[Resources, Childhood Trauma and Psychopathology in a Psychiatric Inpatient Sample]

Childhood trauma can have a negative impact on the development of personal and social resources in later adulthood. This is problematic, because resources can be a protective factor against the development of psychiatric disorders and are potentially beneficial for therapy outcomes. The current study considered the association between childhood trauma and resources as well as the impact of these 2 factors on psychopathology and symptom reduction in a psychiatric in-patient sample. We anticipated negative relationships between resources and the extent of childhood traumatization as well as resources and psychiatric symptoms. We also expected a positive association between trauma and symptoms. Furthermore, we assumed that higher current resources would be associated with a higher symptom reduction and more severe traumatization in childhood with a lower reduction of symptoms. These hypotheses were tested with correlation and regression analysis in a sample of n=93 patients with depressive and posttraumatic symptomatology in a psychiatric clinic in Offenburg. As expected, we found negative associations between resources and childhood trauma as well as resources and symptoms. However, contrary to our predictions, we could only find a significant association between childhood traumatization and posttraumatic, but not depressive symptoms. Also, there was no significant association between resources or childhood trauma and therapy outcome. The reported associations are relevant concerning the prevention of psychiatric disorders and thus have multiple implications for the development and use of preventive and therapeutic interventions.