Citation

Polcari A, Rabi K, Bolger EA, Teicher MH. Child Abuse Negl. 2014; 38(1): 91-102.

Affiliation

Northeastern University, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, School of Nursing, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Developmental Biopsychiatry Research Program, McLean Hospital, 115 Mill Street, Belmont, MA 02478, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.chiabu.2013.10.003

PMID

24268711

Abstract

Previous research has shown that exposure to parental verbal aggression is common and associated with increased levels of depression, anxiety, dissociation, and drug use. A key question that has not been addressed is whether verbal affection from the same or opposite parent can attenuate the effects of verbal aggression. This cross-sectional study examined the effects of parental verbal aggression and affection during childhood on measures of psychopathology and wellbeing in a community sample of 2,518 individuals (18-25 years). Data were analyzed for moderating influences using mixed effect models and for direct and indirect effects using structural equation models. The moderation analysis suggested that high levels of exposure to verbal affection did not mitigate the effects of verbal aggression from the same parent, and high levels of verbal affection from another parent did not generally result in a significant attenuation of the effects of verbal aggression. Structural equation models showed that verbal aggression was predominantly associated with effects on psychiatric symptoms scores, whereas verbal affection was primarily associated with effects on measures of wellbeing. These findings highlight the relatively independent effects of verbal aggression and verbal affection and suggest that the latter may be particularly important in establishing a foundation for emotional and physical wellbeing. These findings also suggest that ridicule, disdain, and humiliation cannot be easily counteracted by praise and warmth from the same or another parent.

Language: en