TY - JOUR
T1 - The role of explicit and implicit self-esteem in the relationship between childhood trauma and adult depression and anxiety
AU - Gathier, Anouk W.
AU - van Tuijl, Lonneke A.
AU - Penninx, Brenda W.J.H.
AU - de Jong, Peter J.
AU - van Oppen, Patricia C.
AU - Vinkers, Christiaan H.
AU - Verhoeven, Josine E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors
PY - 2024/6/1
Y1 - 2024/6/1
N2 - Background: Self-esteem is an important psychological concept that can be measured explicitly (reflective processing) and implicitly (associative processing). The current study examined 1) the association between childhood trauma (CT) and both explicit and implicit self-esteem, and 2) whether self-esteem mediated the association between CT and depression/anxiety. Methods: In 1479 adult participants of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety, CT was assessed with a semi-structured interview, depression/anxiety symptoms with self-report questionnaires and explicit and implicit self-esteem with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Implicit Association Test, respectively. ANOVAs and regression analyses determined the association between CT (no/mild/severe CT), its subtypes (abuse/neglect) and self-esteem. Finally, we examined whether self-esteem mediated the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety. Results: Participants with CT reported lower explicit (but not lower implicit) self-esteem compared to those without CT (p < .001, partial η2 = 0.06). All CT types were associated with lower explicit self-esteem (p = .05 for sexual abuse, p < .001 for other CT types), while only emotional neglect significantly associated with lower implicit self-esteem after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics (p = .03). Explicit self-esteem mediated the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety symptoms (proportion mediated = 48–77 %). Limitations: The cross-sectional design precludes from drawing firm conclusions about the direction of the proposed relationships. Conclusions: Our results suggested that the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety symptoms can at least partly be explained by explicit self-esteem. This is of clinical relevance as it points to explicit self-esteem as a potential relevant treatment target for people with CT.
AB - Background: Self-esteem is an important psychological concept that can be measured explicitly (reflective processing) and implicitly (associative processing). The current study examined 1) the association between childhood trauma (CT) and both explicit and implicit self-esteem, and 2) whether self-esteem mediated the association between CT and depression/anxiety. Methods: In 1479 adult participants of the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety, CT was assessed with a semi-structured interview, depression/anxiety symptoms with self-report questionnaires and explicit and implicit self-esteem with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Implicit Association Test, respectively. ANOVAs and regression analyses determined the association between CT (no/mild/severe CT), its subtypes (abuse/neglect) and self-esteem. Finally, we examined whether self-esteem mediated the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety. Results: Participants with CT reported lower explicit (but not lower implicit) self-esteem compared to those without CT (p < .001, partial η2 = 0.06). All CT types were associated with lower explicit self-esteem (p = .05 for sexual abuse, p < .001 for other CT types), while only emotional neglect significantly associated with lower implicit self-esteem after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics (p = .03). Explicit self-esteem mediated the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety symptoms (proportion mediated = 48–77 %). Limitations: The cross-sectional design precludes from drawing firm conclusions about the direction of the proposed relationships. Conclusions: Our results suggested that the relationship between CT and depression/anxiety symptoms can at least partly be explained by explicit self-esteem. This is of clinical relevance as it points to explicit self-esteem as a potential relevant treatment target for people with CT.
KW - Anxiety
KW - Childhood trauma
KW - Depression
KW - Explicit self-esteem
KW - Implicit self-esteem
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85188416531&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.036
DO - 10.1016/j.jad.2024.03.036
M3 - Article
C2 - 38484893
AN - SCOPUS:85188416531
SN - 0165-0327
VL - 354
SP - 443
EP - 450
JO - Journal of Affective Disorders
JF - Journal of Affective Disorders
ER -