The Relationship Between Experiencing Childhood Abuse and Mental Health Consequences During Adulthood: Do Gender, Self-Efficacy, and Collective Efficacy Matter?

We conducted a retrospective examination of the relationships between childhood abuse experiences, post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), psychological well-being (PWB), self-efficacy, and collective efficacy in adulthood. We also explored whether these relationships varied by gender. The study utilized a self-administered questionnaire with 760 Palestinian adults in Israel (59.6% women). The participants’ ages ranged from 34 to 65 years. Experiencing of child abuse in the family of origin was related to current negative mental health consequences in adulthood, including high levels of PTSS, low levels of PWB, low levels of self-efficacy, and low levels of collective efficacy. In addition, path analysis modeling revealed that childhood abuse had indirect effects on high levels of PTSS and low levels of PWB in adulthood through self-efficacy and collective efficacy. Adult men who had a history of childhood abuse showed lower collective efficacy than did women, leading to lower PWB. In terms of practical implications, intervention programs in Palestinian society in Israel should aim to prevent child abuse and mitigate its long-term effects by reducing PTSS and enhancing PWB, self-efficacy, and collective efficacy among adult survivors. Future research should use mixed methods to study childhood abuse in Arab societies and explore other patterns of family violence across developmental stages.