Citation

Turner S, Taillieu T, Cheung K, Afifi TO. Child Abuse Negl. 2017; 66: 64-72.

Affiliation

Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Manitoba, Canada. Electronic address: tracie.afifi@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.chiabu.2017.01.018

PMID

28185670

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined the associations between childhood sexual abuse (CSA), co-occurrence with other types of maltreatment and adult mental health outcomes, specifically among males. The objectives of this study were to: 1) determine the prevalence of males who have experienced a) childhood maltreatment without CSA; b) CSA without other forms of childhood maltreatment; and c) CSA along with other forms of childhood maltreatment; and 2) determine the relationship between CSA among males and mood, anxiety, substance and personality disorders and suicide attempts.

METHODS: Data were drawn from the 2004-2005 National Epidemiological Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) and limited to males age 20 years old and older (n=14,564). Child maltreatment included harsh physical punishment, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, physical neglect and exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV).

RESULTS: Emotional abuse, physical abuse, and exposure to IPV were the most common forms of maltreatment that co-occurred with CSA among males. A history of CSA only, and CSA co-occurring with other types of child maltreatment, resulted in higher odds for many mental disorders and suicide attempts compared to a history of child maltreatment without CSA.

CONCLUSIONS: Child maltreatment is associated with increased odds of mental disorders among males. Larger effects were noted for many mental disorders and suicide attempts for males who experienced CSA with or without other child maltreatment types compared to those who did not experience CSA. These results are important for understanding the significant long-term effects of CSA among males.

Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Child maltreatment; Child sexual abuse; Co-occurrence; Males; Mental disorders