Cognitive and emotional mediators of the transformation of adverse childhood experiences into depression, anxiety, and stress: Testing a model in young adults

Before the age of 18, disturbing events are referred to as adverse childhood experiences, and these are reported to have significant effects on depression-anxiety-stress. In the present study, which aims both to determine whether the effects of the past continue into the present and to broaden them, the effect of adverse childhood experiences on depression-anxiety-stress through positive-negative feelings and irrational beliefs was tested. Analyses of the data set obtained from 708 undergraduate students (458 females, 250 males, mean age: 20.84 ± 1.87) who were obtained using stratified and convenience sampling and who met the regression assumptions showed that there were significant relationships between the variables. reveal that adverse childhood experiences predict both the mediating variables of positive-negative feelings and irrational beliefs and the dependent variables of depression-anxiety-stress, together with these mediators. According to the other results obtained from the model, the strongest indirect effect of adverse childhood experiences on depression-anxiety-stress is realized through negative feelings. The mediator variables explain two-thirds of the effect of adverse childhood experiences on depression, more than half of the effect on anxiety, and about half of the effect on stress. Finally, compared to males, females have higher mean levels of adverse childhood experiences, negative feelings, depression-anxiety-stress, and lower levels of irrational beliefs. These findings, which are consistent with the literature, are discussed and interpreted, and suggestions are made regarding some potential limitations related to the model tested, the scope of adverse childhood experiences examined, and the study sample.