Severe sexual abuse in childhood and altered neurophysiological response to reward in female adults.
Child Abuse Negl
; 154: 106945, 2024 Aug.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39013306
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
A relatively understudied but growing body of research indicates that individuals with a history of childhood trauma exhibit altered reward processing in adulthood. Research to date has focused on adversity broadly, with studies typically finding evidence of blunted response to rewards in adults with a history of childhood trauma.OBJECTIVE:
Given the role of reward processing in risk for psychopathology and the particularly pathogenic nature of sexual abuse (SA), the present study sought to assess whether adults with a history of severe childhood SA exhibit altered neurophysiological response to rewards. PARTICIPANTS ANDSETTING:
Female adults (N = 105) were included from two study sites that used the same measures of childhood trauma (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, CTQ), reward processing (Doors Task), and psychopathology (SCID).METHODS:
Based on participants' CTQ and SCID responses, three groups were created Severe SA (n = 36), Clinical Match (with comparable lifetime psychopathology but no-to-minimal SA history; n = 35), and Healthy Controls (n = 34). Group differences in RewP amplitude were assessed.RESULTS:
The Severe SA group exhibited larger reward positivity (RewP) amplitude to monetary rewards than the Clinical Match and Healthy Control groups (partial Æ2 = 0.06, p = .047). This effect remained after covarying for severity of other forms of childhood trauma.CONCLUSIONS:
Our study found that severe SA in childhood was related to a heightened response to reward in adulthood. Furthermore, this was not attributable to the severity of other forms of early trauma or comorbid psychopathology. Future studies are needed to identify how heightened reward processing following severe childhood SA may be implicated in the onset and course of psychopathology.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Recompensa
/
Abuso Sexual Infantil
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Adultos Sobrevivientes del Maltrato a los Niños
Límite:
Adolescent
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Adult
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Child
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Female
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Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Child Abuse Negl
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article