Posttraumatic stress symptoms mediate the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, avoidant personality traits and resilience

Dark personality traits (i.e., Machiavellianism, psychopathy, narcissism, spitefulness, and sadism) are associated with adverse childhood experiences and deviant online behaviors. However, their mediating role between childhood emotional abuse and cyberbullying has never previously been investigated. We examined direct and indirect associations of childhood emotional abuse and cyberbullying via dark personality traits among 772 participants. Men were better characterized by dark personality traits and were more likely to engage in cyberbullying than women, and there were no sex differences in childhood emotional abuse. Collectively, dark traits fully mediated the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and cyberbullying in men, with partial mediation in the total sample and women. More specifically, Machiavellianism and spitefulness were mediators in both samples, sadism was a mediator in men and the total sample, and psychopathy was a mediator in the total sample and women. The dark personality traits can account for the association between childhood emotional abuse and cyberbullying, especially among men.

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Origins of Adulthood Personality: The Role of Adverse Childhood Experiences

The B E Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy ◽

10.1515/bejeap-2015-0212 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Jason M. Fletcher ◽

Stefanie Schurer

Keyword(s):

Personality Traits ◽

Adverse Childhood Experiences ◽

Openness To Experience ◽

Market Outcomes ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

Important Pathway ◽

The Relationship ◽

Parental Maltreatment

Abstract We test whether adverse childhood experiences – exposure to parental maltreatment and its indirect effect on health – are associated with age 30 personality traits. We use rich longitudinal data from a large, representative cohort of young US Americans and exploit the differences across siblings to control for the confounding influences of shared environmental and genetic factors. We find that maltreatment experiences are significantly and robustly associated with neuroticism, conscientiousness, and openness to experience, but not with agreeableness and extraversion. High levels of neuroticism are linked to sexual abuse and neglect; low levels of conscientiousness and openness to experience are linked to parental neglect. The estimated associations are significantly reduced in magnitude when controlling for physical or mental health, suggesting that adolescent health could be one important pathway via which maltreatment affects adulthood personality. Maltreatment experiences, in combination with their health effects, explain a significant fraction of the relationship between adulthood conscientiousness and earnings or human capital. Our findings provide a possible explanation for why personality traits are important predictors of adulthood labor market outcomes.

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Current Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms Mediate the Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Executive Functions

Psychological Reports ◽

10.1177/0033294120979690 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 003329412097969

Author(s):

Rachel A. Maja ◽

Robyn E. Kilshaw ◽

Mauricio A. Garcia-Barrera ◽

Justin E. Karr

Keyword(s):

Executive Function ◽

Executive Functions ◽

Posttraumatic Stress ◽

Symptom Severity ◽

Adverse Childhood Experiences ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

History Of Childhood ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

History Of ◽

The Relationship

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are both associated with lower performances on executive function tasks. However, few researchers have evaluated ACEs, posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, and executive function difficulties in conjunction. Using an online micropayment service, the current study assessed whether PTS symptoms mediated the relationship between ACEs and executive functions. In total, 83 participants (54.2% female, age: M = 28.86, SD = 7.71) were administered the ACE questionnaire, PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5), and the Executive Function Index (EFI). A higher number of reported ACEs was related to greater PTS symptom severity ( β = .40, p < .001) and worse self-rated executive functions ( β = –.32, p = .002). Controlling for the number of reported ACEs, current PTS symptom severity was related to worse executive functions ( β = –.45, p < .001). A bootstrapped 95% confidence interval (CI) indicated a significant indirect effect, β = –.18 (95% CI: –.30, –.08), by which current PTS symptoms mediated the relationship between the number of reported ACEs and executive functions. These results suggest that psychological interventions targeting PTS symptoms, in the context of a history of childhood trauma, may concurrently improve executive functions in adult populations.

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The Relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Sleep Problems among Adolescent Students: Mediation by Depression or Anxiety

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18010236 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 236

Author(s):

E-Jin Park ◽

Shin-Young Kim ◽

Yeeun Kim ◽

Dajung Sung ◽

Bora Kim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adverse Childhood Experiences ◽

Sleep Problems ◽

Short Form ◽

Community Sample ◽

Mediating Effect ◽

Self Report ◽

Depression And Anxiety ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

The Relationship

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are known to be closely related to depression, anxiety and sleep problems. However, it remains unclear whether adolescents with ACEs have sleep problems regardless of depression or anxiety or under a mediating effect from depression or anxiety. Therefore, our aim was to examine whether depression or anxiety mediates the relationship between ACEs and sleep problems in adolescents by using a community sample. The Early Trauma Inventory Self Report–Short Form (ETISR-SF) and List of Threatening Experiences Questionnaire (LTE-Q) were used to assess traumatic ACEs. Ultimately, data from 737 students (M = 448, F = 289, 15.1 ± 1.4 years old) were included in the statistical analysis. A total of 576 (78.1%) participants reported that they had experienced one or more ACEs. Adolescents with ACEs had higher levels of depression, anxiety and sleep problems than did adolescents without ACEs, and boys tended to experience more trauma than girls. Depression and anxiety partially mediated the relationship between ACEs and sleep problems. The results of this study suggest the need for depression and anxiety interventions for adolescents with ACEs to reduce the long-term consequences, including sleep problems and physical health problems.

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Breaking the Cycle of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Economic Position Moderates the Relationship Between Mother and Child ACE Scores among Black and Hispanic Families

Children and Youth Services Review ◽

10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106067 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 106067

Author(s):

Katie A. Ports ◽

Shichao Tang ◽

Sarah Treves-Kagan ◽

Whitney Rostad

Keyword(s):

Adverse Childhood Experiences ◽

Hispanic Families ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

Mother And Child ◽

Economic Position ◽

The Relationship

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Adverse Childhood Experiences and Prevalence of Cigarette and E-Cigarette Use Among Adolescents in Bangkok, Thailand

Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1177/1010539520962956 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 32 (8) ◽

pp. 398-405

Author(s):

Takuma Ofuchi ◽

Aye Myat Myat Zaw ◽

Bang-on Thepthien

Keyword(s):

Adverse Childhood Experiences ◽

Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽

Tobacco Product ◽

Dual Use ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

Different Types ◽

History Of ◽

The Relationship ◽

Score Range

Currently, e-cigarettes are the most popular tobacco product among adolescents. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and dual use in a sample of adolescents in Bangkok, Thailand. The sample comprises 6167 students from 48 schools (grades 9, 11, and vocational year 2) who participated in the 2019 round of the Behavior Surveillance Survey. History of 11 ACEs was used to calculate a cumulative ACE score (range 0-11). Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between history of ACEs and smoking. In the sample, 7.0% reported using e-cigarettes only and 9.5% used e-cigarettes and cigarettes (dual use). After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, history of ACEs was associated with increased odds of dual use. The odds of cigarette, e-cigarette, and dual use was significantly greater if the adolescent had a history of ≥4 ACEs. Special attention is needed to prevent smoking of different types among those with a history of ACEs.

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