Childhood trauma exposure and alcohol dependence severity in adulthood: mediation by emotional abuse severity and neuroticism.
paper
Cited
Public
- Authors
- Schwandt, Melanie L; Heilig, Markus; Hommer, Daniel W; George, David T; Ramchandani, Vijay A
- Year
- 2013
- Journal
- Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research
- PMID
- 23278300
- DOI
- 10.1111/acer.12053
- PMCID
- PMC3620963
BACKGROUND: Childhood trauma has been linked with a number of negative outcomes later in life, including alcohol dependence (AD). Previous studies have suggested a mediating role for neuroticism in the relationship between childhood trauma and psychopathology. In this study, we investigate the prevalence of multiple types of childhood trauma in treatment-seeking alcohol-dependent patients, and the associations between childhood trauma and AD severity using multiple mediation analysis. METHODS: The prevalence of 5 types of childhood trauma-emotional abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect-was assessed in treatment-seeking alcohol-dependent patients (n = 280) and healthy controls (n = 137) using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Multiple mediation analyses were used to model associations between childhood trauma measures and alcohol-related outcomes, primarily the severity of AD in the alcohol-dependent sample. RESULTS: Childhood trauma was significantly more prevalent and more severe in the alcohol-dependent subjects. In addition, childhood trauma was found to influence AD severity, an effect that was mediated by neuroticism. When individual trauma types were examined, emotional abuse was found to be the primary predictor of AD severity, both directly and through the mediating effects of the impulsivity subfacet of neuroticism. Physical abuse also had a moderate direct effect on AD severity. Mediation analysis did not reveal any association between childhood trauma and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test score in the nondependent control sample. CONCLUSIONS: Childhood trauma is highly prevalent in treatment-seeking alcoholics and may play a significant role in the development and severity of AD through an internalizing pathway involving negative affect. Our findings suggest that alcoholics with a history of childhood emotional abuse may be particularly vulnerable to severe dependence.
Multiple mediation models of the relationship between emotional abuse and alcohol dependence severity. (A) Model including the personality domain neuroticism. Covariates and their effect estimates (in parentheses) are as follows: age (−0.01), race (−2.53**), gender (−0.54), family history density (11.09***), physical abuse (0.28*), sexual abuse (−0.05), emotional neglect (−0.11), physical neglect (−0.34*), lifetime history of a mood disorder (−2.10), lifetime history of an anxiety disorder (0.45), lifetime history of other substance use disorder (0.63) (B) Model including the subfacets of neuroticism. Covariates and their effect estimates (in parentheses) are as follows: age (−0.07), race (−1.78**), gender (−0.03), family history density (10.68***), physical abuse (0.25), sexual abuse (−0.08), emotional neglect (−0.08), physical neglect (−0.36*), lifetime history of a mood disorder (−1.67), lifetime history of an anxiety disorder (0.76), lifetime history of other substance use disorder (0.99) All path estimates and covariate coefficients are unstandardized regression coefficients. * p<0.05, ** p<0.01, *** p<0.001.
Multiple mediation model of the relationship between physical abuse and alcohol dependence severity. Covariates and their effect estimates (in parentheses) are as follows: age (−0.01), race (−2.53**), gender (−0.54), family history density (11.09***), physical abuse (0.28*), sexual abuse (−0.05), emotional neglect (−0.11), physical neglect (−0.34*), lifetime history of a mood disorder (−2.10), lifetime history of an anxiety disorder (0.45), lifetime history of other substance use disorder (0.63) All path estimates and covariate coefficients are unstandardized regression coefficients. * p<0.05, ** p<0.01, *** p<0.001.
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| acute withdrawal | phenotype |
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| age | phenotype |
| age at first drink | phenotype |
| age at first intoxication | phenotype |
| agreeableness | phenotype |
| alcohol | phenotype |
| alcohol abuse | phenotype |
| alcohol dependence | phenotype |
| alcoholism | phenotype |
| alcohol-related outcomes | phenotype |
| alcohol-related problems | phenotype |
| Alcohol Use | phenotype |
| Alcohol Use Disorder | phenotype |
| Alzheimer's disease | phenotype |
| anger hostility local | phenotype |
| anxiety | phenotype |
| anxiety symptoms | phenotype |
| AUDIT | phenotype |
| bipolar disorder | phenotype |
| brain function | phenotype |
| brain structure | anatomy |
| Brain structure and function local | anatomy |
| Caucasian race local | phenotype |
| childhood trauma | phenotype |
| Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) local | phenotype |
| CIWA score local | phenotype |
| cocaine | phenotype |
| community sample | cohort |
| co-morbid psychiatric disorders local | phenotype |
| Co-morbid psychiatric disorders local | phenotype |
| conscientiousness | phenotype |
| control | cohort |
| controls | cohort |
| CTQ total score local | phenotype |
| depression | phenotype |
| depressive symptoms | phenotype |
| early alcohol use | phenotype |
| Early childhood trauma local | phenotype |
| emotional abuse | phenotype |
| emotional neglect | phenotype |
| emotion regulation | phenotype |
| Epidemiological alcohol dependent subjects local | cohort |
| externalizing disorders | phenotype |
| family conflict | phenotype |
| family history of alcoholism | phenotype |
| First alcohol use | phenotype |
| genetic variants | cohort |
| hazardous drinking | phenotype |
| heavy drinking | phenotype |
| Heavy drinking years local | phenotype |
| History of Heavy Alcohol Use local | phenotype |
| Impulsiveness subfacet local | phenotype |
| impulsivity | phenotype |
| insecure attachment | phenotype |
| internalizing disorders | phenotype |
| major depressive disorder | phenotype |
| mood disorders | phenotype |
| mood-related drinking motives | phenotype |
| negative affect | phenotype |
| negative mood | phenotype |
| negative urgency | phenotype |
| neglect | phenotype |
| NEO-PIR local | drug |
| Neuroendocrine stress response local | phenotype |
| neuroticism | phenotype |
| neurotic personality traits local | phenotype |
| Neurotic personality traits local | phenotype |
| NIAAA research protocols local | cohort |
| non-alcohol-dependent individuals local | cohort |
| Non-dependent individuals local | cohort |
| Non-dependent subjects local | cohort |
| openness to experience | phenotype |
| Personality Factors local | phenotype |
| personality traits | phenotype |
| physical abuse | phenotype |
| physical development | phenotype |
| physical neglect | phenotype |
| posttraumatic stress disorder | phenotype |
| Psychiatric co-morbidity local | phenotype |
| psychiatric disorders | phenotype |
| Psychological development local | phenotype |
| psychopathology | phenotype |
| race/ethnicity | phenotype |
| recall bias | phenotype |
| Recent or current life stressors local | phenotype |
| self-consciousness | phenotype |
| severe alcohol use disorder | phenotype |
| severity of alcohol dependence | phenotype |
| sex | phenotype |
| social functioning | phenotype |
| subjects | cohort |
| substance use | phenotype |
| suicide | phenotype |
| treatment-seeking alcoholic inpatients local | cohort |
| treatment-seeking alcoholics local | cohort |
| Treatment seeking alcoholics local | cohort |
| Treatment-seeking alcoholics local | cohort |
| vulnerability | phenotype |
| withdrawal anxiety local | phenotype |
| Withdrawal anxiety local | phenotype |
| Withdrawal anxiety symptoms local | phenotype |
| withdrawal severity | phenotype |
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| Title | Year | PMID |
|---|---|---|
| Comparison of Parent, Peer, Psychiatric, and Cannabis Use Influences Across Stages of Offspring Alcohol Involvement: Evidence from the COGA Prospective Study. | 2017 | 28073157 |
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