Maternal depression in the intergenerational transmission of childhood maltreatment and its sequelae: Testing postpartum effects in a longitudinal birth cohort

Date

2019

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Development and Psychopathology

Abstract

Mothers who have experienced childhood maltreatment are more likely to have children also exposed to maltreatment, a phenomenon known as intergenerational transmission. Factors in the perinatal period may contribute uniquely to this transmission but timing effects have not been ascertained. Using structural equation modeling with 1,016 mothers and their 2,032 children in the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study, we tested the mediating role of postpartum depression between maternal childhood maltreatment and a cascade of negative child outcomes, specifically child exposure to maltreatment, internalizing symptoms, and externalizing symptoms: (1) adjusting for later maternal depression, (2) comparing across sex differences, and (3) examining the relative role of maltreatment subtypes. Mothers who had been maltreated as children were at increased risk for postpartum depression, especially those who had experienced emotional or sexual abuse. In turn, postpartum depression predicted children’s exposure to maltreatment, followed by emotional and behavioral problems. Indirect effects from maternal childhood maltreatment to child outcomes were robust across child sex and supported significant mediation through postpartum depression; however, this appeared to be carried by mothers’ depression beyond the postpartum period. Identifying and treating postpartum depression—and preventing its recurrence—may help interrupt the intergenerational transmission of maltreatment and its sequelae. (Author Abstract)

Description

Keywords

child abuse, research, long term effects, psychological effects, parenting, risk factors, family violence, domestic violence

Citation

Choi, Karmel W. ; Houts, Renate ; Arseneault, Louise ; Pariante, Carmine ; Sikkema, Kathleen J. ; Moffitt, Terrie E. (2019). Maternal depression in the intergenerational transmission of childhood maltreatment and its sequelae: Testing postpartum effects in a longitudinal birth cohort. Development and Psychopathology, 31(1), 143–156.

DOI