Helminen EC, Scheer JR, Edwards KM, Felver JC. Adverse childhood experiences exacerbate the association between day-to-day discrimination and mental health symptomatology in undergraduate students.
J Affect Disord 2022;
297:338-347. [PMID:
34715169 PMCID:
PMC9109003 DOI:
10.1016/j.jad.2021.10.058]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 09/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and day-to-day discrimination (hereafter, "discrimination") both contribute to mental health symptomatology in young adulthood, but how these constructs interact and whether they are associated with mental health remains unclear. This study evaluated whether the relation between discrimination in young adulthood and mental health symptomatology varied as a function of ACEs exposure.
METHODS
Undergraduates (n = 251) completed self-report measures related to ACEs, discrimination, and mental health symptomatology (i.e., depression, anxiety, somatization, and psychological distress). Linear and logistic regression models were implemented to test for potential exacerbation effects of ACEs on the relation between discrimination and mental health symptomatology.
RESULTS
Participants with greater discrimination exposure and ACEs reported significantly more depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms, along with more psychological distress, relative to those with less discrimination exposure and few or no ACEs.
LIMITATIONS
Data were cross-sectional, thus, causality cannot be inferred. ACEs and discrimination measures examined ACE counts and general discrimination, respectively, which did not allow for examination of possible differences across specific ACEs (e.g., childhood sexual abuse vs. neglect) or specific types of discrimination (e.g., sexual-orientation-based discrimination vs. race-based discrimination).
CONCLUSIONS
These results are among the first to inform the conceptualization of ACEs and discrimination in etiological models of young adults' mental health. Both ACEs and discrimination, rather than exposure to only one of these stressors, may be synergistically associated with young adults' mental health symptomatology. Clinicians could address stress-sensitive mental health issues by assessing for both ACEs and discrimination exposure.
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