Faculty Publications
Bidirectional Relations Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Children’s Behavioral Problems
Document Type
Article
Keywords
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), Bidirectional relations, Child behavioral problems, Longitudinal study
Journal/Book/Conference Title
Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal
Abstract
Research has shown that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) increase the risk of poor health and well-being, yet less is known about the pathways through which these life outcomes emerge. For instance, prospective, longitudinal research into the link between ACEs and the trajectories of children’s behavioral problems is limited. Moreover, no longitudinal study has investigated whether children’s behavioral problems also increase their risk of adverse experiences over time. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to explore bidirectional relations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and children’s behavioral problems in a sample of low-income children. This study uses the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a birth cohort study of 4898 children followed from birth through 15 years of age. A random intercept cross-lagged panel model was fit to examine the bidirectional relations between ACEs and child behavioral problems. Study findings indicated that age 5 ACEs score significantly predicted age 9 anxious or depressed problems and age 9 aggressive problems. Age 5 anxious or depressed problems also significantly predicted age 9 ACEs exposure. From age 3 to age 9, ACEs also played a dominant role in the bidirectional relations with behavioral problems. There were certain bidirectional relations between ACEs and child behavioral problems. The findings have implications for understanding the etiology and consequences of adversities as well as the design of prevention and intervention strategies.
Department
Department of Social Work
Original Publication Date
1-1-2020
DOI of published version
10.1007/s10560-020-00720-1
Repository
UNI ScholarWorks, Rod Library, University of Northern Iowa
Language
en
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Lixia and Mersky, Joshua P., "Bidirectional Relations Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Children’s Behavioral Problems" (2020). Faculty Publications. 385.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/facpub/385
