The Relationship Between Childhood Maltreatment and Depression in College Students: The Chain Mediating Effects of Perceived Social Support and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation

Childhood maltreatment is a well-recognized distal risk factor for depression. College students have been recognized as one of the populations with a high incidence of depression, and a considerable proportion of them report experiences of childhood maltreatment. The potential pathways accounting for the association between childhood maltreatment and depression have been understudied, especially among college students. Childhood maltreatment enhances the risk of depression, possibly via perceived social support or difficulties in emotion regulation. However, studies investigating these associations simultaneously are still needed to be explored in deeply. This study attempts to construct an integrative chain mediating model in which the association between childhood maltreatment and depression was sequentially mediated by perceived social support and difficulties in emotion regulation among college students. A total of 1,728 Chinese college students (mean age 18.34) completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form (CTQ-SF), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS), and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS). Chain mediation analyses were conducted. The results of the correlation analyses showed that CTQ-SF, BDI, PSSS, and DERS were significantly pairwise correlated ( p < .01). The path analyses suggested that childhood maltreatment may be associated with depression through three pathways among college students: (a) the independent mediating role of PSSS ( B = 0.028, 95% CI [0.005, 0.052]), (b) the independent mediating role of DERS ( B = 0.111 [0.088, 0.136]), and (c) the chain mediating roles of PSSS and DERS ( B = 0.059 [0.047, 0.074]). These findings contribute to a better understanding of the complex associations among CTQ-SF, PSSS, DERS, and BDI among college students, providing preliminary support for the framework of interpersonal emotion regulation. Some interventions targeting enhancing the level of perceived social support and developing adaptive emotional regulation strategies in college students with childhood maltreatment may be effective in reducing depression.