Childhood physical abuse, perceived social support, and socioemotional status in adult women

Abstract

This study investigated the extent to which an interactional model, relative to a main effect model, predicts the relationship between childhood physical abuse, perceived social support, and various aspects of socioemotional functioning in adult women. The results indicated that perceived social support during childhood was significantly related to subsequent levels of adult depression, trait anxiety, and child abuse potential in a manner consistent with a main effect model. Childhood history of physical abuse was related only to adult child abuse potential. Implications and study limitations are discussed.