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It is well known that negative experiences during childhood can increase the risk of developing mental health problems, but this sad fact alone does not explain anyone who later develops forms of psychological distress.
In a recent study, researchers set out to explore how people’s life stories influenced the development of psychopathology – the abnormal thoughts and behaviors that often underlie mental disorders.
As might be expected, the research results have been mixed: Indeed, negative childhood experiences can manifest as anxiety or other mental health disorders later in life, but l Absence of such experiences does not guarantee that you will be free from subsequent psychological problems, scientists say.
“This research shows that mental health problems are not determined solely by early life events,” explains evolutionary psychologist Bianca Kahl of the University of South Australia.
“A child who is raised in a happy home could still grow up and have a mental health problem.
This may seem like an obvious result, but it’s an important piece of research that helps break the stigma that mental health issues only affect certain people.
In the study, Kahl and her fellow researchers interviewed 343 participants via an online questionnaire, asking them questions about their family and upbringing, as well as several questions exploring the nature of their developmental trajectory, their mental health, their well being. -be general and the nature of their relationships and attachments. today.
“The study specifically aimed to explore whether life history traits were associated with a general factor of psychopathology or whether they could also predict specific symptom clusters,” the authors explain in their article.
In this context, life history traits are part of what is called life history theory – a framework for analyzing how different types of life strategies can influence patterns and patterns. experiences that people have over time.
In a very simplified sense, lifecycle strategies can be characterized as fast or slow, with rapid decision making and behavior often meaning impulsive and present oriented, unlike slow traits, which reflect more decision making. deliberative, forward-looking and behavioral.
What Kahl and his team wanted to analyze was whether the fast or slow living strategies were predictive of a general “ p-factor, ” representing an overall risk or likelihood of developing psychopathology and related mental disorders, which in the past turned out to be related. with rapid life cycle strategies.
“Our goal was to answer the research question: how do the different symptoms of psychopathology fit in the fast-slow lifecycle continuum?” write the researchers.
“We hypothesized that attachment to childhood would moderate the association between the early childhood environment and symptoms of psychopathology, with those who had greater parental support perceived potentially buffered from the effect. childhood environmental harshness, and in turn reporting fewer symptoms of psychopathology. “
In the study, the team found that faster life history traits were associated with general psychopathology, but the results showed that some psychopathology symptoms were actually associated with slow life history traits. .
“Less perceived parental support and lower socioeconomic status were associated with higher rates of general psychopathology, respectively for women and men,” the team explains.
“These results are complementary to previous work demonstrating an association between experienced adversity and the p factor.”
Outside of this general association, however, the symptoms of psychopathology were somewhat divided, findings showing interpersonal sensitivity and depression were more likely in people with a faster life cycle strategy, while somatization and l Anxiety was greater in people with a slower lifecycle strategy.
As to whether a happy childhood (specifically, perceived parental support) acted as a sort of buffer against psychopathology, the researchers found their hypothesis was not supported by the data – suggesting the relationship is more complex. and highlighting a direction for future research. , so that we can understand what is really going on here.
“We suspect that it is our expectations about our environments and our ability to adapt to scenarios when our expectations are not being met that may influence our experiences of distress,” Kahl says.
“If, as children, we learn to adapt to change and to cope when things are going wrong, we may be in a better position to respond to stress and other risk factors. poor mental health.
The results are reported in Current psychology.
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