title: MATERNAL EXPERIENCE OF ABUSE IN CHILDHOOD AND DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN ADOLESCENT AND ADULT OFFSPRING: A 21-YEAR LONGITUDINAL STUDY.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Intergenerational effects of child abuse have been documented, but it is unknown whether maternal childhood abuse influences offspring mental health in adolescence or adulthood.
  
  
  METHODS
  To examine whether maternal experience of childhood abuse is associated with depressive symptoms in adolescent and young adult offspring, we linked data from two large longitudinal cohorts of women (N = 8,882) and their offspring (N = 11,402), and we examined three possible pathways by which maternal experience of abuse might be associated with offspring depressive symptoms: maternal mental health, family characteristics, and offspring's own experience of abuse.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Offspring of women who experienced severe versus no childhood abuse had greater likelihood of high depressive symptoms (RR = 1.78, 95% CI = 1.47, 2.16) and persistent high depressive symptoms (RR = 2.47, 95% CI = 1.37, 4.44). Maternal mental health accounted for 20.9% and offspring's exposure to abuse accounted for 30.3% of the elevated risk of high depressive symptoms. Disparities in offspring depressive symptoms by maternal abuse exposure were evident at age 12 years and persisted through age 31 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings provide evidence that childhood abuse adversely affects the mental health of the victim's offspring well into adulthood. As offspring exposure to abuse and maternal mental health accounted for more than 50% of the elevated risk of high depressive symptoms among offspring of women who experienced abuse, improving maternal mental health and parenting practices may reduce offspring risk for depressive symptoms in these families.
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Andrea L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland.
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Slopen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
authors.forename: Katie A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: McLaughlin
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Karestan C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Koenen
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.|Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Sydney Bryn
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Austin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008603:Mental Health; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D012306:Risk; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: adolescent; adult offspring; child abuse; depression; maternal behavior; sexual abuse