ABSTRACT
The goal in this study was to investigate the occurrence, frequency, and consequences of traumatic events during the first 2 decades of life. The sample comprised 524 Euro-American young adults from the rural Midwest who are part of an ongoing longitudinal study (see Conger & Conger, 2002). We found that psychiatric disorders were associated with traumatic events and particularly strongly associated with experiences of childhood maltreatment. Maltreated children were 5.64 times more likely to develop a disorder than individuals who experienced no trauma. These odds varied, depending on the disorder, from more than 3 for alcohol dependence to more than 18 for drug dependence. We found that social support acted to reduce risk for emotional disorder and buffered effects of traumatic events under some circumstances, especially in cases of childhood trauma.
