Gender moderates the relationship between child maltreatment and mental health disorders in the Canadian population

Canadian population-based studies reveal experiences of childhood physical and sexual abuse differ by gender. However, less is known about gender differences in other types of child maltreatment. Additionally, while research links child maltreatment to mental health disorders, information about the role of gender in this relationship is limited. This study examines: (1) gender differences in experiences of emotional abuse, exposure to physical intimate partner violence (IPV), and emotional and physical neglect; and (2) whether gender moderates the relationship between mental health disorders and different types of child maltreatment.

Data from the 2018 Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces were used to estimate the proportion of men and women in Canada who experienced emotional abuse, exposure to physical IPV, and emotional and physical neglect. Multivariate regression analyses with interaction terms were used to examine associations between gender and childhood maltreatment, and mental health disorders. The final analytical sample was 40,660.

Greater proportions of women compared with men experienced emotional abuse (44.8 % vs. 35.8 %), emotional neglect (23.4 % vs. 16.5 %) and physical neglect (4.5 % vs. 3.4 %) in childhood. Relative to men, women who experienced emotional abuse in childhood had a higher probability of mood (0.108 vs. 0.129) and anxiety (0.124 vs. 0.171) disorders. Women exposed to physical IPV in childhood had a higher probability of an anxiety disorder compared with men (0.165 vs. 0.125, respectively).

Gender moderated the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and exposure to physical IPV, and some mental health disorders in the Canadian population.