Childhood emotional maltreatment and psychosocial functioning in adulthood: Associations with generalized interpersonal trust, life satisfaction, and self-reported psychiatric morbidity in a representative German sample.

BACKGROUND

Child maltreatment represents a major risk factor for psychological, physical, and social impairment across the lifespan. While the consequences of physical and sexual abuse are well documented, the impact of emotional abuse and neglect has long been underestimated. Recent evidence suggests that these forms of psychological maltreatment exert particularly far-reaching effects on social functioning and overall well-being.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to examine the long-term associations between different forms of childhood maltreatment - particularly emotional abuse -and key psychosocial outcomes in adulthood, including generalized interpersonal trust, life satisfaction, and self-reported diagnosed psychiatric morbidity.

PARTICIPANTS AND

SETTING

Analyses were based on data from a population-representative cross-sectional survey conducted in Germany (N = 2484; age range = 16-92 years; 46% female) between October 2024 and February 2025.

METHODS

Childhood maltreatment was assessed using the German version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Emotional abuse and emotional neglect were combined into a single index of emotional maltreatment. Psychosocial outcomes included generalized interpersonal trust, overall life satisfaction, and the number of self-reported diagnosed mental disorders. Group differences were analyzed using MANCOVA; specific associations were tested via logistic regression analyses controlling for age, gender, and education. Missing data were handled using multiple imputation.

RESULTS

Individuals with emotional or multiple maltreatment experiences reported significantly lower generalized interpersonal trust, lower life satisfaction, and higher self-reported diagnosed psychiatric morbidity (all p < .001). As an exploratory supplementary analysis, a series of logistic regression models was conducted to examine whether specific types of childhood maltreatment were differentially associated with distinct self-reported psychiatric diagnoses. Findings remained stable after multiple imputation.

CONCLUSIONS

Emotional abuse and neglect are associated with profound, transdiagnostic reductions in psychosocial well-being and should be considered equally severe as other forms of child maltreatment in prevention, diagnosis, and intervention.