Profiles of Childhood Abuse and Biopsychosocial Outcomes in Adulthood: A Nationally Representative Sample Analysis

Abstract

The study explored the profiles of childhood abuse and biopsychosocial outcomes in adulthood, as well as early predictive factors. Data were drawn from Wave I (ages 11-21 years) and IV (ages 24-33 years) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health dataset (N = 5112). Latent profile analysis (LPA) was employed to identify distinct patterns of childhood abuse and biopsychosocial outcomes (cardiometabolic risk, depressive symptoms, and socioeconomic functioning) in adulthood. Multinomial logistic regression was subsequently utilised to examine the predictive roles of early demographic factors, lifestyle behaviours, and parent-child relationships in adolescence. LPA identified five distinct profiles: low risk-adaptive, low risk-psychosocial maladaptive, medium risk-biopsychosocial maladaptive, high risk-adaptive, and high risk-psychosocial maladaptive profiles. Compared with the high risk-adaptive profile, being female and having a lower family income predicted membership in the medium risk-biopsychosocial maladaptive and high risk-psychosocial maladaptive profiles. Reduced sedentary behaviour and higher maternal closeness and warmth emerged as significant protective factors for resilient development. These findings reveal the diverse biopsychosocial outcomes associated with childhood abuse of varying severities. We also emphasise the critical need for tailored interventions that reduce sedentary time and enhance parent-child emotional closeness across different social backgrounds to foster resilience in the face of childhood adversity.