NCJ Number: 165000
Title: Traumatic Childhood Events, Perceived Availability of Emotional Support, and the Development of Dissociative Tendencies
Journal: Child Abuse and Neglect Volume:20 Issue:8 Dated:(August 1996) Pages:701-707
Author(s): H J Irwin
Date Published: 1996
Page Count: 7
Type: Report (Study/Research)
Format: Article
Language: English
Country: United States of America
Annotation: Past research has documented a link between childhood traumatic experiences and dissociative tendencies in adulthood; this study investigated the possibility that the previously reported link is an artifact of the level of emotional support available during childhood.
Abstract: The study used a convenience sample of 239 Australian adults (123 women and 116 men) recruited through personal contacts. The sample was surveyed for the incidence of traumatic childhood events, the perceived availability of emotional support from intrafamilial and extrafamilial figures, and the presence of a dissociative coping style. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that perceived availability of emotional support in childhood was a predictor of current dissociative tendencies, but account of the support factor did not eliminate the relationship between childhood trauma and dissociation. The range of childhood trauma found to predict dissociative tendencies is consistent with data from previous studies (Irwin, 1994; Sanders et al., 1989), in which no account was taken of the availability of emotional support. Traumatic childhood events continued to contribute to the regression, despite the removal of the contribution of the factor of perceived emotional support in the previous stage of the hierarchical analysis. The data show that the previously documented link between childhood trauma and dissociative tendencies is not a mere artifact of the availability of emotional support during childhood. The results are consistent with the view that lack of emotional support is best deemed a mediator, rather than a primary cause of a dissociative coping style. Emotional support thus may alleviate some, but not all, of the impact of traumatic events on the development of a habitual reliance on dissociative processes. 2 tables, 18 references, and appended Childhood Emotional Support Scale
Main Term(s): Juvenile victims
Index Term(s): Adult survivors of child sexual abuse; Australia; Child abuse; Foreign criminal justice research; Psychological victimization effects
To cite this abstract, use the following link: http://www.ncjrs.gov/App/publications/abstract.aspx?ID=165000
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