Children who are exposed to physical abuse or
domestic violence are at greater risk of having psychotic
experiences when they reach their teenage years, according to
new
research.
The study, which is published in the November
issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, examined 211
adolescents aged between 12 and 15 years and living in Dublin.
117 of the adolescents had already been
identified as being at high risk of having mental health problems.
The remaining 94 adolescents, who were matched for gender and
recruited from the same local schools, acted as a control
group.
All 211 adolescents – and their parents –
underwent psychiatric interviews to assess if they had experienced
traumatic childhood events. The interview enquired about a number
of traumatic events, including physical and sexual abuse, exposure
to domestic violence and bullying.
Of the 211 children interviewed, 14 (6.6%)
reported experiencing psychotic symptoms, which were mainly
auditory and visual hallucinations.
The researchers found that the adolescents who
reported psychotic symptoms were six times more likely to have
experienced physical abuse than those who did not report such
symptoms. In addition, they were ten times more likely to have
witnessed domestic violence in their homes.
Adolescents who reported psychotic symptoms
were also four times more likely to have experienced sexual abuse
but, because the reported rate of sexual abuse in the sample was so
small, this difference was not statistically significant.
An association was also found between
involvement in bullying and psychotic symptoms, with adolescents
reporting such symptoms more likely to be both a bully and a victim
of bullying themselves.
The researchers suggest that exposure to
traumatic events – such as childhood abuse or domestic violence –
may affect the regulation of hormones released by the central
nervous system. This can make people more vulnerable to stress and
place them at greater risk of future mental illness.
Another theory is that abusive experiences can
teach children that people are dangerous, eventually leading to
paranoid thoughts and the belief that normal life events are
threatening.
The researchers concluded: “Clearly not all individuals who
experience severely traumatic events in childhood go on to develop
a psychotic disorder…None the less, this paper adds to the evidence
that childhood events may be part of a cascade that leads to the
development of psychotic symptoms and may ultimately lead to the
onset of psychotic illness.”