Current parental maltreatment and emerging adult psychopathology: indirect effects through family functioning across gender

Maltreatment disrupts a plethora of processes, including family functioning. There is little information to explore the nature in which maltreatment permeates family dynamics and emotional contexts, especially within the scope of psychological maltreatment. Although the effects of childhood maltreatment are well studied, current maltreatment experienced by emerging adults remains relatively understudied despite its continued occurrence. Thus, the current study examined the indirect effects of current maltreatment by parents on psychological problems via family functioning in emerging adult women and men using atemporal mediation. Participants (N = 1,051) reported their current mental health, experiences of maltreatment (psychological and physical), and family dynamics across several variables (i.e., balanced cohesion, balanced flexibility, disengagement, enmeshment, rigidity, and chaos). Data indicated an indirect effect between maternal psychological aggression and psychopathologies (internalizing and externalizing) for women and men, with the strongest effect for internalizing in mother-son dyads. Various tenets of familial adaptability and cohesion yielded an atemporal mediation between parental maltreatment and psychopathology for emerging adults, with variations across gender. Results support current maltreatment as a risk factor for both internalizing and externalizing psychopathologies, catalyzed by family dysfunction in families of emerging adult women and men. Implications include the need for prompt detection and intervention for current maltreatment, as it may indicate past experiences of abuse beyond the scope of this study. Additionally, research finds that other forms of social support such as non-biological kinships and friendships might serve as protective factors for the developmental of mental illness following traumatic experiences and may promote healthy adjustment.