysis with a binary logistic regression is performed using trauma as a mediator between race, gender, first-generation status and college completion. The analysis reveals that being female and a continuing-generation student are both associated with greater likelihood of graduating college and that trauma mediates the relationship between race, gender, first-generation status and college completion. The authors explore the implications for these findings for policy, practice, and future research.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Mental Health among Students Seeking Psychological Counseling Services

“…The cut-off scores indicate the threshold for depression, with scores of 10 and above suggesting a significant level of depression. The levels of depression according to the PHQ-9 are mild (5-9), moderate (10)(11)(12)(13)(14), moderately severe (15)(16)(17)(18)(19), and severe (20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27). The PHQ-9 is a commonly used tool in clinical settings and is considered a reliable and valid measure to assess levels of depression severity [38].…”

Gauging trauma-informed pedagogy in higher education: a UK case study

“…As a result, emerging concepts focused on developing trauma-informed pedagogy in higher education have surfaced (Jolly, 2011;Chan et al, 2020). Traumainformed pedagogy -rooted in the theory of Universal Design for Learning and trauma-informed practice (Bloom, 2010;CAST, 2018)-is an approach to teaching and learning that acknowledges the presence and impact of trauma in students' lives and enables educators to appreciate that trauma exposure among students may impair self-regulated learning and result in academic challenges that include assignment completion, engaging with peers as well as quitting a course or even a degree program (Imad, 2022;Lecy and Osteen, 2022).…”

“…While the concept of being trauma-informed educators and institutions has been embraced by primary and secondary (K-12/P12) school educators as well as policymakers for several decades (Morton and Berardi, 2018;Thomas et al, 2019;Stratford et al, 2020;Scannell, 2021), the conversation in higher education has only gained traction over the last decade -with much of this discourse originating in social work education, a field that is intimately familiar with the impacts of trauma on individuals and communities (Carello and Butler, 2015;Thomas, 2016;Negrete, 2020;Voith et al, 2020). Notable in this regard is the extant literature suggesting that as much as 85% of students in higher education have experienced one or more traumatic events (Frazier et al, 2009), that remain a constant part of their lives (Cunningham, 2004;Read et al, 2011;Butler et al, 2017;Guzmán-Rea, 2021;Lecy and Osteen, 2022). These traumatic experiences not only affect vulnerable individuals but can impact individuals collectively or in some cases, be passed down generationally (viz., intergenerational trauma) (Gaywish and Mordoch, 2018).…”