Exposure to multiple forms of victimisation in childhood (often referred to as poly-victimisation) has lifelong adverse effects, including an elevated risk of early-adulthood psychopathology. However, not all poly-victimised children develop mental health difficulties and identifying what protects them could inform preventive interventions. The present study investigated whether individual-, family- and/or community-level factors were associated with lower levels of general psychopathology at age 18, among children exposed to poly-victimisation. Additionally, it examined whether these factors were specific to poly-victimised children or also associated with fewer mental health difficulties in young adults regardless of whether they had been poly-victimised.

We used data from the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, a population-representative cohort of 2,232 children born in 1994–1995 across England and Wales and followed to 18 years of age (with 93% retention, n = 2,066). Poly-victimisation (i.e., exposure to two or more of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect, physical neglect, bullying by peers, and domestic violence) and nine putative protective factors (intelligence quotient, executive functioning, temperament, maternal and sibling warmth, atmosphere at home, maternal monitoring, neighbourhood social cohesion, and presence of a supportive adult) were measured prospectively between ages 5 and 12 years from interviews with mothers and children, surveys of neighbours, child-protection referrals, and researchers’ observations. Early-adulthood psychopathology was assessed in interviews with each twin at age 18 and used to construct a latent factor of general psychopathology.

Approximately a third (n = 720) of participants were prospectively defined as exposed to poly-victimisation (53% male). Poly-victimised children had greater levels of general psychopathology at age 18 than non-poly-victimised children (adjusted [adj.] β = 4.80; 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 3.13, 6.47). Presence of a supportive adult was the only factor robustly associated with lower levels of general psychopathology among poly-victimised children (adj.β = −0.61; 95% CI −0.99, −0.23). However, this association was also evident in the whole sample regardless of poly-victimisation exposure (adj.β = −0.52; 95% CI −0.81, −0.24) and no significant interaction was observed between the presence of a supportive adult and poly-victimisation in relation to age-18 general psychopathology.

Having at least one adult to turn to for support was found to be associated with less psychopathology in early adulthood among both poly-victimised and non-poly-victimised children. This suggests that strategies to promote better availability and utilisation of supportive adults should be implemented universally. However, it may be beneficial to target these interventions at poly-victimised children, given their higher burden of psychopathology in early adulthood.

Childhood maltreatment and peer victimisation are common sources of early-life interpersonal stress. Childhood maltreatment is associated with atypical frontolimbic emotion processing and regulation, and increased vulnerability for self-harm/suicide. However, few studies have compared the neurofunctional correlates between caregiver- versus peer-inflicted mistreatment.

We compared the alterations of neurofunctional correlates of facial emotion processing in youths exposed to childhood maltreatment or peer victimisation, and explored their associations with self-harm.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected from 114 age- and gender-matched youths (39 childhood maltreatment, 37 peer victimisation and 38 controls) during an emotion discrimination task. Region-of-interest (amygdala, insula) and whole-brain analyses were conducted.

Groups differed significantly during disgust processing only. Both groups had lower activation in the right amygdala and bilateral posterior insula than controls; left insular underactivation was furthermore related to increased self-harm in maltreated youths. Compared with controls, at the whole-brain level, both groups also had underactivation in a cluster of bilateral limbic-thalamic-striatal, precuneus/posterior cingulate, temporal, fusiform/lingual and cerebellar regions, which was negatively associated with emotional problems in controls, as well as a cluster of somatosensory regions associated with increased self-harm in maltreated youths.

Early-life interpersonal stress from caregivers or peers is associated with common underactivation of limbic-thalamic-striatal, precuneus/posterior cingulate and somatosensory regions during disgust processing. The hypoactivation of key emotion and sensory processing and self-referential brain regions could be a potential suppressive mechanism to cope with the aversive emotion; however, it may also entail increased risk of affective psychopathology in seemingly healthy youths.

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is a strong risk factor for psychiatric disorders but serves in its current definitions as an umbrella for various fundamentally different childhood experiences. As first step toward a more refined analysis of the impact of CM, our objective is to revisit the relation of abuse and neglect, major subtypes of CM, with symptoms across disorders.

Three longitudinal studies of major depressive disorder (MDD, N = 1240), bipolar disorder (BD, N = 1339), and schizophrenia (SCZ, N = 577), each including controls (N = 881), were analyzed. Multivariate regression models were used to examine the relation between exposure to abuse, neglect, or their combination to the odds for MDD, BD, SCZ, and symptoms across disorders. Bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) was used to probe causality, using genetic instruments of abuse and neglect derived from UK Biobank data (N = 143 473).

Abuse was the stronger risk factor for SCZ (OR 3.51, 95% CI 2.17–5.67) and neglect for BD (OR 2.69, 95% CI 2.09–3.46). Combined CM was related to increased risk exceeding additive effects of abuse and neglect for MDD (RERI = 1.4) and BD (RERI = 1.1). Across disorders, abuse was associated with hallucinations (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.55–3.01) and suicide attempts (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.55–3.01) whereas neglect was associated with agitation (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02–1.51) and reduced need for sleep (OR 1.64, 95% CI 1.08–2.48). MR analyses were consistent with a bidirectional causal effect of abuse with SCZ (IVWforward = 0.13, 95% CI 0.01–0.24).

Childhood abuse and neglect are associated with different risks to psychiatric symptoms and disorders. Unraveling the origin of these differences may advance understanding of disease etiology and ultimately facilitate development of improved personalized treatment strategies.

