Associations of early childhood adversities with mental disorders, psychological functioning, and suitability for psychotherapy in adulthood

Childhood adversities – such as early separation from caregivers, emotional neglect, physical and sexual abuse, parental problems, and overall family unhappiness – are robustly associated with depression, anxiety, and other psychiatric problems in adulthood (Edwards et al., 2003; Gilbert et al., 2009). Mechanisms beh ind this consistent observation from both prospective and retrospective studies are still not well-known (Kaufman, 2012). The pathways to pathology may be influenced by numerous intra-individual and environmental factors and their interaction during development.

Source: Psychiatry Research - April 3, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Authors: Erkki Heinonen, Paul Knekt, Tommi H ärkänen, Esa Virtala, Olavi Lindfors Source Type: research