Hou Hao, Zhang Caochen, Tang Jie, Wang Jingjing, Xu Jiaqi, Zhou Qin, Yan Wenjun, Gao Xiuyin, Wang Wei
Department of Community and Health Education, School of Public Health, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, China.
School of Medical Technology, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, China.
Front Psychol. 2022 Feb 25;13:800871. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.800871. eCollection 2022.
Childhood experiences can exert a huge impact on adult psychological conditions. Previous studies have confirmed the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) on psychological distress (e.g., stress, depression, and suicidal ideation) separately, but few studies explored a combined effect of ACEs and BCEs on psychological distress. The aim of this study was to explore a combined effect of ACEs and BCEs on psychological distress among Chinese undergraduates.
Participants were undergraduates aged 17-24 years ( = 1,816) and completed a self-reported questionnaire. A series of regression analyses were conducted to examine the association between childhood experiences and psychological distress.
A total of 65.7% of undergraduates had BCEs, 27.1% of undergraduates had ACEs, and 12.9% of undergraduates had ACEs and BCEs simultaneously. Logistic regression analysis indicated that undergraduates who experienced high ACEs were more likely to have a high risk of psychological distress [odds ratio (ORs) = 1.46, 1.84, and 3.15 for uncertainty stress, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation, respectively], while undergraduates who experienced High BCEs were less likely to have psychological distress (ORs = 0.33, 0.22, and 0.32 for uncertainty stress, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation, respectively) compared with Low-Both group. The combined effect of ACEs and BCEs (High-Both group) could also play as a protective factor in uncertainty stress (OR = 0.56) and depressive symptoms (OR = 0.47).
Our findings suggested that ACEs and BCEs could not only predict the psychological distress independently, but also BCEs could counteract the negative effect of ACEs in psychological problems. There is an even greater need to identify and support the victims of ACEs and to increase BCEs in early childhood.
童年经历会对成人的心理状况产生巨大影响。以往研究分别证实了童年不良经历（ACEs）和童年良性经历（BCEs）对心理困扰（如压力、抑郁和自杀意念）的影响，但很少有研究探讨ACEs和BCEs对心理困扰的综合影响。本研究旨在探讨ACEs和BCEs对中国大学生心理困扰的综合影响。
参与者为17至24岁的大学生（n = 1816），他们完成了一份自我报告问卷。进行了一系列回归分析，以检验童年经历与心理困扰之间的关联。
共有65.7%的大学生有BCEs，27.1%的大学生有ACEs，12.9%的大学生同时有ACEs和BCEs。逻辑回归分析表明，经历高ACEs的大学生更有可能面临高心理困扰风险[不确定性压力、抑郁症状和自杀意念的优势比（ORs）分别为1.46、1.84和3.15]，而与低双经历组相比，经历高BCEs的大学生出现心理困扰的可能性较小（不确定性压力、抑郁症状和自杀意念的ORs分别为0.33、0.22和0.32）。ACEs和BCEs的综合影响（高双经历组）在不确定性压力（OR = 0.56）和抑郁症状（OR = 0.47）方面也可作为保护因素。
我们的研究结果表明，ACEs和BCEs不仅可以独立预测心理困扰，而且BCEs可以抵消ACEs在心理问题中的负面影响。更有必要识别和支持ACEs的受害者，并在幼儿期增加BCEs。
