Childhood maltreatment and suicidal ideation in Chinese children and adolescents: the mediation of resilience

Abstract

Background Childhood maltreatment could increase the risk of suicidal ideation (SI) in adolescents. However, the mediation of resilience in this association remains unclear. Methods A population-based cross-sectional study has been done among 3,146 Chinese adolescents. We collected relevant information from the study participants by using self-administered questionnaire. Chinese version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), the Resilience Scale for Chinese Adolescents (RSCA), and the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSSI) were used to measure childhood maltreatment, resilience, and SI, respectively. Univariate and multivariate binary Logistic regression models were employed to estimate crude and adjusted associations between childhood maltreatment, resilience, and SI. Path analysis has subsequently been performed to measure the mediation of resilience in this association. Results Multivariate Logistic regression models revealed that compared to non-abused counterparts, adolescents who had ever experienced any type of childhood maltreatment was 1.74 times likely to report SI. Among the specific types of childhood maltreatment, emotional abuse showed the strongest association with SI (adjusted OR = 3.01, 95% CI [2.37–3.82]). Path model suggested that over one-third (39.8%) of the total association between childhood maltreatment and SI was mediated via resilience. Emotion regulation and interpersonal assistance were the most prominent mediators among all dimensions of resilience. Conclusions Resilience played as a significant mediator in the association between childhood maltreatment and SI. Resilience-oriented intervention measures could be considered for suicidal risk prevention among abused Chinese adolescents.

School connectedness and psychological resilience as mediators in the relationship between childhood abuse and suicidal ideation among Chinese adolescents

“…We found that psychological resilience mediated the association between childhood abuse and suicidal ideation, which corroborates previous findings (Chen et al, 2021 ). For instance, a survey found that resilience partially mediated the effect of childhood maltreatment on self-harm behaviours among adolescents (Tian et al, 2021 ).…”

“…As noted by Roy et al ( 2011 ), psychological resilience prevented individuals who were exposed to childhood traumas from suicide attempts. Further, a study among Chinese adolescents revealed that resilience partially mediated the effect of childhood maltreatment on suicidal ideation (Chen et al, 2021 ). Therefore, we hypothesized that psychological resilience mediated the relationship between childhood abuse and suicidal ideation.…”

Childhood maltreatment and suicidal ideation in Chinese children and adolescents: the mediating role of mindfulness

“…Compared to adolescents who had not experienced CM, victims are seen statistically higher odds of SI. This finding was in agreement with two previous largescale population-based longitudinal studies [9,10]. The connection between CM and suicidality has been repeatedly validated.…”

“…CM imposes serious and profound psychological impairment to the victims: compared to non-abused counterparts, children and adolescents who had experienced CM showed higher level of generalized guilt, shame, depression, and anxiety [7,8]. CM also relates to increased risk of SI: findings from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R) suggested that CM was associated with an increased odds of SI (OR = 1.80) in 5665 US adults [9]; in another newly published cross-sectional study of 3146 Chinese children and adolescents, study subjects who had ever experienced any type of CM were 1.74 times more likely to report SI [10].…”

Suicide resilience: A concept analysis

“…With the observation of the fact that a number of individuals exposed to high suicide risks would not be suicidal, researchers in the suicide field have become more and more interested in the phenomenon of resilience ( 9 ). Empirical findings have indicated that resilience represents an intermediate between suicide risk factors and suicidality, and may mitigate the adverse effect of suicide risk factors ( 10 , 11 ). Furthermore, individuals with low resilience were associated with an increased risk of lifelong suicidal behaviors ( 12 ).…”