Childhood trauma (CT) has been cross-sectionally associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS), a group of biological risk factors for cardiometabolic disease. Longitudinal studies, while rare, would clarify the development of cardiometabolic dysregulations over time. Therefore, we longitudinally investigated the association of CT with the 9-year course of MetS components.

Participants (N = 2958) from the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety were assessed four times across 9 years. The CT interview retrospectively assessed childhood emotional neglect and physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. Metabolic outcomes encompassed continuous MetS components (waist circumference, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol, blood pressure [BP], and glucose) and count of clinically elevated MetS components. Mixed-effects models estimated sociodemographic- and lifestyle-adjusted longitudinal associations of CT with metabolic outcomes over time. Time interactions evaluated change in these associations.

CT was reported by 49% of participants. CT was consistently associated with increased waist (b = 0.32, s.e. = 0.10, p = 0.001), glucose (b = 0.02, s.e. = 0.01, p < 0.001), and count of MetS components (b = 0.04, s.e. = 0.01, p < 0.001); and decreased HDL cholesterol (b = −0.01, s.e.<0.01, p = .020) and systolic BP (b = −0.33, s.e. = 0.13, p = 0.010). These associations were mainly driven by severe CT and unaffected by lifestyle. Only systolic BP showed a CT-by-time interaction, where CT was associated with lower systolic BP initially and with higher systolic BP at the last follow-up.

Over time, adults with CT have overall persistent poorer metabolic outcomes than their non-maltreated peers. Individuals with CT have an increased risk for cardiometabolic disease and may benefit from monitoring and early interventions targeting metabolism.

iLookOut, a web-based child abuse training for early childcare professionals (ECPs), has been shown to improve knowledge and attitudes related to correctly identifying and reporting suspected cases of child abuse. The overarching goal of the present study is to examine “what works for whom” for iLookOut in order to identify strategies for optimizing learner outcomes.

This prospective study enrolled 12,705 ECPs who completed iLookOut (November 2014–December 2018). We used structural equation models to test whether learner demographic and professional characteristics were differentially associated with implementation outcomes (i.e., acceptability and appropriateness) and whether these mediated subsequent indicators of training effectiveness (i.e., gains in knowledge).

Consistent with previous research, individuals with lower baseline knowledge scores showed greater knowledge gains (β = −.57; p < .001). Greater knowledge gains were seen for learners who reported higher acceptability (β = .08; p < .001) or appropriateness (β = .14; p < .001). Implementation outcomes strongly associated with knowledge gains included acceptability for female learners and appropriateness for learners who had not completed high school or had >15 years of experience in childcare settings. Where mediation was found, for the majority of groups, appropriateness emerged as the driving mediator.

Implementation outcomes emerged as important drivers of knowledge change for most groups. The iLookOut Core Training’s use of a multimedia learning environment, video-based storylines, and game-based techniques were endorsed by learners and correlated with increases in knowledge. Future work should explore why aspects of the iLookOut training are rated as less acceptable or appropriate by some groups and what changes would improve efficacy for low performing learners.

The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biological aging, and if effects were mediated by the timing of puberty.

In early mid-life, 187 Black and 198 White (Mage = 39.4, s.d.age = 1.2) women reported on early abuse and age at first menstruation (menarche). Women provided saliva and blood to assess epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein. Using structural equation modeling, we created a latent variable of biological aging using epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein as indicators, and a latent variable of early abuse using indicators of abuse/threat events before age 13, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. We estimated the indirect effects of early abuse and of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche. Race was used as a proxy for adversity in the form of systemic racism.

There was an indirect effect of early adversity on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.19, 95% CI 0.03–0.44), in that women who experienced more adversity were younger at menarche, which was associated with greater accelerated aging. There was also an indirect effect of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.25, 95% CI 0.04–0.52), in that Black women were younger at menarche, which led to greater accelerated aging.

Early abuse and being Black in the USA may both induce a phenotype of accelerated aging. Early adversity may begin to accelerate aging during childhood, in the form of early pubertal timing.

Children of incarcerated mothers are at increased risk of experiencing multiple adversity such as poverty, mental illness and contact with child protection services (CPS), including being taken into out of home care (OOHC). However, little is known about whether these children are at increased risk of suicide or self-harm compared to children not exposed to maternal incarceration or about the factors that may contribute to this. We aimed to investigate differences in the risk of suicide and self-harm between children exposed to maternal incarceration and those not exposed and examine how socio-demographic factors, maternal mental illness and CPS contact (with or without OOHC) may affect these outcomes.

We used a retrospective matched cohort study design, comparing 7674 children exposed to maternal incarceration with 7674 non-exposed children. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression to compare the risk of suicide and self-harm between exposed and non-exposed groups, controlling for geographical remoteness, CPS contact and maternal mental illness.

There was no significant difference in the rate of suicide (rate ratio [RR] = 1.49; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.78, 2.87) or risk of suicide (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.43, 1.96) between the two groups. However, the exposed group had a significantly higher rate of self-harm (RR = 2.83; 95% CI: 2.50, 3.21) and a significantly higher risk of self-harm (aHR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.45, 2.09) compared to those non-exposed. CPS contact with or without OOHC was independently associated with an increased risk of self-harm for both groups.

Children exposed to maternal incarceration are at an increased risk of self-harm and should be prioritized to receive targeted, multimodal support that continues after the mother’s release from prison. The association between CPS contact and self-harm warrants further research.