Measuring Adverse Childhood Experiences: Comparing Individual, Composite, Score-based and Latent Profile-based Scoring Schemas Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men
- 1 July 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Archives of Sexual Behavior
- Vol. 49 (5), 1741-1754
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01719-6
Abstract
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs; e.g., neglect, sexual abuse) among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) may not occur in isolation, but may be connected and occur in clusters. Most studies have measured ACEs individually, hierarchically, additively, or in a binary fashion (presence or absence of ACEs), rather than treating them as connected and clustered. This study examined these competing approaches of scoring ACEs and their relative power at predicting health outcomes. We examined abuse (sexual, physical, and emotional) and neglect (physical and emotional) experiences among a non-random sample of 470 Toronto GBM using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short Form subscales. We compared five scoring schemas: (1) five individual scores for each form of maltreatment; (2) a composite score summing all of the maltreatment scores; (3) a hierarchical regression model with sexual abuse entered first then followed by physical abuse, emotional abuse, physical neglect, and emotional neglect; (4) a severity-based categorization; and (5) a latent profile-based categorization. Experiences of abuse and neglect were not uncommon (22-33%) and some participants experienced multiple forms of abuse and neglect (r=.33-.65, df=464-467; p<.001; shared variance, r(2)=11-43%). Results show the dose-response effects of ACEs and highlight the importance of examining ACEs in clusters rather than individually. Latent profile analysis identified GBM who experienced multiple and frequent ACEs, and also identified the types of ACEs they experienced: crucial information that was obscured in score-based or severity-based approaches.Other Versions
Funding Information
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CBR - 112845)
- Ontario HIV Treatment Network (AHRC G937, SCI G650)
This publication has 65 references indexed in Scilit:
- A Systematic Review of PTSD Prevalence and Trajectories in DSM-5 Defined Trauma Exposed Populations: Intentional and Non-Intentional Traumatic EventsPLOS ONE, 2013
- The Long-Term Health Consequences of Child Physical Abuse, Emotional Abuse, and Neglect: A Systematic Review and Meta-AnalysisPLoS Medicine, 2012
- The neglect of child neglect: a meta-analytic review of the prevalence of neglectSocial psychiatry. Sozialpsychiatrie. Psychiatrie sociale, 2012
- Do shared etiological factors contribute to the relationship between sexual orientation and depression?Psychological Medicine, 2011
- Childhood abuse and mental health indicators among ethnically diverse lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 2010
- Childhood Adversities and Adult Psychiatric Disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication IIArchives of General Psychiatry, 2010
- Childhood Sexual Abuse Is Highly Associated With HIV Risk-Taking Behavior and Infection Among MSM in the EXPLORE StudyJAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 2009
- Childhood and adolescent sexual abuse and subsequent sexual risk behavior: Evidence from controlled studies, methodological critique, and suggestions for researchClinical Psychology Review, 2008
- Child multi-type maltreatment and associated depression and PTSD symptoms: The role of social support and stressChild Abuse & Neglect, 2007
- The CES-D ScaleApplied Psychological Measurement, 1977