Wayne State University, School of Social Work, Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, 5447 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI, 48202, USA.
Child Abuse Negl. 2019 Apr;90:43-51. doi: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2019.01.018. Epub 2019 Feb 6.
Nearly a third of adults report childhood trauma in their youth and approximately 700,000 cases of child maltreatment were reported in 2016. Both history of childhood trauma and current trauma symptoms in adults are linked to child maltreatment, although many trauma-exposed individuals are warm and nurturing parents. Identifying resiliency factors in adults with risk factors for harsh parenting may illuminate new pathways to sensitive parenting. Mindfulness is reported to improve trauma and mental health symptoms but the relationship between mindfulness, trauma, and child abuse potential is not yet understood.
This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between mindfulness, childhood trauma experiences, trauma symptoms and child abuse potential.
Our participants were 102 expectant parents recruiting from obstetric clinics and agencies Detroit, MI (58.8% African American, 27.5% Caucasian).
Bivariate correlations were examined using validated, self-report questionnaires. Significant variables were included in a hierarchical linear regression to identify predicting factors that contribute to child abuse potential scores.
Significant correlations between child abuse potential with current trauma symptoms (r = .53, p < .01) and mindfulness (r = -.32, p < .01) were found, but no link with past childhood trauma experiences and child abuse potential were identified. The model significantly predicts child abuse potential (ΔR = .10, F(5, 96), = 12.48, p < .001). Trauma symptoms (B = .09, p < .001, 95% confidence interval [CI][-.40, -.07]) and mindfulness nonreactivity (B = -.24, p < .01, 95% CI[.05, .14]) predicted higher potential for child abuse scores.
Findings suggest increased mindfulness, especially nonreactivity to one's own thoughts, may be an important factor to protect against child abuse potential. Interventions to increase parental mindfulness may reduce child abuse potential and improve child well-being, but further mechanistic research is needed to determine this.
近三分之一的成年人在年轻时报告童年创伤，而 2016 年报告的儿童虐待案件约有 70 万起。成年人的童年创伤史和当前创伤症状都与儿童虐待有关，尽管许多经历过创伤的人都是温暖和养育子女的父母。在有严厉育儿风险因素的成年人中确定适应力因素可能会为敏感育儿开辟新途径。正念被报道可以改善创伤和心理健康症状，但正念、创伤和虐待儿童可能性之间的关系尚不清楚。
本横断面研究调查了正念、童年创伤经历、创伤症状和虐待儿童可能性之间的关系。
我们的参与者是来自底特律妇产诊所和机构的 102 名准父母（58.8%为非裔美国人，27.5%为白人）。
使用经过验证的自我报告问卷进行了双变量相关性分析。将显著变量纳入分层线性回归，以确定对虐待儿童可能性评分有贡献的预测因素。
发现虐待儿童可能性与当前创伤症状（r =.53，p <.01）和正念（r = -.32，p <.01）之间存在显著相关性，但未发现与过去童年创伤经历和虐待儿童可能性之间存在关联。该模型显著预测了虐待儿童的可能性（ΔR =.10，F（5, 96）= 12.48，p <.001）。创伤症状（B =.09，p <.001，95%置信区间[CI][-.40，-.07]）和正念的非反应性（B = -.24，p <.01，95% CI [.05，.14]）预测了更高的虐待儿童可能性评分。
研究结果表明，增加正念，尤其是对自己的想法不反应，可能是预防虐待儿童可能性的重要因素。增加父母正念的干预措施可能会降低虐待儿童的可能性并改善儿童福祉，但需要进一步的机制研究来确定这一点。
